Bill : I didn’t have any luck trying to find the answer to my question on your website. Here is my situation. I have six adult chickens, about one year old, and since they have started laying they have given us 5-6 eggs on a daily basis and then yesterday we only got one egg. What went wrong? Any ideas you can share would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Bill McChain
My Reply : It is very strange that they (nearly) all stopped on the same day – perhaps there was a noise or disturbance nearby that put them off, or they had laid some but something stole the eggs. If it continues then there may be some sort of nutritional/health issue (or egg thieves) but usually if there was a health reason they wouldn’t all stop on exactly the same day so most likely it is just a temporary blip which could have been due to a disturbance or egg thief.
John Vertigan : Chicken House
Look somewhere else for those eggs. I have a broody hen that sometimes doesn’t share the nest and I have nest in other places nearby. I will start looking and there they are all together sometimes about 10-12 eggs. When I had bantams they would lay eggs all together in the area where there is Artemisia growing -The nice thing about it is the eggs stay cool. I still think that they just stopped -but then remember to look in the other spots I provide nearby. It always amuses me how smart these girls are. Just love’em.
Did something frighten them, weather been strange or were they short of food?
Nancy, If they have been heavily laying for a year, perhaps they just need a few weeks of R & R. If the weather got hot and they still have winter down feathers they could just be to uncomfortable to lay.
When that happens to me, I find the eggs somewhere else. Also, the heat really gets them off.