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When one of the main reasons why you keep backyard poultry is to produce eggs, it can be very frustrating when your hens are laying fewer eggs than you expect or when the eggs don’t look like they normally should. While there is some normal variation in egg production based things like season, age of birds, and where they are in their current laying cycle, sometimes this can be a sign of something more serious wrong with management or disease.
In this section, we will cover the basics of what normal egg production for your flock should look like and then provide some tips for troubleshooting common issues.
Your birds need to see a vet if you see any of the following signs:
These may be signs that your flock has an infectious disease like infectious bronchitis or is experiencing problems with internal parasites that will need medical treatment.
When you have a flock with multiple laying hens, it can sometimes be difficult to track egg production for individual hens unless they are producing different colour eggs or you actually see them lay.
Most of the time you will be tracking total production for the flock, which is usually calculated as the total number of eggs produced in a 24-hour period divided by the total number of birds in a flock (laying rate). If you have a smaller flock, you may need to average the egg production over several days to get a more accurate rate.
Overall, 80 to 90 percent is considered excellent egg production (100 percent = 1 egg per hen per day), but this will naturally vary based on:
In commercial laying flocks with tightly controlled nutrition, genetics, and environmental conditions, egg production normally reaches a peak of 90% about 6-8 weeks after pullets reach laying age and declines to about 65% after 12 months. You can also expect to see your egg production decrease as you move through spring, summer, and autumn.
In backyard flocks, it is typical for production will drop to about 50% in winter and 20% when the flock is going through a moult. Providing supplemental lighting as days get shorter can help with this if you want to maintain steadier egg production all year round.
For more information on how eggs are actually produced by the chicken, check out out Reproduction & Egg Production section.
If the birds in your flock seem healthy, but are not producing as many eggs as you expect, here are some common things to consider:
If the birds in your flock seem healthy, but are not producing as many eggs as you expect, here are some common things to consider:
Make sure your hens are being fed at least 120g per bird per day of a high-quality commercial layer feed with 16-18% protein with no more than 10% of their total diet made up from treats or table scraps.
If there is less than 16 hours of natural daylight, consider installing lights in the coop and run.
Make sure your chickens are in an environment where the temperatures are between 12°C and 26°C. You may need to provide additional heating or ventilation to help control the climate.
Sometimes a drop in production can also be related to the characteristics and behaviours of individual birds within the flock.
Pullets will usually start laying their first eggs at around 18 to 20 weeks but may take longer to come into lay depending on their breed and the amount of light in their environment.
Egg production will decrease every year in hens until they stop laying entirely usually around 5 to 8 years of age.
If your chickens are free-ranging, some may find quiet areas of the garden to lay their eggs.
If your hens are losing feathers and looking a little rough around the edges during autumn, they may be going through their annual moult.
If you have a hen sitting on the nest for a long period of time, she may be trying to incubate a clutch of eggs
When birds are sick with an infectious disease or parasites, their bodies are putting extra resources into fighting off the infections rather than producing eggs. Some viruses and bacteria can also cause damage to the reproductive tract making it harder to produce eggs.
Birds can be infected with high loads of intestinal worms that compete for nutrients. The best to rule this out is having your veterinarian check a stool sample to check for parasite eggs.
These will be apparently healthy birds that will start losing shell colour and egg yolk pigment a few days before suddenly experiencing a 10-40% drop in egg production with eggs that are soft-shelled or shell-less. The virus lives in the oviduct causing damage to the tissue.
This respiratory disease can cause coughing, sneezing, runny nose, and difficulty breathing. Sick birds usually aren't eating and drinking much so don't have the extra energy to make eggs.
The four most common reasons for eggs to be abnormal sizes, shapes, and textures in backyard birds are:
With infectious diseases, the birds will often show other clinical signs of illness like being lethargic (low energy), not eating or drinking. In most cases, the abnormal eggs are still perfectly fine to eat as long as the shell itself remains completely intact.
Here is a list of all the abnormalities you may see along with some tips for identifying the cause to get things back to normal.
The egg is enclosed in the shell membrane but there is no calcification of the shell.
This can occur in hens (1) during their first few weeks of laying while their body is still adjusting, (2) if they don’t have enough calcium, phosphorous, and/or Vitamin D3 in their diet, or (3) if they have infectious bronchitis or egg drop syndrome virus.
When the egg only has a thin layer of calcium on the cuticle and the shell can easily be dented or broken with only a small amount of pressure.
The most common causes are (1) not enough calcium or too much phosphorous in the diet, (2) older hens, (3) mouldy feed, (4) too much salt in the water, and (5) if they have infectious bronchitis or egg drop syndrome virus.
If they are on a commercial layer feed, they should be getting balanced diet. Check to make sure they have access to supplemental calcium and that old feed or scraps are cleaned out of the run in case they have gone mouldy.
Fine wrinkles over the surface of the shell
This is most often seen when hens are stressed from overcrowding but can also occur if the shell gland is damaged or if birds have infectious bronchitis.
Rough ridges over the surface of the shell
This happens when the process of plumping is disrupted leading unusual distributions of fluid around the shell membranes.
This is more common in (1) older birds, (2) birds that are experiencing heat stress from temperatures getting above 30°C, (3) too much salt in the water, or (4) not enough calcium or phosphorous in the diet.
This can either be in the form of larger calcium deposits or smaller pimples that feel more like sandpaper.
This can happen when (1) there is too much calcium or phosphorous in the diet, (2) the shell gland is damaged due to disease or age, (3) if there are small amounts of foreign material present in the shell gland during calcification, or (4) if there is any stress that causes the egg to be retained in the shell gland for longer than normal.
Also called slab-sided eggs when there is a large, flat area on one side of the egg
This occurs when birds are interrupted during laying and the first egg is retained in the shell gland. When the second egg enters the shell gland, the pressure from the hard shell of the first egg creates a dent in the newly forming shell of the second egg.
When egg shells have less pigment than normal for the breed or the individual bird.
This can occur (1) as hens get older because the same amount of pigment is being distributed over a larger egg surface, (2) if the egg is retained in the shell gland for longer than normal due to stress particularly during the last 3 to 4 hours of production and the birds puts an extra thin layer of calcium over the egg, (3) using the coccidiostat Nicarbazin, or (4) if they have infectious bronchitis or egg drop syndrome virus.
When the surface of the shell is smeared with droppings
The most common causes are (1) diarrhoea, (2) feeding large amounts of indigestible feed, and (3) poor gut health including changes to the normal bacteria.
Examine the droppings and vent to look for signs of diarrhoea. If any are found, check out our section on abnormal droppings. Look at what the birds have been eating to see if there have been any new foods in their diet and make sure they have enough grit to break down feed better.
Be careful washing the eggs because it can drive bacteria inside the shell if you’re not careful. Click here for tips and suggestions.
When the surface of the shell is smeared with blood.
This occurs most often in pullets that are coming into lay as small blood vessels in the cloaca break as the egg is passing through. This can also happen if birds get a prolapsed cloaca (cloaca pushes outside the body) or if birds are engaging in bullying behaviours like vent pecking or cannibalism.
Check the vents of your birds to make sure there is no visible damage or prolapse. If you suspect bullying, observe the flock particularly around meal times to look for bad behaviour. Review your housing and enrichment set-up to look for things that may be increasing stress levels.
Eggs that are below 50g.
More likely to occur in pullets during their first few weeks of producing eggs or birds that are not receiving enough protein in their diet (<16%).
If hens are free-ranging or being fed a home-made diet, switch to a commercial layer feed with 16 to 18% protein. Provide feed first thing in the morning and limit the number of treats to make sure your hens are not filling up on foods with low nutrient density.
Eggs that are above 70g
More likely to occur in older hens, hens that produce eggs with double yolks, or birds that are receiving too much protein in their diet (>20%).
This increases the risk of hens becoming egg bound where the egg gets stuck in the shell gland or entrance to the cloaca.