How can I find my old pictures?

[Princess Leia]

It's really an update on earlier posts, but we are still puzzled.

 

We bought out two ladies (Scramble the Gingernut and Poppy the Pepperpot) at POL in May 2011 from Omlet, along with the Go, so they are now 2 1/2 years old. Both were soon laying regularly - an egg a day each, very occasionally two, although we never worked out which one it was. Over the winter of 2011-12 they slowed production but never stopped. Back to full speed for the spring and summer, then slowed around November 2012 and then both stopped at the same time. Despite expectations, neither have laid anything since then.

 

Both are happy and healthy, they have been wormed (even though there was no sign of worms), they get fed with D&H layers pellets, get to enjoy free ranging the garden regularly and generally seem to live the good life.

 

I know that hybrids tend to have a shorter laying life, but only 18 months? Why would they both stop at exactly the same time? The only other oddity (if it is an oddity) I can think of is that neither have ever moulted.

 

Thoughts? If it fair to assume that they will never lay again?

[sjp]

it can happen that they stop at the same time but I'd be inclined to check the sell by date on the feed

[Princess Leia]

No issues with the food, it's all well in date and we buy small amounts more frequently to avoid storage or date issues. In any case, I can't see how slightly out of date food would cause them to stop laying completely?

[WitchHazel]

Are you sure they haven't found somewhere else to lay? My Exchequer Leghorn "stopped" laying... I noticed I hadn't had a white egg for a few days. It took me a couple of days to look under all the bushes in the garden, and by the time I found her hidden clutch there were 13 gorgeos white eggs there.

 

It could be the eggs are getting stolen by magpies/pigeons/rats. A few years ago we had a drop in egg numbers from our allotment girls. We set up a motion-trigger camera, and within a day we had found the cause. Magpies were going in and stealing the eggs.

 

Or that one of them is eating the eggs.

[Sandychick]

That does seem unusual. It doesn't seem like there is anything wrong with them though. If they stopped laying last November, I'm sure any illness would be very apparent by now. As long as you have checked for all the obvious things (lice, mites etc.), and they are in good condition it seems that you might have just been very unlucky. The positive thing is that they will probably live much longer if they aren't laying every day If it was me, I would see it as an excellent excuse to get another 2 chickens

[Jenthelibrarian]

I have had a 'gingernut' type Warren and a black hybrid hen for sixteen months now, they joined us in April 2012.

 

The warren laid an egg the day after arriving with us and continued to lay daily, often very large eggs. We joked that she wear herself out and stop laying and then live for another five years. Sure enough earlier this summer she started laying softies, or eggs with really odd crusty shells and hasn't really recovered. If Josie lays a softie that breaks they avidly eat it, waste not want not, I suppose.

 

The black hen continues to lay most days, with a couple of days off each week, sensible girl

 

They are wormed with Marriages pellets + flubenvet, given their vitamins, I've tried adding baked ground shells and oyster grit to their supper with yoghurt to glue it on and they've been having the contents of a cod liver oil capsule daily.

None of this seems to have made any difference, they both look happy and healthy and are busy and active. And bundles of fun, their latest trick is opening the sliding door of my greenhouse to steal tomatoes

 

I love them to bits and we continue to get enough eggs for our own use, just none to spare to give away. Maybe the cooler weather will change things, maybe not.

 

If anyone has any suggestions.........