Struggling with aging hens

[MontanaMomma]

Thanks for all the support and input. It is nice to know that so many people out there understand why I am struggling with this. Just to clear some things up- my flock is free range, gets all the sunflower seeds they want, as well as clean water, layer pellets and table scraps, and oyster shell. I also sprout lentils, alfalfa and other goodies for them. They have a nice clean coop and sublime nesting boxes. They have always been great layers during the longer days seasons. During the winter I let them slow down so they would lay longer in life since I understand how hard it is on them to lay every day. During the winters we got 1 or 2 every day. Lately I get one a day, maybe. THey've never molted or gone broody- I've heard this is common for Leghorns. But, maybe they are now. I don't know. I've decided to keep them, don't worry about it and wait for an answer to present itself- as answers always do. I was thinking the other day that anxious, impatient people don't make good gardeners. I think the same goes for chicken farmers.

Thanks again. mm

 

[Barrdwing]

Hm, whiteflare, five months is pushing it a bit. With our hens, the molting/winter "laycation" tends to last two months, never more than five months. We see a sharp drop in egg production in November, and then it shoots up again in February, hitting full steam in March.

MM, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you and your girls!

 

[whiteflare]

Hmm, yes, the hens were born sometime around September 2008, they started laying January 2009, they laid an egg a day until about January 2010. We thought it must be a molt, because that's summer for us, but the egg laying picked up about May-April, and then stopped altogether.

 

[Barrdwing]

Curious. While they sure went like gangbusters at first--whew, a whole year?--this is a funny time for them to switch off. Have there been any "yellow flags"--birds with diarrhea, coughing, scabby faces, etc? When pox hit our flock, egg production dropped like a rock because about one-third were extremely sick and the rest just too busy trying to fight the virus. I don't know if pox is a problem where you are, but it's a royal pain in the neck in California. Blasted mosquitoes. But if the birds are dealing with something that's debilitated them, that might explain the drop-off. Otherwise . . . I would say that the days are getting shorter in the Southern Hemisphere, but that doesn't explain why your hens took a break in the middle of summer and into fall, when they should have been laying. Was it extremely hot during that time? I've had that affect egg production. Or perhaps something else, like a change in feed or environment. I'm scratching my head a bit.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

For chickens that should be laying, but you aren't getting eggs, don't forget about hidden nests and egg thieves. That happens a lot, too. People can look around and still not find eggs. If they lay eggs in an unsecured area, they can be eaten by a variety of animals or snakes. Sometimes they even come into the coop to steal eggs. Snakes, rats, squirrels, dogs, even your own chickens sometimes eat eggs. There are other species that will eat them, too.

 

[gritsar]

First, I have to admit that I haven't taken the time to read all the responses.

If you are limited by space, I'm afraid it would be best to find a pet home for your aging hens or give them to someone that would use them for their meat; though 2 year old leghorns wouldn't be good for much more than stew meat IMHO. Next time you may want to look into getting a heritage breed that won't lay like an egg laying machine, but perhaps will lay for a longer period over her lifetime.

I am not limited by space. I am getting (maybe) only 5 to 6 eggs a day from my 12 three year old brahma hens now. As of their third birthday this past April they are officially retired. I am no longer keeping a record of how many eggs they lay. They will live out the rest of their lives on this farm, regardless of whether they lay or not.

They are my first flock, my babies.

ETA: I thought I had read that your hens were 4 year olds, not 2. It does seem a bit strange that they stopped so young, but I don't know the breed well.

 

[embrown]

for those asking about forcing the molt. Because my hen had prolapsed and then was egg bound I removed her from the flock and put her in a cat carrier in the house. This was a warm constant temporature. Then I put her back on only chick feed in a mash form and fed her several very small meals because I wanted her to have enough food but not to pooh too much since I needed her bottom to heal. I kept her in complete darkness...it is the daylight that triggers laying...and I did not want her to lay. So the cage was very dark and the only light that got in was when I lifted the covering to feed and water her, I wold take her out and pet her and change the paper in there so the pen was kept very, very clean. Maybe she was out for five minutes or less a few times per day. The lack of light made her not lay and her feathers fell out in major clumps. She looked awful all naked like and thin. But she grew feathers in real fast on the grower feed I gave her, she put back on weight and now I have moved her back to a large wire dog cage there she gets the natural daylight cycle. I even now let her free range with the others and have started putting her back in the coop to roost. They are still cranky with her during the day, but I figure after a few days of ranging together and sleep ing together she may be intergrated back into the flock. At least, that is what I hope because I want to move my three new chicks from their inside box to the dog pen which means chicken Jane has to go back with her flock and hopefully she will begin to lay in 6-8 weeks. I am still only getting two eggs from the four hens, in the coop. the days are normally long here in MI, hens in my area are laying normally, they did not slow down until the end of the winter when others were ramping back up. so I just do not know what to do for the girls that are slacking. I know they are healthy and believe I need to find some way to boost them, I just have a hard time believing they just stopped, I must be missing something although nothing has changed.

 

[Celtic Chick]

embrown, what brand of feed are you feeding your hens? Is it Layena?