NO EGGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Nats Chickens]

Hi everyone, my super layers (all but one) have stopped laying at a year and a half, do you think they are just taking a break, or they have reached the end of the line like most super layers this age? We haven't got an egg out of them for 9+ days, so what do you think? It isn't a seasonal thing because it is starting to get warm again, the perfect time for laying eggs!

 

[Ridgerunner]

How many chickens are you talking about? There is a difference between one or two versus 15 or 20. How long have they not laid? Did they slow down gradually or was it all of a sudden? Did you supplement lights during your winter? Any predator attacks, have they run out of water for a time, any changes in housing, or have you added or removed chickens to upset the pecking order? Stress and changes can cause them to stop laying or even kick off a molt. Have you seen any feathers flying around? There are way too many things I don't know to even be able to make a guess so I'll be generic.

The main reason chickens stop laying is the molt. I know it is the wrong season for yours to molt because of days getting shorter but there are other things that can trigger a molt. I went through some of them above. There can be another factor. How long have they been laying? After extended periods of laying their bodies wear down. Usually for your super layers that's somewhere around 13 to 15 months of continuous laying but it can vary a bit. Production declines and the quality of the eggs can suffer. They will often go through a mini-molt, stop laying, and refresh their bodies, then start laying like gangbusters again. Another possibility if you there has been a change in lighting that they think the days are getting shorter so it is time to molt. Have you changed the lighting down there or has a security light gone out?

In spite of what you may read on here, those hens are not spent. They may be worn down, but if they go through a molt and refresh their bodies they should come back laying great, as well as they had been and with the eggs slightly larger. The commercial hybrids are prone to medical problems because of their smaller bodies and the larger eggs they lay, but that does not mean all of them or even most of them. I've known people buy spent hens cheap, feed them through a molt to get a fabulous year of egg laying, then use them for soup.

Another common cause of them stopping laying is that they are hiding a nest on you. I don't know how you manage them or how possible that is but it may be a good time for an egg hunt.

Another possibility is that something is getting the eggs before you are. Your critter possibilities are different from mine. Many here will leave signs, egg shells or wet spots in the nest, but it is possible your chickens are eating the egg shells. Here the normal critters that don't leave signs are snakes, canines, and humans. If it is consistent every day it is probably not a snake. Snakes typically eat eggs then go off for two or three days to digest them before they come back. I've had too much experience with that.

My wild canines are usually more interested in the chickens than the eggs, but often a dog will eat the eggs and leave the chickens alone. Do you or a neighbor have a dog that has learned that the egg song means a free snack? I'll let you think about humans.

So what can you do? If yours free range you might lock them in the coop or coop/run only for a few days if it is big enough. If you start seeing eggs then they were hiding a nest or you locked something out that was getting them. Or you can discreetly mark an some eggs and leave them down there. If they disappear you'll know something is getting them.

My guess is that they are probably molting or at least resting up, getting ready to come back strong.

 

[Nats Chickens]

My chickens have 3 quarters of an acre. Actually, we got 2 eggs from them yesterday, so maybe they will start back up. We did introduce some pullets, but that was unlikely to upset the hens because they are not big enough to make a difference to the pecking order yet.

 

[Evelyn's Mom]

I am new to chickens, but I think introducing the new ones may have thrown them off their egg game... I went on vacation for 5 days and had two new people taking care of my chickens.. the day I got back, no eggs. Followed by 4 more days of no eggs. Then they started again. I am firm believer that little things can cause an egg pause.
Hope they get back to normal soon!

 

[Nats Chickens]

Yes, they are now restarting, we got three eggs on Sunday and another 3 yesterday.