egg laying ??

[laughingllama75]

I have 3 Nan hens (and one roo!) and I got them in the fall. They are about 2-3 years old, and I have not got an egg yet. Please don't tell me, I am not going to??? I have lights in my coops on, 20 hours a day, and my other hens are laying like mad. Any ideas?? thanks guys,
Alicia

[nanfan]

As my daddy used to joke, set the axe in the corner of their pen and put some shaving lotion on the rooster.....lol.   I haven't a clue as to what to tell you.  I could understand one hen not laying but all three not laying is unusual.  Mine have been laying like mad since late January and some of them are over 4 years old.  Did they moult really late?  Could they be eating the eggs?  Sometimes it is hard to tell if you are away during the day.  Also, some of my worst egg eaters have been roosters but not with any of the nankins.  Hopefully, they'll get cranked up soon as the weather stays warm.  Did they lay any eggs when you first got them?  If so, they may just be taking a vacation.  Good luck.  Charlie

[laughingllama75]

they were molting in Nov. when I got them, and I got ONE egg in the middle of december. I seperated the roo for a month, just to give the girls a break, and saw no evidence of eggs. I do have a camera in the coop (predator purposes) and I tried watching to see if there was egg eating but I didn't see anything. they are in cages, 3 feet off the floor .....they get egg layer mixed with game bird (twice a day) and Nutri-Balancer also a tablespoon of BOSS once a day. and grit......anything else I should do? They look good, now if I could just get them to lay......

[cuban]

I'm also not sure why they are not laying. However, may I make a suggestion? Turn the lights off!!! You are getting enough hours of natural light to produce eggs. Besides, 20 hours of light would stress-out most any creature. Get them on a normal light/dark cycle. Whatever is natural usually works best in the long run.
cuban

[Rog]

    Look at their combs.  If the comb is a nice bright red they should be laying or real close to laying. If the comb is a pale red they are in a resting mode and not close yet. Right now I have hens with both type combs. But they are not under lights. Last years pullets are the ones that are laying now with the exception of a few 2 year old hens. My 3 and 4 year old hens for the most part are not laying yet. I have one pair of 8 year old hens that lay a few less eggs every year but they never start until June or so.    Rog