Numerous hens owners often feel on edge and stressed when they open up their nesting boxes to find not a single egg has been laid.
If you have seen a complete stoppage in egg production from your hens, do not jump to the conclusion that your hens are dying.
Even the types or breeds of chickens could be a significant factor that influences their productivity as there are most productive chicken breeds that naturally lay a lot of eggs.
Know that this phenomenon is a part of the natural pattern of a laying hens life and no eggs today does not constantly mean no eggs tomorrow.
There are bunch of reasons why hens won’t lay eggs that may be influenced by some factors, and it is typically easy to tell apart.
So, here are 5 reasons why your hens won’t lay eggs like usual.
1. Diet
The most well-known reason behind why your hens have quit laying is that there is some kind of problem with their eating routine. Have you changed their eating regimen or even changed the brand of pellets that you are feeding your hens recently?
Remember that they need an appropriately adjusted eating regimen to guarantee their bodies are equipped for delivering eggs.
On the off chance that you are feeding them layers pellets and they are still struggling to lay, consider giving them bites that are high in protein, for example, pumpkin seeds, oats or mealworms.
2. Summertime Blues
Hens love sunshine and it requires 16 hours of sunshine for them to lay an egg. So when the winter raises its head, do not be amazed if your hens do not lay the same number of eggs.
Hens are not really an early riser. It means that they do not rise so early during the winter.
It also means that they head to sleep a lot earlier in light of how early night falls.
In the event that your hens are not laying and it is wintertime, do not worry. It is understandable since they are not into types of animals born in the winter.
So, your hens might not be awake long enough for their bodies to deliver an egg.
3. Age
The age of your hens affects their egg delivery capacity. Hens that are older than a year and a half tend to lay eggs less every now and of less fortunate quality.
Another reason why aged hens have more eggshell quality issues is a hen’s failure to create calcium to frame the eggshell, which is at a similar rate as the increase in egg size after some time.
This circumstance is especially terrible approaching the end of their first laying season and prompts bigger and bigger eggs being delivered with more slender, vulnerable shells.
4. Molt
At 15 to 18 months old, and consistently from there on, hens will supplant their feathers. Feathers will drop out to account for new feathers development.
During this time, hens will quit laying eggs.
5. Stress
Stress, as for most animals, causes a decline in productivity, and in this case, it implies a diminishing in egg production. For instance, the presence of predators can frighten a chicken a lot that they lose feathers, quit eating, lose weight, and quit laying eggs.
This is why you have to have a basic knowledge about ways to make laying hen cage from wires that are strong and safe so that predators cannot enter and harass your hens.
Signs Your Hens Won’t Lay Eggs
The comb color ought to be a decent, rich red color. On the off chance that it is pale or light-hued, you may have a non-egg laying hen.
The keel is where the breastbone closes which is at the rear of the chicken. Normally, the separation between the end of the keel and the vent ought to be around two fingers.
So, if the distance is at least four fingers, then you have most likely got a retired hen.
The vent humidity ought to be sodden and in a chicken that is not laying anymore, they will have a dry, practically dusty-looking vent.
The stomach area should feel delicate and supple, yet in a retired hen, it will be tight and hard.
A hen that is approaching old age will quit eating slowly, despite the fact that they will most likely still drink water.
They will act normally and appear to be keen on life, yet their weight will rapidly diminish to where they are extremely thin.
So, those are the 5 reasons why hens won’t lay eggs and signs your hens stop delivering eggs. Sometimes it is a simple fix and some other times it takes some examination.
And if your hens start laying again, make sure you know the guides to cleaning and storing chicken eggs or how to hatching chicken eggs naturally.