Not laying, pale combs, not molting

[bethadee]

Help! My hens are 7 months old and started laying about 2 months ago in abundance. Over the past 2 weeks 4 of my hens seem to have stopped completely. They have pale combs, poop looks normal, no mites that I can see, vents look fine, eating and drinking well. They free range during the day. They generally seem fine other than laying zero eggs. I live in Massachusetts and the days have gotten shorter and colder but this seems extreme this early in the season for birds who aren't molting.

One thing that may be related is that I separated one of the birds for being a bit gurgly and not laying. I gave her neomycin only because that's what I had that on hand. She was fine a few days later and went back to laying. She still seems fine. I tried this with another non-laying hen and no improvement. This batch had a couple of chicks with respiratory issues early on. The one I separated was one of them so I worried she might be a carrier, but the ones who aren't laying don't sound gurgly or have any respiratory symptoms. The one other odd thing is that the ones that are still laying have gone from laying deep orange yolks to super light pale yolks. Same diet. I recently removed the rooster, could an upset in flock dynamics cause this? They don't seem to have a pecking order issue.

What meds should I start with? Would a vet be helpful (in my limited experience, no)? Do I just wait it out? Should I be eating the eggs I'm getting?

 

[cavemanrich]

Some questions.
What breed are your chickens, and are they all the same? This time of the year, you being in the Northern Hemisphere, and far north as well, the days are getting shorter by much. Most chickens will slow down in laying. Mine totally stopped already. Some are molting, while others are not, but not laying ether. Chickens need the daylight to interact with their pineal gland.


Copy and paste from this site. https://mikethechickenvet.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/chicken-vision/

Birds reproductive cycles are controlled by their pineal gland, which is located in the middle of the bird’s forehead, just under the skull. The skull is thin enough that reasonably bright light penetrates it and will still stimulate the hormone cascade that begins lay.

If you would add supplemental light to coop, you may increase egg production. Another good option, is having Sexlinks, or White Leghorn breed of chickens. They lay well during times other breed stop.

The one other odd thing is that the ones that are still laying have gone from laying deep orange yolks to super light pale yolks. Same diet.

The orange yolks result when chickens free-range, or have sufficient run size to eat natural growing greens like lawn weeds and grass, and other,,,, scratch around for anything else on the ground. Pale yolks, like those from grocery store eggs are a result of chickens eating mostly just processed chicken feed, and not much else.
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[bethadee]

Thanks for your reply cavemanrich! I have a buff orpington (she's fine), cuckoo marans, cream legbars, a speckled sussex, and a few bantams that are fine. So kind of fancy meat breeds for the most part. Now that I'm thinking about it, the legbars have slowed but not stopped, so maybe I wouldn't have been bothered by the slowdown had the marans not totally abruptly stopped. I wish I'd thrown some leghorns in, so I may do that in the spring. As for the yolks, their free range area is still green and lush and I can see bits of grass in their poop. They get a fair amount of kitchen scraps including meat, so maybe that's affecting the marans.

I hope you're right about the light and that my odd assortment of breeds is more sensitive to the changing seasons.

 

[bethadee]

After doing extensive research on this website and with Harvey Ussery's book, I think I have two issues. One of my chickens does appear to be such sick, so she's separated until I can figure that out, but the pale yolks i think are a totally separate thing.

Once the pandemic left us doing curbside pickup from the feed store, I started getting whatever layer pellets they had rather than my usual fancy omega supplemented feed. So right now they are getting 16% protein in addition to foraging. My free range area is mostly grass and woods with some raised planter beds for my veggie garden. I will add they have access to infinite marigolds but don't touch them. Instead they are mostly eating grass, which we mow, so just blades and no seed. My hypothesis is that their free range area is further decreasing the overall protein content of their bare minimum pellet diet and leading to pale yolks. I'm adding a supplement and sowing a more chicken friendly cover crop and will see what happens. Hopefully I remember to update this thread!

 

[bethadee]

Ok so update to my yolks issue, months later. I supplemented their feed with flax meal and then switched to a higher protien feed (feather fixer) and the yolks are back to a dark orange. Probably took a week, so I think it was due to a protein shortage.

Cavemanrich was exactly right about the winter and molting. It became apparent that they are all, albeit very excruciatingly slowly, molting. It's taking months! I spent hours researching breeds and it just goes to show there are always variables you don't take into account. Maybe in the spring I'll get some RIR or leghorns, but in the meantime I'm spending a fortune on eggs from whole foods while my fancy flock takes the winter off.

 

[cavemanrich]

If you do want eggs during winter, (next years winter) the leghorns are a , and if you also want brown eggs, I suggest getting Red Sex Link, They look similarly close to RIR's and are prolific egg producers. They also come under a few different names, like Isa Brown, and other. Just a matter of the different combination of chicken breeds to produce the hybrid. Had one that I named Rosie. She did produce during winter while my RIR's took vacation.
Just wanted to add this,,,,,,, Sexlink chickens are great egg production hens. They do burn out in about 3 to 4 years, and cross the Rainbow bridge soon after
My RIR is now 9 years old, and on Social Security.,, I think she only laid 3 eggs in 2020.. Still the top of pecking order in my pet flock, and going strong