No More Eggs

[lmdengler]

Good Morning All - I'm new to raising chickens and hoping you can advise. I have a coop for up to 18 hens. I started with 8 young chickens (March'17) and 1 rooster. No eggs of course. A week later a co-worker gave me one year old 4 egg layers. These 4 laid eggs every day for just over a week. This Sunday - everything stopped. No eggs. We also had a rapid rise in temps. We went from 60/70 to upper 80/90. Then one egg and I know it's from one of the young chickens because of the color. Does anyone have any thoughts? Is it the food? I feed them the Purina pellets for laying hens - the same feed the previous owner was giving them. Should I be giving them a supplement? I noticed that no one is gobbling down the pellets.

 

[PD-Riverman]

It happens, are you free ranging any? Do you check for eggs several times a day(making sure a predator is not getting them or the hens are not eating them? Does any of your hens cackle/make the noise they usually do when they lay a egg?

 

[AlleysChicks]

Do you give oyster shell also? Layer feed does not have enough calcium for hens.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Do you give oyster shell also? Layer feed does not have enough calcium for hens.

I not disagreeing with you, all I can say is what I do. I been raising chickens for over 50 years and in the last 3 I have had a huge amount of layers--well 200+/-(according to when) and I rarely give oyster shells to them---only if I have a group/pen that is having soft shells which is rare. I use cheap 16% Dumor feed and have been for several years---rarely a soft shell egg. The Dumor for me seems to have all the calcium my layers need.

 

[lmdengler]

Do you give oyster shell also? Layer feed does not have enough calcium for hens.

Oh no! I don't. Will they be ok?

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

I would say it is probably more related to the heat stress.

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

It could also be any of those other things mentiond! I think your hens will be okay, even if you don't have oyster shell. I just fill up a bowl and let them decide when they want it. I personally don't thing any of my chickens eat it, but that is probably because they free range. good luck!

 

[JuliaOlivia]

Does they have access to a pasture where they could be hiding them? I would say give them electrolytes if it gets any hotter too.

 

[aart]

Do you give oyster shell also? Layer feed does not have enough calcium for hens.

This is generally not true, it's specifically formulated for laying hens.
Never hurts to have oyster shell out tho, some birds need more.

 

[AlleysChicks]

This is generally not true, it's specifically formulated for laying hens.
Never hurts to have oyster shell out tho, some birds need more.

Really? I've seen it all over this site and no one has ever said otherwise. I don't feed layer because of the boys but even when I didn't have them I never thought to buy layer for the girls.