Not laying eggs?

[mattc102]

I live in pa. I have 8 chickens and the max amount of eggs a day i got were 5 , they r all under a year , but this week i got 3 , then 3 , then 0 , then today i got one ? What is wrong and why r they not laying , i have one roo that is low in the pecking order and doesnt crow nor mate with any hens except one . I have four rir crosses , 1 barred rock , 1 americauna,1 polish crested , and 1 americaua or wyandotte roo(dont know what breed)

 

[Mutt Farm]

Hi! 5/8 daily isn't awful unless you have all leghorns or production reds. 3/8 and 0/8,

Are they sneaking off to a secret nest? They wouldn't be molting this young...Has there been a stressor? Possible predator lurking? No bugs or mites? Also, hens start to slow down as daylight hours decrease, but not that drastically this early. Everybody is fat and sassy? Eating well? Plenty of good high quality feed? Only 10% scraps or low protein? Heat wave? Storms? Mine shut down with sudden weather change too. I'm just throwing all this out for pondering. Every now and again, I go from 6 per day to 2. Best of luck to you! I hope you get more replies!

 

[mattc102]

Hi! 5/8 daily isn't awful unless you have all leghorns or production reds. 3/8 and 0/8,   Are they sneaking off to a secret nest? They wouldn't be molting this young...Has there been a stressor? Possible predator lurking? No bugs or mites? Also, hens start to slow down as daylight hours decrease, but not that drastically this early.  Everybody is fat and sassy? Eating well? Plenty of good high quality feed? Only 10% scraps or low protein? Heat wave? Storms? Mine shut down with sudden weather change too.  I'm just throwing all this out for pondering. Every now and again, I go from 6 per day to 2. Best of luck to you! I hope you get more replies! 

Honestly we have had many storms and the weather has noticeably changed from summer to fall

 

[Cindy in PA]

Unless you are supplementing light, even first year layers can slow down at this time of year. Light dropped below 14 hours a day here in PA by mid August & it's bound to have an effect.