Why won't my new hen lay?

[paulandashia]

A friend who's been raising chickens for a while told me about it.

Seemed to work for me.
I got 1 egg for a while, then, after the "treatment", I got 4 out of 5 hens.
I don't have a clue why it does what it does, I'm just glad it works!

Good luck, let us know how it goes!

 

[calicokat]

With free-ranging, you might want to try going on a little egg hunt . . . . . they might be laying afterall, just not where you want them to

 

[ArizonaNessa]

Have you checked her vent to see if she has ever even laid an egg?

 

[newhenmom99]

Well, I was able to get a hold of my hen and her pelvic bones are about three finger widths apart- big enough for an egg to pass? I've also observed that her comb is rather pale and dry compared to the autralorp- could that have something to do with it?


I'm not sure how to tell if her vent has passed an egg before- it is pale pink and a bit moist in the center.

She seems very active and healthy overall.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

If she is laying her vent will be about an inch or so wide like a smiley face and it will be moist. The pale comb says she's not laying. Are you sure of her age? Could she possibly be past her egg laying days? It could be a nutrition thing but I am betting she is older than you think. The combs should be fire engine red when they are laying eggs.

 

[newhenmom99]

I was told she was nine months old and laying an egg daily. I wondered about the pale comb but thought it was a normal variation for Red Stars. My australorps is very red and she lays every day. The Red Star's vent is about an inch wide and slightly moist at the center but pale as well.

Is there any other way to determine her age? She certainly acts "mature" at the top of the pecking order and the first to figure everything out. The skin of her legs does not look thickened. She is missing half her upper beak but seems to eat just fine.

Thanks. What a shame if I was lied to about her age. Of our four chickens from three different sources, one was sick and died in the first week, one was killed by our dog, and now maybe one is past her prime. It's been a real learning experience for my family and I. Still, I've been surprised by how much I love having them and they are so much fun to keep!

 

[ArizonaNessa]

I could be totally wrong with the age but I often tell people that when you are purchasing birds from strangers ask what their hatch date is not how old they are. It's the same reason stores don't ask minors for their age they ask for their birthdate. If you are lying you can't think that fast usually. Even though I don't hatch my own birds, I order them from a hatchery and raise them to sell, I still know their hatch date because it's two days before I take possession of them.

Often on craigslist people are trying to get rid of their old birds. There is nothing wrong with that at all but I firmly believe in telling the truth about anything and everything I sell. I am just one of those people that can't sleep at night knowing that I got something over on someone. I wish there were more people in this world that thought the same way.

Try some of the other thing that previous posters recommended and hopefully she will come around for you.

 

[newhenmom99]

Thanks, I'll remember the tip about the hatch date for the future. I'll give her some more time before we give up completely on her. We did get her off craigslist but the breeder seemed honest and with a clean operation going. Still, you can't be sure and she had so many chickens I don't know how she could keep them all straight.

I'll post an update here if she every lays for us!