Each and every yard chicken keeper has expert it: one day, your hens are laying reliably, and the next, the nesting boxes are mysteriously empty. In line with Gail Damerow, renowned poultry qualified and author of Storey’s Guidebook to Elevating Chickens, this egg-laying pause is frequently not a secret in the slightest degree. You will find distinct, all-natural factors hens quit laying, and comprehending them will help you assistance your flock and restore productivity. Listed here are Damerow’s leading five factors hens quit laying—and what you are able to do about them.

1. Molting: A Organic Pause
As Damerow explains, molting is usually a yearly party in a hen’s everyday living, commonly developing in late summer time to early fall. During this time, hens eliminate and regrow feathers—a method that needs a huge quantity of Electrical power and protein. Egg creation frequently stops all through this period, as being the hen's entire body focuses solely on feather regeneration.

What You Can Do: Guidance your hens having a significant-protein feed or snacks like mealworms and scrambled eggs. Steer clear of stressing the flock and Permit mother nature acquire its program. When the molt is entire, egg-laying must little by little resume.

two. Shortened Daylight Hours
Mild publicity performs a significant function in stimulating a hen’s reproductive technique. Damerow details out that hens require 14–16 hrs of daylight for reliable laying. As daylight decreases in the autumn and winter months, so does egg manufacturing.

What You Can Do: Look at introducing a lightweight resource within the coop using a timer to simulate normal daylight. A very low-wattage bulb turning on during the early early morning can properly extend "daylight" and support winter laying. Steer clear of sudden lights variations Which may worry your birds.

three. Weak Nutrition
Nourishment is foundational to egg output. Damerow warns that feeding chickens a food plan missing in protein, calcium, or necessary nutritional vitamins may lead to less or no eggs. Treats and scratch grains, whilst enjoyable, can dilute the well balanced nourishment supplied by industrial layer feed.

What You Can Do: Be certain your flock has regular use of substantial-top quality layer feed, clean h2o, and calcium health supplements like crushed oyster shell. Limit treats to not more than 10% in their each day diet program.

4. Strain and Environmental Variables
Tension is An important contributor to lowered egg production. In keeping with Damerow, stressors can incorporate predator threats, overcrowding, bullying, Intense temperatures, or simply relocating the coop. Hens are delicate to change and will react by halting egg generation.

What You Can Do: Produce a quiet, Risk-free environment in your birds. Preserve consistent routines, give ample Place, and address sources of strain such as loud noises or aggressive flockmates.

five. Age and Health concerns
Damerow reminds us that laying is not a lifelong endeavor. Most hens start off laying around 5–6 months of age, peak at about 1–two decades, and after that slowly decelerate. Illness, parasites, and reproductive problems could also interfere with laying.

What You are able to do: Regulate your hens’ overall wellness. Carry out common parasite checks, manage a clean coop, and seek the advice of a vet should you observe indications of ailment. More mature hens should still be worthwhile customers on the flock regardless of whether their laying times are guiding them.

Closing Feelings
As Gail Damerow typically claims, Fun88 Casino “Chickens don’t just end laying for no explanation.” When your hens take a break, it’s their way of signaling that something in their environment or biology has shifted. With a certain amount of observation, superior treatment, and several persistence, you might help guide your flock back again to nutritious egg production—or simply enjoy the normal rhythms of their life.