No eggs in weeks

[LeverAction35]

I have 6 chickens (1 rooster) and haven’t had eggs in weeks. All of them were born between March and May of this year. For a while I was getting 4-5 eggs/day.

It seems like they hardly eat anymore. 2 weeks ago a fox killed one of my chickens and these remaining ones just huddle by my house under the bushes since then.

Is the non-existent egg laying related to the fox-induced stress or what?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

If they are roaming about in the yard or woods, I'd look for a hidden nest of eggs. Sometimes if out and about, they won't return to the coop to lay eggs.

 

[Knobby]

I've been getting 1 egg a day, from nearly 50 chickens, for the past 2 months now. I'm not concerned..still love all the freeloaders.

 

[Mrs. K]

When I have a sudden and nearly complete reduction in eggs, it has always been a hidden nest. I too have thought, they can’t, but they do.

Go down to the coop in the morning sit with a book and a cup of coffee, and watch. That is the easiest way to find a hidden nest!

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

The stress of the attack could be enough to make them stop laying. Are any of them molting? Also this time of year even some new layers will slow down.

 

[StarOnFire59]

I've been getting 1 egg a day, from nearly 50 chickens, for the past 2 months now. I'm not concerned..still love all the freeloaders.

I only have 3 hens (Bantam Ameracaunas). The 2 blue egg layers stopped laying (not sure which was laying, or if they were trading off) in September. The green egg layer laid until mid-November. Currently none are laying. I still love them too, but my son says they better start laying by Spring or it's the butcher shop. I told them this, and I plead with them to start laying again.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

They should lick up again in the spring. A winter hiatus is normal. If they are free-ranging you might try confining them for a week or two in order to be sure they are laying in the nests. I have to "re-home" my birds this way about once a year.

 

[Not-so Slick Chicken]

I only have 3 hens (Bantam Ameracaunas). The 2 blue egg layers stopped laying (not sure which was laying, or if they were trading off) in September. The green egg layer laid until mid-November. Currently none are laying. I still love them too, but my son says they better start laying by Spring or it's the butcher shop. I told them this, and I plead with them to start laying again.

Yes, stress from an animal attack or losing a flock member can interrupt regular egg laying habits.
It's also VERY normal for birds to not lay during colder months (chickens have been selectively bred to lay most the year. But eggs are designed for hatching, and winter is a bad season to hatch.)
Parasites and health issues can also cause them to stop laying.

If they're your birds, your money, and your time and energy, he really can't make that decision can he

This isn't the first time I've heard of somebody (usually the story is a husband) getting mad that birds took a very natural break from laying eggs.