No eggs of late

[Carter4671]

My 2 older girls sure make a lot of noise between 8-10am. They stay in the coop while the 2 youngers are outside. i have had only 2 eggs in 3 wks. I thought the leghorns were supposed to do almost daily. I dont know which one gave me the first egg or if they both gave me a first and that was it. Has anyone else had this?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know where you are located, your time of the year, how old those two are, or their laying history. Lots of unknowns so I can only go generic.

A common cause of them not laying is that they are molting instead of laying. I don't know enough to assess this for you.

A very common cause for you to think they are not laying is that they are hiding a nest on you. I don't know how you manage them or what your facilities look like but they can be very creative in hiding nests.

Is something getting your eggs? Many critters eat eggs. Many leave clues behind, wet spots or shells, but some swallow them whole. I don't know what your potential egg-eaters are that do not leave clues, depends on where you live, but my main ones are snakes, canines, and humans. A snake eats eggs and then disappears a couple of days as it digests them, then it comes back for more. If it is every day it is not likely to be a snake.

Some canines like fox or coyote would be more interested in your hens but a dog might leave your hens alone while eating eggs. Does a dog have access?

A human does not necessarily mean a stranger. Often it is a friend or family member.

Sometimes chickens stop laying in severe weather. Extreme heat may cause them to reduce laying. 2 eggs in three weeks sounds too much, probably not this.

So what can you do? If you can lock them up in the coop only or maybe coop/run only for a few days see if your eggs start showing up. That could mean you kept them from a hidden nest or locked out an egg eater.

Discreetly mark an egg or two and leave it down there. If it disappears you know something is getting them.

It is possible they are just not laying.

This stuff can be very frustrating. There are a lot of different things that might be going on. Good luck figuring it out.

 

[Carter4671]

Sorry, I am in NV outside of Las Vegas. They are about 4 months old. I do wet down their pen and coop daily because of the heat. No critters can get at them as i have a large German shepherd that watches their area and it is actually too funny. They are in an enclosed pen and coop. Nothing has changed,
OMG I got an egg just now! Ok I am happy