Top 8 Reasons Why Your Chickens Are Not Laying Eggs

Have you been scratching your head wondering what’s going wrong? The question, "Why aren't my chickens laying?" ranks among the most common ones that our customers ask.

While there are some chicken breeds that will produce an egg a day, this is not the norm. Plus, age is also a factor in how often chickens lay. But there are other reasons why chickens might not be laying eggs, including moulting, broodiness, weather and the seasons, as well as nutrition. So let's crack on and find you some answers.

Key Takeaways

1. Egg-Laying Myths: Before assuming your chickens aren't laying, check for hidden nests; hens often prefer secluded spots, especially if they are broody.
2. Predator Awareness: Eggs can be stolen by predators like snakes and birds. Prompt egg collection and secure coops are essential.
3. Moulting Periods: Chickens naturally stop laying during moulting. This process can take several weeks, especially for older hens.
4. Broodiness: Broody hens will cease laying to sit on eggs. Multiple hens can become broody simultaneously.
5. Seasonal Changes: Egg production typically declines with shorter daylight hours in autumn and winter. Some breeds are adapted to stop laying in winter.
6. Weather Effects: In Australia, heat stress is more likely to affect laying than cold temperatures. Keeping chickens cool and hydrated is crucial during hot months.
7. Age Matters: Chickens begin laying between 15-25 weeks, but production declines with age. Heritage breeds tend to lay for longer but produce fewer eggs per week.
8. Diet and Nutrition: A balanced diet is vital for optimal egg production. Ensure your hens receive enough protein, calcium, and vitamins.
9. Stress Factors: Stress from predators, parasites, environmental changes and illnes can lead to decreased egg production. Identifying and alleviating stressors is key to maintaining laying patterns.

By understanding these factors, you can better manage your flock and encourage consistent egg production.

Many factors might cause a chicken to stop laying eggs or to lay fewer eggs. Decreased laying and not laying at all can have the same or different causes. It is also worth considering whether it is one hen that has stopped laying or the whole flock, and how suddenly this occurred. All of this information will help you identify the reason why your hens aren't laying.

Now, let’s explore some natural reasons why your hens might be off their laying schedule.

A. It sounds like a silly question, but we cannot count the number of times that a customer has told us their chickens aren't laying, only to call up later and say that they had made a mistake. So what happened? 

There are a range of things that can make it seem that egg production has decreased when it hasn't, including:

• Chickens hiding their eggs and not using the nesting box

  This is the most common reason why people think their hens aren't laying, and customers often call us to report finding a nest of 20, 30, even 100 hidden eggs!

  While chickens can stop using the nesting box at any time, this is most common in spring when hens are broody. Broody hens prefer a more secluded nest site, often in the run or garden. Once they begin laying there, other hens want to join in. Suddenly, you will be getting fewer eggs, not because your hens aren't laying, but because they have a hidden nest!

  Other reasons hens might stop using the nesting box include parasites, predators and insufficient nesting boxes. 

  To troubleshoot, read more about  encouraging your hens to use the nesting box here and how to deal with a broody hen here.

• Something stealing the eggs

  Snakes, goannas (lace monitors), rats and some wild birds, like ravens, crows and kookaburras, will all steal chicken eggs. If eggs are not collected promptly, these animals can make a habit of visiting your chook pen for a free meal! Some will eat eggs whole, but others break the eggs and leave the shells in the nesting box. 

  Predator-proofing your chicken coop, keeping wild birds out and collecting eggs promptly are the best solutions to predators stealing eggs.

• An egg-eating chicken

  Sometimes naughty chickens can pick up a habit of egg eating too. Usually this happens when they discover a broken egg, and learn that eggs actually contain delicious food. Egg shell in the nesting box and spending some time watching your flock will tell you whether an egg-eating hen is responsible for the drop in egg production.

  Collecting eggs promptly, using a  Roll Away Nesting Box and ensuring ample nesting boxes for your flock will help prevent chickens from egg eating. 

A. Typically, a hen moults once a year as part of their natural cycle. During moulting, a chicken sheds its older feathers to make way for new ones—how fantastic is that? I’d love to shed some of my grey hairs as well!

When a hen moults, she takes some well-deserved "me time" and stops laying for a few weeks to use her protein for making feathers instead of eggs. Older hens moult more frequently and take longer to do so. While hens generally moult in autumn, this is less predictable in warmer climates. If your hens are all the same age, they will usually moult at the same time, whereas in a flock of mixed ages, hens will moult at different times.

You can identify a moulting hen as she begins losing feathers and appears generally ragged. Usually, moulting starts with the head and neck, and ends with the tail. 

It is important to know the difference between moulting and other feather issues. Isolated feather loss and extensive exposed skin, as shown in the photos, do not result from moulting. Straggly feathers, particularly tail feathers, are more often the result of feather pecking or mites, than moulting.

Moulting is a natural and important process for chickens. You cannot speed it up, but giving your hens extra protein such as  Dried Mealworms, and a vitamin and mineral supplement, can help with their recovery and feather growth.

A. A broody hen wants to sit on a nest of eggs and hatch chicks. Naturally, a broody hen will stop laying eggs once she has enough to sit on. In a chicken coop where you keep taking away the broody hen's eggs, she will usually stop laying eventually even if she doesn't have a clutch. 

Don't think that it's strange for multiple hens to be broody at once. For some reason, broodiness seems to be catching!

Learn how to deal with broody hens on the blog.

A. Sunlight plays an essential role in egg production. Hens need up to 14 hours of sunlight each day. As daylight hours decrease during autumn and winter, it's natural for egg production to drop or stop altogether. In addition, some chicken breeds are more likely to stop laying in winter than others. 

In Australia, particularly the further north you go, chickens will generally lay year-round, although egg production will decrease somewhat. In places with short winter days, such as Europe, egg production is more likely to cease altogether. Additional lighting in the chicken coop can increase winter egg production and is used by commercial producers, but it is rarely worthwhile with a backyard flock.

A. It may sound strange, but the weather really can stop chickens from laying. In Australia, your chickens are more likely to decrease egg production due to heat-stress than sub-zero temperatures. So trying to keep your coop cool and chickens hydrated during summer is important. But ultimately, there is not much you can do to increase egg production when the temperature soars.

A. Depending on the breed, chickens will begin laying between 15 and 25 weeks of age. And chickens will typically continue laying eggs for 3 to 7 years. 

Heritage breed chickens generally produce eggs for a much longer time span, often 5-7 years, albeit fewer eggs per week. However, commercial chicken breeds like ISA Browns may lay an egg a day for the first year or so, but rarely continue laying after 3 years of age. 

So the older a chicken is, the fewer eggs it will lay. Older hens will also have longer periods of rest, often several weeks at a time, between bouts of laying. 

A. Ultimately, diet is the most important factor for both chicken health and egg production. Without a balanced diet, egg production is often the first thing to suffer. 

Here are a few of the most common dietary causes of chickens not laying:

• Insufficient protein or amino acids
• Insufficient calcium - thin-shelled eggs are often the first sign of calcium deficiency, but if the deficiency is not treated than your hens may cease laying altogether
• Vitamin or mineral deficiency
• Obesity

The most common causes of dietary issues in chickens are limiting access to feed, providing a mixed grain rather than a layer pellet, not using a complete layer feed and feeding too many treats, scraps or supplemental grains (more than 10 % of the daily diet is way too much!). 

Changing your chickens' feed, even for another brand, may also lead to a temporary drop in egg production.

For advice on how to feed your chickens a healthy diet, visit our Guide to Feeding Backyard Layers. 

A. Chickens are very sensitive to stress and when they are stressed they will often produce fewer eggs or stop laying altogether. 

Common causes of stress in the chicken coop include predators, parasites, bullying and changes to routine. Health issues such as diseases can also cause stress or affect egg production. 

Learn more about managing stress in the chicken coop on the blog.