My Rhode Island Reds aren't laying!

[Homemaking Mama]

We have 3 Rhode Island Production Red hens who have stopped laying eggs. They are in a chicken coop with 2 nesting boxes. They molted last fall, so I don't think they are going through another molt. They have never been particularly good layers, but each hen was laying about 4 eggs per week until a week or two ago. Do they need special feed? What can I do to get their egg production going again? I don't like having to buy eggs when we have 3 laying hens in the coop!!

Thanks,

Kristy in Texas

 

[lisa lisk]

hi what are you feeding them ? and how old are they? Lisa

 

[lisa lisk]

Its me again, I cant stay on this computer, wish i could but i have to clean the kitchen. yuk you can e-mail me. I would like to hear from you. I have raised chickens for 15 years. I also raise rabbits, vegtibles, flowers, ect. I cant spell so good! [email protected] I dont know if I can help but I will try. Lisa

 

[bigstack]

If hens stopped laying or were late to start my granny would give them some cayenne pepper! IT WORKS!!!! She would just make a pan of corn bread like you would eat but add 2 tbl spoons of cayenne pepper powder. Chickens don't taste heat like we do. Don't worry about burning their lil mouths. Its the capsaisan. Some how there is a chemical reaction that will jump start them to start or return to laying! It does work, I have watched her do it all my life and am doing it as needed now! Usually takes 3-4 days before starting to lay again. Once usually works but may require more. It wont increase production!!! It just starts it back up.

Good Luck and God Bless!

 

[FireTigeris]

they may be deficient in some minerals, they should be eating layer food (pellets or crumbles) and be getting supplement calcium in the form of crushed oyster shells.

 

[MrsBeck]

If hens stopped laying or were late to start my granny would give them some cayenne pepper! IT WORKS!!!! She would just make a pan of corn bread like you would eat but add 2 tbl spoons of cayenne pepper powder. Chickens don't taste heat like we do. Don't worry about burning their lil mouths. Its the capsaisan. Some how there is a chemical reaction that will jump start them to start or return to laying! It does work, I have watched her do it all my life and am doing it as needed now! Usually takes 3-4 days before starting to lay again. Once usually works but may require more. It wont increase production!!! It just starts it back up.

Good Luck and God Bless!

Do you add the pepper to the batter or after the bread is cooked? I have a RIR that is late in laying. My other 3 hens are laying but she is not. They are 25 weeks old today.

 

[Doxiegirl]

they may be deficient in some minerals, they should be eating layer food (pellets or crumbles) and be getting supplement calcium in the form of crushed oyster shells.

They get quality feed and crushed oyster shell along with scratch and whatever is leftover from the kitchen. They look otherwise healthy. We have 3 large hens and two smaller hens. The smaller hen’s eggs a pink color with thin shells. Out of five hens we are getting one to two eggs but they are pink and smaller. They all were laying great and several weeks ago it just went to one egg a day. They are all about 2 years old.