Hens Not Laying….much

Madisonmenece

Hi All

I purchased 6 hens a few months back (end of march), they starting laying reasonably quickly. we had 5 eggs every day for ages and then about a month ago they went down to 2-3 eggs a day.

The hens were point of lay when I bought them and are 2 sussex, 2 bluebells and 2 marans.

They have 4 No. laying boxes, plenty of food and water and large outdoor area with a 50 meter electric fence surrounding them.

There has been magpies/jackdaws around but never in the run, could they be stealing eggs out of the coop or do I have an egg eater.

not wormed/dusted recently, but have received some crushed garlic and cider vinegar in their water occasionally.

any thoughts

thanks
col

cloudroost

Jackdaws/magpies are definitely eating the eggs. I had the same problem..... Mine stopped laying for a while and I noticed one morning when I was letting them out there was 5 eggs - When I went back later to get the eggs, only one left...
Now, I keep them locked in until late morning (by which time, they will have laid their eggs) and collect the eggs straight away - My egg numbers are as back to the numbers I expect...

aonb

If an hen is eating the eggs, she will leave the shell behind. Jackdaws/magpies could be taking them - or rats. You need to keep an eye on the coop to see if you can see what is taking them

On the other hand, the hens could be having a MOULT? That would reduce egg production

If they need worming, that too could reduce production. They need to be wormed approx 3 times/year

Pick one up and check for lice etc. Check their coop for the dreaded redmite.

BUT! When you got your P.O.L hens, they will be into production like mad. This will slowly decrease once they settle in to their egg making routine. 3 eggs a day from 6 hens would be very normal. It takes a hen 26 hours to process an egg from start/finish. A hen cant keep laying 1 egg every single day. In optimum conditions - layers pellets/8+ hours a day daylight/no parasites/fresh water/no stress, you can expect a hen to lay 2 eggs over 3 days. Your pure breed hens will not produce as prolifically as a hybrid, so maybe your expectations of 6 eggs/day are a bit high?

Madisonmenece

thanks guys

the coop is cleaned regular and no sign of mites, all the hens bar 1 are looking very healthy and well.

I closed the gate in the coop tonight after they went in, I was around all day today doing jobs near where the hens are kept and 4 eggs total today. we will see how we go tomorrow, the coop is kept on our dairy farm so magpies could be in and out early as there is no one there until 6:30/7 am and hens not tended until late morning.

one of the hens is showing signs of being egg bound or having egg peritonitis, we have isolated her, she seems to be eating well but is lethargic and not looking well.

thanks
colin

aonb

if you suspect she is eggbound, you could take her and give her a belly-bath (yes I know, sounds mad, but it works) - fill a basin/sink with a few inches (enough to immerse her belly/sides) of warm water for 10/15 mins. She should relax/enjoy it! Take her out of the water, and wrap her in a towel to dry. You could blow dry (more heat) on low setting to dry her off completely before putting her outside again. Alternatively if you have a cat-carrier or a box, put a warm hot water bottle wrapped in a towel, and put her on top to heat/relax.

Egg bound is often fatal, so worth the effort -