Will my chickens ever lay again?

I've got thee chickens about three years old who up until last Autumn were laying an egg a day each. I expected them to slow down as Winter came along but they have still not started laying again. Two of them had messy backsides so I fed them a supplement to deal with worms but still no deal. Will they ever lay again?

Hi Brian,
I always start out giving advice by saying that I am not an expert (though I do read a lot of things written by experts). Chickens do have a finite number of eggs to lay, and when those are exhausted, they will not lay any more eggs, but still may live for several more years depending on the circumstances. However, in my limited experience, they stop laying more gradually than what you are experiencing. Here are some thoughts in no particular order.

1. Stress can cause a chicken to stop laying. Too much heat, too much cold, not enough water, not enough food, etc. Make sure they have plenty of water and shade.

2. Disease or pest can also cause them to stop laying. It seems you are already checking for worms. I would also check for parasites and mites and those sorts of things. I think I had a bout with some mites which cause my 27 hens to give me an average of 8 eggs a day for a while. I was getting 18-24 regularly.

3. What breed are they? Some breeds are meant to lay as many eggs as fast as possible which could mean, maybe they are out of eggs. Unless they are a super egg laying breed like white leghorns, I would not suspect this one.

4. Are you positive they are not laying eggs? Could some animal (rat, snake, etc) be getting in to eat the eggs? Could the chickens be eating the eggs? Chickens will eat their own eggs if they need the protein or calcium, or if the eggs are cracked, and sometimes if they get in the habit. Perhaps a game camera in the coop would help see what is happening when you are not there. Also, listen for the call a hen makes after laying an egg. Mine are pretty loud about it, and it would help you determine if they are in fact laying, but something is getting to the eggs before you.

Let me know how it goes. It seems like there are a bazillion reasons chickens won't lay eggs, and it can be frustrating to find out why. It can also be very satisfying to solve the mystery and get back to some good fresh eggs. Good Luck.

I am far from an expert, but I wonder if there's a possibility they have vent gleet? You mentioned two have messy backsides and that treating for worms didn't resolve it. From my understanding, vent gleet can cause them to stop laying, since there is inflammation of the cloaca, making egg laying pretty darn uncomfortable. Getting them cleaned up, resolving whatever stresses made them susceptible and restoring the balance of good bacteria with probiotics seems to be the treatment for mild cases. Some folks use antifungals, but if you're not sure, I'd focus on the probiotics instead. Again, I'm no expert, but since none of those things could hurt (excepting antifungals), seems worth considering. Here is an article with some more info about it and pictures of what it looks like: Vent Gleet Prevention and Treatment

Hope your feathered friends get to feeling better!

Hi  my girls stopped laying awhile back. We have dusted them for mites with D,E,  maybe twice , dusted the coop cleaned out straw on floor as well as nesting boxes.  we did catch a giant opossum in there  , but he wont be back. We also have several large garden snakes, but surely they can't be the cause? not for the size of our eggs. Still trying lessons learned before . There was a serious traumatic incident this past winter, but they had almost all started laying again, s idk , either. TY

I'm rather confused regarding treatment for Vent Gleet and if using a strong mix of Bleach will kill Red Mite. A new other point is the morality of using hybrids. I have read an article recommending,  Leghorns, Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock. Does anyone have a view?

Brian Leahy wrote:I'm rather confused regarding treatment for Vent Gleet and if using a strong mix of Bleach will kill Red Mite. A new other point is the morality of using hybrids. I have read an article recommending,  Leghorns, Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock. Does anyone have a view?

Is there a particular point that you're confused about with the vent gleet treatment?
I must admit, my knowledge about it is from reading and helping my friend's chickens with it, so I may be of limited help. But I can try to help clear up any confusion.

Unless you are sure vent gleet is the issue, I'd think just giving them probiotics and keeping their bums clean would be the best course. I've seen various ways of giving the probiotics. Some give apple cider vinegar in their water (don't do in a galvanized waterer!), some feed small amounts of yogurt (too much dairy is no good for them), fermented feed would be another way. Or the packets of probiotic powder available at the feed store that you mix into their water. The idea being that the vent gleet is caused by an imbalance of the microbiome back there and by boosting the good bacteria, the bad ones will no longer be able to hang out. The probiotics would need to be given consistently for some time to work. I wouldn't try any of the other treatments for that unless you know it's vent gleet, since some of them could be harmful if not needed.

As for the red mites, I am not sure what the best solution to remove them from the coop would be. Hopefully someone who has dealt with them can offer suggestions. Have you observed mites in the coop and/or on the chickens themselves?

One of the things I noticed is feed quality this time of year.  The protein seems to be lower after sitting in seed form for the past 9 months.  The quality of greenchop gets better as the summer progresses so it usually balances its self.  I like to bump up the protein in my mix when I start noticing eggs production issues.  I add 20 new layers to the batch every year and the old ones live a happy life till they expire.  I have had 7 year olds still laying a couple a week and I have had 2 year olds quit laying forever.  I use colored zip ties on their ankles so we know what years they were added.