[sallylouise]

Hello fellow chicken keepers
I need a little advice not sure if I have a problem with my chickens i had 3 chickens until recently, one died whilst i was away ( my partner was looking after them) not sure why it died. my chickens are 2 and a half years now, there egg production has slowed down the last couple of months nothing has changed regarding their eating habits or routines, however i have noticed they have taken a liking to their eggs and unless I get to them quick they seem to be pecked. I have been back from hols for about a week and the 2 I have left seem a little off their food and when they were having their morning chirp so to speak it wasn't a happy chirp more of a very dull one  . they have not layed since I have been back I have seen one pecked egg. But I am not sure if they are on their way out or if egg production generally comes to a halt at this age. I have left them lots of goodies (grapes, marmite on oaty bread, lettuce, apple) and checked them for red mite or anything else but they generally seem fine. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated 

[ehs284]

First thought is when were they last wormed?
Second - are they having too many treats? Perhaps a tonic regime of pellets plus something like Poultry Spice might be in order. No treats for a few days. Best of luck.

[hillfooter]

First thought is when were they last wormed?
Second - are they having too many treats? Perhaps a tonic regime of pellets plus something like Poultry Spice might be in order. No treats for a few days. Best of luck.

I agree too many treats here and it won't help. 

Hens don't always lay consistently and your problem could be caused by any number of things as well as they are knocking on particularly if they are hybrids.  They do start to noticably drop in production in their third laying season.  Eating eggs is usually a sign of soft or thin shelled eggs so if shell quality is an issue increase the oyster shell availability or even consider limestone flour for a couple of weeks in their feed if this is definitely indicated.

If you are sure there's no signs of illness like depression, sneezing runny noses etc then I wouldn't worry it will probably pass.
HF