Very Little to No Egg Production since First of September

[mathteacherjuls]

We have 40 birds with a mix of Easter Eggers, Black Jersey Giants, and Buff Orpingtons. They have been wonderful layers up until about the first of September. Yes, it was extra hot but they had plenty of cooler places to scratch around. They free range in the afternoon. They all act healthy and alert. But about three weeks before Hurricane Helene they stopped laying and as yet to restart. We are in the area of South Carolina that got hit hard with wind and tree damage. We may get 2-3 eggs every other day. Some of our girls are over two and the others will be coming on their second birthday in February. Also many of the folks I know around us are having the dame problem. Any thoughts? Suggestions?

 

[sourland]

Birds that age may be experiencing a molt. That plus the impact of shortened daylight period on second/third year hens may explain the slowdown in production.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It is fairly common for some (not all but some) pullets to start laying in the fall, skip the molt, and continue to lay until the shorter days of the following fall trigger a molt. Some breeds are more likely to do this than others but it is pretty common. But after they skip the molt that first fall practically every hen subject to normal light cycles will molt the following fall when the days get shorter, typically in September or November. When they finish the molt some should start laying again no matter the length of the daylight while others may wait until the longer days or spring.

Some hens can finish a molt in a little over a month, others may take as long as five months. That length of time is controlled by genetics, not feed or anything else like that.

Your story is exactly what I'd expect in a healthy flock.

 

[mathteacherjuls]

It is fairly common for some (not all but some) pullets to start laying in the fall, skip the molt, and continue to lay until the shorter days of the following fall trigger a molt. Some breeds are more likely to do this than others but it is pretty common. But after they skip the molt that first fall practically every hen subject to normal light cycles will molt the following fall when the days get shorter, typically in September or November. When they finish the molt some should start laying again no matter the length of the daylight while others may wait until the longer days or spring.

Some hens can finish a molt in a little over a month, others may take as long as five months. That length of time is controlled by genetics, not feed or anything else like that.

Your story is exactly what I'd expect in a healthy flock.

Thank you for your reply and reassurance.

 

[gimmie birdies]

Try putting some dummy eggs in the coop. And or a light in the coop- it doesn't have to be a heat lamp.