My 8 chickens are roughly three years old and 2 of them have went through a severe molt so I understood why they aren't laying. There was about two or maybe three more that went through a easier molt. The weather has gotten colder and it has been raining a whole lot. So I don't know if it is the age, the weather, molt, or if it is something else? I know that they can go through a heavier molt at this age and that it can cause them to take awhile for them to start laying again. It has been about two or three weeks. My concern is not really about the eggs but the reason why they aren't laying and making sure that this is normal under the cicumstances. Thanks. I do have a Silkie and she has just started to lay. She laid for about a week or two and then she has also stopped. She is in another area away from my large breeds. I figure this is from the weather but...
This is normal. I think it is age, weather, and daylight. After the age of 3 the laying drops off considerably add a molt the weather and less daylight to the mix and that will be the problem.
Some of my hens are about 1 1/2 years old and have not molted, but they had stopped laying. I put a light in their house and they started back laying after about 2 1/2 weeks. The light is on a timer and comes on at 3:30 AM and goes off at 6:00 AM.
The hours of daylight can be a huge factor, for sure. I found that using a plant-grow light bulb made the biggest difference.
