My hens stopped laying and it's summer. ???

[famy]

Hi. I have two hens, Rhodie and a EE. They are about a month away from 2 years old. They both seemed to have stopped laying eggs. They both seem fine and look fine. At first I was wondering if they started eating them, but I would be surprised if they were consuming that much egg shell. Then I thought maybe a rat is stealing all the eggs because I had seen one in my shed next to the coop, and seen fresh rat droppings under the nesting boxes. But I am not sure. Any suggestions?

 

[bops]

They might be beginning to moult/molt, mine are. While they're mo(u)lting they wont lay. If the weather is getting colder where you live that may also be a factor There are probably many other reasons, but these are the only ones i can think of haha

 

[Judy]

If the rats are big enough, that could be it. A snake or other critter could be stealing them; usually here its a snake. They will definitely eat the egg shells of they eat the eggs, by the way, but this is probably not egg eating; it doesn't usually start all of a sudden like that. This time of year, a lot of eople are seeing a decrease in production. They might very well be heading into a molt.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/423023/why-arent-my-chickens-laying-here-are-your-answers/0_20