White Leghorns at 64 Weeks: *Sudden* Drop in Egg Production

JustLook

Chirping
May 30, 2020
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These ladies have been champs, FAR exceeding expectations for egg production. I have had 9 eggs a day from 9 white leghorns almost daily with maybe 1 or two days a week I will get 8. And they are almost always done laying by 9am. So it makes this next part that much more puzzling. With no changes to diet or access to water:

7/17 9 eggs
7/18 9 eggs
7/19 9 eggs but took all day
7/20 4 eggs
7/21 5 eggs
7/22 6 eggs
7/23 6 eggs
7/24 7 eggs, one feather
7/25 7 eggs

;) Just the one feather so no molting. Yet. And too early right?

I am not. NOT concerned about egg production, this is fine! I do NOT expect more daily than maybe 6,7,8 and on rare days maybe 9 eggs from a flock of this size once settled into adulthood. It's the sudden drop that made me wonder what's happening and it's my first flock. I do not want to miss any lessons. :)
  • They appear happy and healthy.
  • Other than a noticeable drop in food consumption on the 19th and 20th, they are eating normally.
  • There was a week at the very beginning of the month where they did not have access to their usual run...
    • During that same period of time they had less access to grit.
  • I put something in the coop under their preferred roost that was a little wobbly right around the 18th or 19th but it was removed a few days later.
  • I did use light this past winter if that helps...
  • We have bears, coyote, fox, raccoon, possums, all manner of predators that might have scared the crap out of them one night and maybe they are just still recovering from it!
That's all I can think of! I am *not* concerned about lack of production, it's the way it dropped so markedly that had me worried for their health or for something I was not doing properly. Here they all are, nine if you look closely. Just chilling with me in the backyard and each sitting so she can keep one eye on me as we all snoozed for a bit. -Michael
JustLook_20210717_165700_IMG_7629.jpg
 
They all started laying on 7/17...or?
How old are they, in weeks or months....and how long have they been laying?

Has it been hot?
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
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They all started laying on 7/17...or?

no, they have been laying for almost a year.
How old are they, in weeks or months....and how long have they been laying?
They are 64 weeks old today.
Has it been hot?
Not so much actually maybe a little humid but nothing crazy as much as me and the ladies like to whine!
Where in this world are you located?
Northern New Jersey at about 1,000 feet up on the highlands.
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
Oh fantastic idea thank you! (Mostly done. I love this feature not sure how I missed it when I signed up!)

Look, like I say, if this change had taken place over an even slightly longer period of time there would be no concern. I think a bear might have come out or a raccoon spent some time trying to breech the perimeter and we slept through the racket somehow. Something happened to that flock because all of them slowed. Almost no eggs early in the day so it was some flock-wide change that seemingly happened at the same point in time.

Not to be indelicate but I have hear that human females will sync their cycles with each when they are together for the better part of a year. Does this sort of thing happen with a flock that’s grown up together that might cause them to reach a certain maturation point at the same time like this?

attaching another photo because I can 😬

hey thank you for your reply!l there are a lot of us newbies staring threads every hour. Where would we be without you nice veterans! The girls and I are grateful!

71BE66B6-740B-4BB8-88B4-074D5177D9D6.jpeg
they wanted inside. They were brooded in the house and are always trying to break in. I think they associate the house with food and me. They do not like the snow but never seemed to mind the cold.
 
My bet is that these birds are slowing down as the days are shortening...they should molt this fall.
Another possibility is that they are laying out in range area if you free range.

Just realizes age was in thread title, DOH, Sorry.
.....and that you used lighting last winter.
What's the light duration now?
 
My bet is that these birds are slowing down as the days are shortening...they should molt this fall.
Yes I thought this was pre-molting behavior but they all still have their feathers.
What's the light duration now?
14 and a half hours light here today.

they have produced PLENTY of eggs this year. Totally fine. But are you with me that something must have happened for them to suddenly slow like this? (I mean maybe four of them are still laying every day but that would just mean five were laying every other day? Also possible it’s all nine of them laying five eggs in a week instead of 7.)

I don’t see any patterns in the weather that would coincide with this. It was close to 90 on July 17 but that was not the hottest day and the rest of the week was on par.

maybe I should inspect them for mites and have them treated with a powder or something if that looks like it might be the case.

By all means if this is something that can just happen to a flock like this all of a sudden? No problem. I just want to make sure I am doing my job!!

Michael
 
But are you with me that something must have happened for them to suddenly slow like this? (I mean maybe four of them are still laying every day but that would just mean five were laying every other day? Also possible it’s all nine of them laying five eggs in a week instead of 7.)
It can happen....especially the second speculation.


maybe I should inspect them for mites and have them treated with a powder or something if that looks like it might be the case.
Always a good thing to do.

My Bug Check notes:
Have you checked them over real well for mites and/or lice?
Google images of lice/mites and their eggs before the inspection so you'll know what you're looking for.

Part the feathers right down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.


Best done well after dark with a strong flashlight/headlight, easier to 'catch' bird and also to check for the mites that live in structure and only come out at night to feed off roosting birds.

Wipe a white paper towel along the underside of roost to look for red smears(smashed well fed mites).

Good post about mite ID by Lady McCamley:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-chicken-has-mites-now-what.1273674/page-2#post-20483008
 
Any possibility they may have been water deprived on the 19th and 20th when their feed consumption dropped? In the weather we've been having here in NJ, that could have been enough of a stress to initiate a break in their laying cycle.
 
Any possibility they may have been water deprived on the 19th and 20th when their feed consumption dropped?
not as such but the 19th was the hottest day that week or the week prior but no where near the warmest day of the year.

All of these answers are wonderful; i get that there might not be one answer to my question, that multiple factors might contribute to something like this. You are all helping me better understand what to look for and it's very helpful just to know that there are things that can trigger the entire flock to slow production that are more or less consistent with a healthy flock and normal lifecycle processes. :)
 

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