Why Aren't My Chickens Laying? Here Are Your Answers!

[Rett144]

Ok, so my year old hens were laying everyday, I have 4, so I was getting 4 eggs,but the past week or two, it's been different. Go days with 1 or 2 eggs, then 3 eggs the next day, then 1 egg the following day.
I added my new chicks to rum a few weeks ago, they are now 10wks old. Then, OnE of my hens tried to go broody, only lasted a few days, and was over it.
The egg production lowered after she went broody. Question is, could this have caused the decrease? Could it be the feed? Or stress of the chicks getting older?
Please help with any input. Thank you!

 

[GSLM]

Hi
Following chick hatching earlier in the year we have two young pullets. Added to this we essentially rescued a hen from a local school that no longer wanted to look after the hen. This hen was laying before she came to live with us.
Hen and pullets share a coop and free range our large back garden all day with an all flock feed available.

From day one with us the hen has not laid. I put this down to stress initially but even after a few weeks there was no change. The chicks moved into the coop and she took to them well and there’s no issues there. there’s access to oyster shell grit too and fresh water daily.

many suggestions as to why hen might not be laying? Looking at the usual suspects list I don’t think any of those seem to apply as she’s healthy and has access to all needed.

many help would be appreciated.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hi
Following chick hatching earlier in the year we have two young pullets. Added to this we essentially rescued a hen from a local school that no longer wanted to look after the hen. This hen was laying before she came to live with us.
Hen and pullets share a coop and free range our large back garden all day with an all flock feed available.

From day one with us the hen has not laid. I put this down to stress initially but even after a few weeks there was no change. The chicks moved into the coop and she took to them well and there’s no issues there. there’s access to oyster shell grit too and fresh water daily.

many suggestions as to why hen might not be laying? Looking at the usual suspects list I don’t think any of those seem to apply as she’s healthy and has access to all needed.

many help would be appreciated.

Age, breed, and feeding will affect production.

Some breeds lay very little, and spend months out of production.

Older hens will often quit completely.

A hen needs enough protein, and a formulated ration in order to be able to produce eggs. So if the diet is lacking production will stop.

Another reason would be health problems. Any illness or internal problems will stop production as well.

 

[GSLM]

Age, breed, and feeding will affect production.

Some breeds lay very little, and spend months out of production.

Older hens will often quit completely.

A hen needs enough protein, and a formulated ration in order to be able to produce eggs. So if the diet is lacking production will stop.

Another reason would be health problems. Any illness or internal problems will stop production as well.

Thanks I’ll review the feed etc to make sure. I can’t see any obvious signs of illness. Anything I should look out for?

 

[PDXJULES]

Great Oregon Extension Services article. Thanks! We acquired our chicks at Easter in 2009 and they produced their first eggs in about June of that year. We didn't know any different, and apparently neither did they, because they produced well into the fall. 10 hens, about 9 eggs per day from the lot! Lots' of double yolks in mega-eggs as well. ...(snipped)

Anyhow, this past fall, as of about Oct. 15th, they all simultaneously stopped laying for all intents and purposes, over about 2 weeks. This accompanied their recovery from both natural molt and their own internal bickering (they were in too small a run area; 8 birds [one died from disease] in about 80 sq. ft. ... (snipped)

As of this past two weeks, despite bitter cold and wind (-8˚ F some nights) they are now coming back on-line. I didn't like the article's mention that they will really slow down at about 18 mo, and then stop at about 3 years, since I'm there @ 18 months now, but my local egg-raising friend says that's just not so. She has chickens well over 4 years old that produce about 3 - 4 eggs per week.

Question: the hen that the dog killed became a slightly tough slow-cooked chicken stew dinner. (BTW, that ended the controversy about whether you could eat a pet hen you'd named. Didn't seem logical to just toss her...) I took the opportunity to do a bit of an internal physiological examination (I am a wildlife biologist after all...) and noted with great interest the oviduct layout inside Piccolo. The starting point is a cluster of already-formed tiny egg yolk sacs, a cluster of, I estimated, about 120 of them ranging in size from <1mm to about 6-8mm.

The connecting duct had 3 yolks in it, ranging in size from about 1cm (10mm) up to about 18 - 20mm (just under one inch). I wondered if they have a set number of egg yolks, as in human females, and when they're gone, that's it. I'll assume there's a few other very tiny little proto-egg yolk sacs developing under the cluster of visible ones, yes? Anyone know the answer to that?

(snipped)

Max potential from a recent study I read - is IF all initial undeveloped Pullet eggs could be laid would be 4000 eggs! But that NEVER happens. Another source stated that 2,000 is the max ovulation that +could+ occur. Apparently that one ovary shrivels (I'd like more info on this phenomenon) and the hen proceed with ovulation from just one...and many factors, as you noted above, affect how early, how often, how consistently and how many seasons or years one might lay...and of course the quality of eggs, shells has a range of influences also. Hope this helps further define the parameters for that question. Cost of feed and Vet care seems to influence how long most Chickens are allowed to live and lay. More Cooperative type approaches to address this is of interest to me...and I'm willing to be a strategist on a worthy project if others step up to help.

 

[oldhen2345]

My Missy (see avatar) is about 5 yrs old now and lays about 1 egg a week- until early Sept. Now she doesn't lay any- but then, out of 4 hens I only have one still laying - a Light Brown Leghorn who is one year old. Her hatch mate- a speckled sussex has also stopped laying. I figure it is the hours of sunlight, so probably should just be glad I get one a day.

 

[Freie Family Farm]

We have 6 new bantams (our first chickens). We've gotten 4 eggs so far. One they layed on the way here. 2 the next day and then only 1 on the 3rd day. We had zero eggs all day today. Im assuming the stress of a 3+hr drive in a box (owners transported them, not us). 2 are about 3yrs old and the rest are about a year old. Is there a way to ease their stress or do we just give them some time to adjust?