Why Are My Hens Not Laying Eggs? (UK Backyard Guide)

Why Are My Hens Not Laying Eggs? (UK Smallholder Guide)

If your hens have stopped laying, the most likely causes are reduced daylight, moulting, stress, poor nutrition, broodiness, or age. Start by checking daylight hours, feed quality, signs of feather loss, and whether the birds are behaving normally. Most laying problems can be traced back to one of these factors with a few simple checks.

You've fed them well. You've kept the hen house clean. You check on them every day, rain or shine. But the nest boxes are empty. Again.

When egg production drops, it's frustrating. You start wondering what you've done wrong. The truth is, empty nest boxes don't always mean you've failed. Hens aren't machines. They have cycles, seasons, and reasons.

*This is where most new keepers get it wrong.*

The temptation is to panic and start throwing money at supplements or changing everything at once. Then you can't tell what actually fixed the problem. A methodical approach works better. Most of the time, the answer is simpler than you think.

Quick Reference: Why Hens Stop Laying

Cause	How Common?	Easy to Fix?	What to Do
Winter daylight	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐	Yes	Supplement light or wait for spring
Moulting	⭐⭐⭐⭐	Just wait	Increase protein, be patient
Poor nutrition	⭐⭐⭐⭐	Yes	Quality layers pellets + calcium
Stress	⭐⭐⭐⭐	Yes	Remove the stressor
Broodiness	⭐⭐⭐	Yes	Break the behaviour early
Age	⭐⭐⭐	No	Add new pullets

Symptoms Quick Match

What You See	Likely Cause	First Action
No eggs + feather loss, bald patches	Moulting	Increase protein, wait
No eggs + hen sitting in nest all day	Broodiness	Remove from nest, break behaviour
No eggs + thin shells or shell-less eggs	Calcium deficiency	Provide oyster shell separately
No eggs + panting, wings held out	Heat stress	Shade, cool water, electrolytes
No eggs + sneezing, discharge, lethargy	Illness or respiratory infection	Isolate, check ventilation, call vet
No eggs + birds seem fine, no obvious cause	Winter daylight or hidden nests	Check daylight, lock in until midday

Common Mistakes That Stop Hens Laying

Mistake	Why It Happens	Fix
Too many treats	Dilutes nutrition, hens fill up on scraps	Limit treats to 10% of diet
Changing feed suddenly	Causes digestive stress, hens stop eating	Transition over 7-10 days
Overcrowding	Fighting, stress, pecking order disruption	Allow at least 1m² per bird in the run
Dirty water	Reduced intake, dehydration	Clean drinkers daily
No grit	Poor digestion, wasted feed	Provide flint grit separately
Ignoring parasites	Weak birds, anaemia, stress	Check for mites, treat promptly

Winter Daylight: The Most Common Cause in UK Winters

Lack of daylight is the most common reason for reduced egg production during UK winters. Hens need around 14 hours of light to trigger consistent laying. In a British winter, the sun sets at 4pm and the mornings are dark.

Hens are photosensitive. Their bodies respond to day length. When the days get short, they think "winter's coming, no point raising chicks now" and production shuts down. That's biology, not a failure on your part.

If you use artificial light: Use a dim LED on a timer to extend daylight to around 14-16 hours. Increase the light gradually rather than suddenly. Never leave lights on 24/7 — hens need a proper rest period. Constant lighting stresses hens and can stop laying entirely.

The natural approach: Time your pullets to reach point-of-lay in late spring or early summer, when daylight is naturally long. That way, you get the first full laying season without artificial help.

In Scotland and the North, where the days are even shorter in winter, lighting is often necessary to keep hens laying through December and January. A timer that comes on at 5am and goes off at 8pm works well. The birds get their rest and they keep producing.

Breed Differences: Not All Hens Are Equal

Breed choice may be the main reason for poor winter production. Different breeds have very different laying patterns, especially in the darker months.

Breed	Typical Eggs/Year	Winter Layer?	UK Suitability
ISA Brown (Hybrid)	300+	⭐⭐⭐	High output, short life
Light Sussex	Around 240-270	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐	Reliable, hardy, excellent winter layer
Dorking	Around 180-220	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐	Rare but excellent winter layers
Buff Orpington	Around 180-220	⭐	Poor winter layers, go broody easily
Rhode Island Red	Around 200-250	⭐⭐⭐⭐	Good winter layer, tough

If you've got Buff Orpingtons and you're wondering why you're not getting eggs in December, breed choice is a significant factor. They're lovely birds — but they're poor winter layers.

Age and Laying: The Peak and the Decline

No hen lays forever. Understanding the timeline helps you know what to expect, and when to add new pullets to the flock.

Age	What to Expect	Action
18-22 weeks	Starts laying (pullet eggs, small)	Introduce layers feed
1 year	Peak production	Expect consistent eggs
2 years	Slight decline (10-15% drop)	Still good layers
3+ years	Reduced output	Add new pullets, keep old hens for flock stability

For heritage breeds, the first two years are typically the best. After that, they're still useful — they lay less often but contribute to the flock's social structure and are excellent foragers.

Moulting: Completely Normal, Completely Misunderstood

Most hens moult once a year, usually in late summer or autumn. During a moult, they replace old feathers with new ones. This process requires a huge amount of protein and energy. The body prioritises feather growth over egg production.

When a flock goes through a moult for the first time, it's easy to panic. Empty nest boxes for weeks, hens looking ragged with bare patches on their necks, tail feathers everywhere. It looks like something is seriously wrong.

It isn't. They're just doing what hens do.

Practical advice: If your hens are losing feathers and look healthy otherwise, don't panic. Increase dietary protein — mealworms, black soldier fly larvae, or a high-protein feed — and give them time. Most hens return to laying once the moult is finished. It can take anywhere from 3 to 12 weeks.

One important thing: Don't change their environment during a moult. No new birds, no moving coops, no major changes. They're already stressed and using all their energy for feather regrowth. Additional stress will delay the moult and postpone the return to laying.

Feed Quality: Protein, Calcium, and What You're Actually Feeding

A hungry hen won't lay. A hen that's cold won't lay. A hen that's stressed won't lay. Egg production is a luxury. Survival comes first.

In spring and summer, heritage hens can forage for worms, insects, and greens. They'll get much of their protein naturally. But in winter, that stops. If you switch to poor-quality feed or reduce portions too much, they'll stop laying.

What works: Use quality layers pellets or mash from a farm supply shop or corn merchant. Don't rely on kitchen scraps or grains alone — they're treats, not a complete diet. And never let them go hungry. A hen that's scrambling for food won't waste energy on eggs.

Calcium

Calcium is essential for strong eggshells. A hen that's calcium deficient will lay fewer eggs — and the eggs she does lay may have thin shells or no shells at all.

What works: Offer crushed oyster shell or flint grit in a separate bowl. Don't mix it into their feed — hens will eat what they need when they need it. A small hopper of oyster shell in the run at all times is the simplest approach.

Grit

Hens need grit to digest their food. Without it, they can't break down grains and fibrous plants in their gizzard. Poor digestion leads to poor nutrition, which leads to fewer eggs.

Keep a separate bowl of flint grit available. In summer, they'll pick up enough from the ground if they're free-ranging, but in winter they need it provided.

Dust baths

This might sound unrelated to egg production, but it's not. Hens need a dust bath — a dry spot with fine dirt or wood ash. Dust bathing controls mites and lice naturally. A hen covered in parasites will be weak, stressed, and won't lay.

A dust bath in a dry corner of the run, using a mix of wood ash and fine sand, makes a real difference to health and laying.

Stress: The Silent Killer of Egg Production

Chickens are sensitive creatures. Louder than usual noise, sudden changes, or new birds in the flock can shut down laying for days or weeks.

After a predator attack, even without losing any birds, the flock can be on edge for weeks. Egg production can drop to nearly zero. The hens become nervous, staying close to the hen house, and they don't settle for days.

Adding a new hen to an established flock is another stress trigger. The existing hens will peck, chase, and isolate the newcomer. It takes time for them to accept her. During that period, don't expect many eggs.

Practical advice: Keep the coop in a quiet spot. Introduce new birds gradually — in a separate pen first, visible but not touching. And if a predator visits, lock the hens in a secure coop for a few days until they calm down. Don't let them out until you're certain the predator has moved on.

Broody Hens: The Temporary Stop

A broody hen is one that decides to sit on eggs all day, refusing to leave the nest. She won't lay new eggs while she's broody. This is particularly common in heritage breeds like Orpingtons and Silkies.

If you don't want chicks, break broodiness early. Remove her from the nest box and block access to it for a few days. Some keepers use a broody cage or a wire-bottomed crate that allows air circulation underneath. Most hens will snap out of it within a week.

Practical advice: Broodiness is natural. If you want eggs, don't let her sit for weeks. Interrupt the behaviour early. The longer she sits, the harder it is to break. A hen that's been broody for two weeks is a hen that's going to take at least a week to start laying again.

Some breeds are more prone to broodiness than others. Sussex hens rarely go broody, while Orpingtons do it constantly.

Hidden Nests: Are Your Hens Laying Somewhere Else?

This sounds obvious, but it's surprising how often it happens. You check the nest boxes and they're empty. You assume the hens aren't laying. But they are — they've just found a better spot.

Hens can be creative about nest locations. Eggs turn up under hedges, in the compost heap, behind the feed store, or in a flowerpot in the greenhouse. If you've got a free-range flock, they'll find somewhere quiet and safe, even if that means you can't find the eggs.

Practical advice: If you suspect hidden nests, lock the hens in the run for a few days until midday. They'll lay in the nest boxes if they have no other option. Then you can let them out in the afternoon. Give it a week, and they'll form a habit of using the nest boxes.

Also watch for: Egg eating, broken eggs, or rats stealing them. If you find broken shells but no eggs, you've either got an egg-eater or a predator. Egg-eating is a hard habit to break, and you'll need to collect eggs frequently, or use roll-away nest boxes.

Heat Stress: Not Just a Winter Problem

It's easy to focus on winter because that's when most people see a drop in production. But heat stress i