No eggs from Leghorn for 4 days

[ntjpm]

Should I be worried??

My brown Leghorn who (8 months old) normally lays 6 eggs a week. The last 4 days nothing. I grabbed her and felt her belly and I didn't feel anything at all hard so I don't think she is egg bound, but since I have never seen a hen who is I am not really sure what to look for.

It has gotten very cold here, for us at least. Down to freezing for the first time this year. She looks good to me, she has all her feathers and her comb is red like normal. Any ideas?? Am I worrying about nothing??

They are getting about 12 hrs of light a day as I have light coming on at 4am and they go to bed around 4:30 pm. She is eating like normal and behaving like normal too her crop is going up and down morning and night like it should.
Thanks for your help, Tracy in WA

 

[DawnM]

The don't lay as much when the days get shorter, if at all. They also tend to molt this time of year and don't lay when they are molting.

 

[turtlebird]

Is she hiding her eggs? Or do you have any egg eaters? Just throwing those things out there

 

[Nicole01]

Mine are barely laying anymore. I might need to buy some store eggs soon.

. Winter has taken a toll with the lack of light and maybe the cold too? I need more winter laying chickens. I was getting 5-6 eggs a day and now I'm very lucky to get 2-3 eggs. Some days I get zero.

 

[ntjpm]

Not hiding her eggs, They don't get to free range and I don't have any hidey holes for them to hide them in. (and I have searched all over anyway too) And as far as I know I don't have any egg eaters. I have 8 hens total and have never seen any shells laying around. I would also think an egg eater would not be picky and get only my 1 white egg that I get. I have 3 Doms, 2 sussex, 1 RIR and 1 BR. All others lay a brown egg.

Now I am wondering if I stressed her out. She HATES being handled and will avoid it at all costs. The day all this started I did pick her up just to check her over and make sure she was doing ok. The other girls are much easier they all just squat for me and let me do whatever, and I do like to get my hands on them every once in a while so I can be familiar with how they look and feel "normally". And then yesterday I had to catch her again to check her abdomen to make sure I didn't feel an egg in there. Could she just not like that so much that she stopped laying??

Thanks so much, Tracy in WA