When will you start laying again???

[thegirlzofmgue]

At the start of the summer I was getting so many eggs from my 12 layers (8-10 eggs a day) that I was selling them at work. Then 3-4 consecutive things happened:

Early June: Built a new coop and moved them into it (has a window), still dark inside for laying. Good, sturdy run and free range time only while I am watching them. No disruption in laying at first.

June-July: Had repeated visits from a bobcat (none were lost at that time). Laying slowed down

July: Several were molting, lots of feathers in the corners of coop and run. 3-4 eggs a day.

One week in July-Aug: Bad house sitter didn’t follow directions and lost 3 girls to bobcat attacks. Bobcat increased visits for about 1 week. Eggs stopped.

Early August: I returned and scared the bobcat away, no losses and it hasnt returned since, as far as I can tell.

Now: I have 9 layers, totally healthy, fluffy butts and beautiful combs. For the last 2 months, I get one egg a day from the RIR.

8 hens are not laying at all, none molting, settled into the new coop for over 3 months, no bobcat losses for a month.

Steps already taken: inspected coop for mites and hens for lice, no evidence (i whitewash the coop and hose out often, which has been a good preventative).

Add garlic and oregano to feed.

Organic layer feed plus protein seed block, lots of good forage greens, only good household scraps. Electrolytes in water. Good, clean water bowls.

Could those series of bad events led my entire flock to stop completely for the better half of 3 months? I’ve never had hens stop laying in the middle of the summer (usually fall to winter). It happened too early for it to be the sunlight. Any suggestions?

 

[sourland]

How old are the hens and have they had a previous break in their laying cycle?

 

[azygous]

Yes, those things would absolutely stress your layers and affect laying. Stress of change, even if positive, and consecutive predator attacks can cause a shortage of eggs.

But now, assuming you are in the US, the days are considerably shorter and there may not be adequate daylight to trigger the pineal gland which signals to hens' reproductive systems to start to lay eggs again after the interruption. You may need to bide your time until January when the days will lengthen again.

I've had some heartbreaking experiences with bobcats preying on my flock. I installed hot wire, using a solar fence charger, wrapped hot wire around my run, and baited it with canned mackerel. I fashioned a little cage out of a small scrap of hardware cloth and wired it to the hot wire at intervals, effectively giving the bait an electrical charge. When the bobcat returned, which they always do, it engaged the bait and got a 10,000 volt shock to its mouth. I haven't had a bobcat in years now.

 

[thegirlzofmgue]

Of course, with all those details, I forgot to say their age and my location. Rural New England, US.

Ironically, the oldest one is the Rhode Island red, who is 4. The other 8 are between 1-3 years. They’ve all molted and taken breaks over the years at different times.

I also forgot to add that three chickens went broody this summer. Two of them I threw off the nest until they stopped. Neither are laying now. The other one I let keep a clutch, but none of the eggs hatched. She was one that was lost to the bobcat.

The egg disruption happened long before the daylight hours started to shorten. They were slowing down right around summer solstice with the most hours of daylight they’ll ever see. Of course I would expect laying to slow down now in September but they slow down and stopped in June in July.

I also have a very old rooster and 11 pullets who have not started yet, but I left them out of the equation since I’m not expecting anything from them.

 

[nuthatched]

The series of events Kickstart their winter break, they get back to it in February or so.
I'd remove the seed block and stop adding herbs and spices to the feed, they're not beneficial and can be harmful as garlic is toxic to chickens .

 

[thegirlzofmgue]

Why do you think I should remove the seed block?

So that means 6-7 month break in laying? Yikes. If they’ve already had such a long break could I start to use a light in their coop in December?

 

[nuthatched]

Why do you think I should remove the seed block?

So that means 6-7 month break in laying? Yikes. If they’ve already had such a long break could I start to use a light in their coop in December?

You could, I'd recommend the full spectrum lightbulbs for seeds starting .
Seed blocks are treats, they may be eating too much seed block and not their real feed,causing nutritional problems which can slow laying rebound.