Why won't my hens lay anymore

[Skipper81]

I rehomed 3 hens a year old weren't currently laying took two weeks and i gave them oyster shells then they started
In my other coop eggs stopped and I caught 1 hen and duck eating egg so I grabbed an egg put a hole in each end with a tac blew yoke and internals out
Put mustard inside (takes time and patience) threw it in as a treat on floor. Everybody attacked egg and changed there mind about eating eggs
Hasn't happened since they hate eating eggs
If your hens are eating eggs there won't be a trace left it happens so fast I watched a hen plop one out pecked it open and it was gone within 30 seconds between a few hens
Note: if you do the mustard thing make sure they have extra water for the night they will drink quite a bit

 

[peeper89]

Three weeks ago I rescued 20 from a farm that was going to kill them.

I really like these little guys and want them to be healthy and happy (thats why I rescued them)

r them battery chickens? what they look like u got picture?
batery chicken might be motling they ever been outside or live in cage

 

[lazy gardener]

28 birds, with recent addition of a lot of new ones. What are the exact dimensions of the coop and run? Initial stress of the addition may be at play, but crowding may also be an issue as well. Coop space should be about 110 s.f. and run space should be 280 s.f. Much can be done in that coop and run to create stress busters.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

[

... In the summer of 2016 I purchased 11 chickens from a well known farm here in the UK. They were young and after a few weeks began laying. They were fantastic layers and kept producing eggs until July last year. They then began to malt a little and stopped laying. I assumed they would begin again by now but nothing..... three weeks ago I rescued 20 from a farm that was going to kill them. They were also laying when I got them but no eggs after the first 5 days.... I just can't understand why there are no eggs...

If my math is correct 11 + 20 = 31 Where are the 3 missing hens? Chicken farms sell eggs and sometimes chickens so if a well known (my assumption) egg farm was going to kill these 20 hens there must be a good reason and the first and only reason that comes to my mind is that these 20 hens were not laying up to par because of advancing age, or else they were laying at an unsustainable (Unsustainable that is for the farm) level. Also hens don't take well to changes in food, housing, and other environmental factors which makes me wonder whether or not you are supplementing daylight with good old fashion electrically generated infer-red radiation. Hens lay best when they have 14 uninterrupted hours of daylight. The quiteous in egg laying since last July of the other 11 hens is harder to explain but it is likely because of some action or a failure to act, more than likely something to do with diet.

 

[CraigJemy]

Thank you all so much for the detailed replies! I read a few of the first ones after posting and it got me thinking, so I went and had a really good search around the pen for some clues and a fresh perspective. I also had a talk to some other chicken owners in the village to get their thoughts. It appears I have made one monumental mistake, I don't have anywhere separate for them to lay! My first lot of girls always laid in the corner of the coop where they slept at night and I thought that was normal, apparently not . With this in mind and some detective work I came across this....

They have been laying under the shed! I didn't think they could stand up under there it is so narrow?! My bad. So I need to build a laying box of some kind, which I'm on with.

I have to say though there were only 18 eggs in total. After reading these replies I believe I have various things at play, not just my stupidity. I think I could be feeding them more, so I will set up a system where they can eat at their leisure, maybe some drain pipe kind of system I have seen online. I also agree with the suggestion they are a little stressed after the move, still moulting and also it is really cold here with negative temps and frosts at night. That being said they are much happier now they have hay in the coop, it is no where near as muddy now and they clearly enjoy scratching and laying down on the hay

With regards to the question of my maths being wrong, ah, no. Unfortunately I lost two of the original girls when my site was broken into one evening last year. They opened the coop and the girls were free when I got there the next day, with two missing - this is actually when the remaining girls began to lay less, I presumed they were upset and would kick back in the spring. I also lost a new one to an unknown condition, she wasn't looking well after the first few days in her new home, she would just stand on her own looking sad and wouldn't go to the food. I tried my best to get her to eat and she did a little but one morning I went in and found her dead, maybe too much stress for her. Oh and just to clarify, the 20 I rescued, they had 10,000 they were selling for £1. It was a commercial facility.

So I took some pictures of how things look right now, as you can see some of them have very pale combs, some are red but small. I think in a few weeks, when the weather warms up, we have a bit more daylight and I have dedicated spot off the ground for them to lay things will improve. I hope so anyway, it's costing me a fortune in food! I do love them though, they always brighten up my mornings when I see them.

Ok guys, I'll stop waffling on, here are some pictures I took.

Thank you for all your replies and advice, some of you are probably cringing at my inexperience but I'm trying! I really care for them and am always learning and trying to improve! This site is a wealth of knowledge I really enjoy seeing the beautiful breeds you guys have.

See you around the forum!

 

[Conman]

Could the just be spent they will of they get old.

 

[CraigJemy]

Could the just be spent they will of they get old.

Do you mean are they old? No they are 2 years of age, I was told they would lay every day for 3 years then start to tail off.

 

[Conman]

Do you mean are they old? No they are 2 years of age, I was told they would lay every day for 3 years then start to tail off.

Ok mabey they are stressed has any thing happend to them lately a fox attack skunk racoon etc.

 

[Conman]

Lol my bad i didnt read the whole page you wrote they are laying under the shed I can be so stubborn sometimes.

 

[rebrascora]

Great news that you found their secret stash. It is possible that rats have had some of the eggs away. Considering the time of year you should find that most of those eggs will still be edible...... Eggs are usually good for a month or two. Crack each one open into a container before dropping them into the pan. You can do a float test by placing them in a jug of tepid water. If they lie on the bottom of the jug they are still very fresh, older ones will start to lift off the bottom with the fat end but are still good, those that float are the oldest and whilst they may still be good to eat, use caution when cracking them..... very old eggs that are rotten inside can explode. If when cracked, it looks OK and smells OK, I is OK to eat.

Yes they need access to layer pellets from morning until night. Go easy on anything else and that includes mixed corn, bread etc ....much as they love it.... it can make them fat over time and that causes health issues and laying problems.

They do look very happy in their new home though. So sad that the industry calls time on them when they are still so young. I hope they bring you lots of joy. They are great birds often with quite cheeky personalities

Do you have plans to sell their eggs once they are back up to full production? You might find that they are reluctant to abandon their current laying habit and you have to block off access to it in order for them to create a new habit of laying somewhere else. If you are building free standing nest box, making them enclosed with a good lip on the front and even hanging curtains (strips of feed bags stapled to the top) to make them dark will make them more attractive. You don't really want them laying somewhere that they sleep and poop.

Do you have roost bars in the coop for them to roost on at night. It is healthier and more natural for them to roost rather than sleep in a pile on the floor although that habit might now be hard to break. They will also enjoy a perch bar or two in the run. They are very curious creatures and having things to stimulate them really improves the quality of their life. Hanging a cabbage up or spent brussel sprout plants will give them a healthy treat. If you are on an allotment I imagine there will be plenty of brussel sprout plants being thrown on compost piles and chickens will strip them to a single stalk. I do his with mine and then give the woody stalks to my horses to crunch up.... I call it reprocessing and the manure goes back to the gardeners.

I