Chickens start laying eggs when they have enough age, good health, a nutritious diet, and a clean coop. However, one of the most talked about topics is “Will chickens stop laying if coop is dirty?” Yes, they will.
Indeed, your chicken won’t lay eggs in a dirty coop. The filthy coop and nesting materials create stress within your birds. And they don’t like to eat, sleep, stay, or lay eggs in your dirty coop. Therefore, when the cage becomes filthy, your hens stop laying eggs suddenly.
So to ensure your chicken’s continuous egg laying, you must clean the coop daily. And you must change your coop’s entire bedding after every 6 months.
Throughout today’s guide, we will explain why your chicken stops lying, how and when you should clean the cage, and many more things. So, keep reading this comprehensive article continuously till the end.
Will Chickens Stop Laying If The Coop Is Dirty?
The simple answer is yes. Your chickens are messy, but they don’t like the dirty environment. Therefore your hens won’t lay eggs in the filthy coop.
If the nesting box of your hen is dirty, be sure that the hens won’t lay eggs in it. Your birds don’t feel like laying eggs within the messy nesting materials. Your birds stop their egg production to rebel against a filthy environment.
Why Does Your Chicken Refuse To Lay Eggs In A Dirty Coop?
Usually, the filthy coop has dirty or wet nesting materials. And mostly, your chicken feels uncomfortable in this coop because it’s too cold or often stinky. Some dirty cages are the worst as they are infested with bugs and parasites. So your chicken can’t sit, sleep or lay eggs in a coop where parasites live.
Moreover, the coop’s filthy environment creates stress within your chickens. The anxiety within chickens ultimately causes the stopping or lowering of their egg production. Also, stress or psychological disturbance triggers several chemical and physical reactions within your chicken.
Ultimately all these reactions reduce your bird’s egg production capacity. Like all other animals, the physical senses of chicken are strong enough. Reasonably physical senses developed within your chicken.
But you can’t expect that, just like humans, your birds will take the stress and lay eggs in the dirty coop. Your birds will stop laying eggs in filthy cages without human intervention.
Will The Chickens Lay Eggs Somewhere Else If The Coop Is Filthy?
If your chicken coop is not clean, it’s evident that your birds will lay eggs elsewhere. It’s more likely a coping mechanism. Even if your birds lay eggs in the dirty coop, the eggs will mostly be broken, dirty and unable to locate.
Also, sometimes the predator can even steal the eggs from the coop. Therefore you have to go with considerable losses if you won’t clean your chicken coop. So, your obvious duty is to keep the cage clean, so that your chicken can sleep and lay eggs stress-free.
Also Read: Can Chickens Be Left Alone For A Week?
How To Keep The Coop Clean?
Cleaning your coop is essential. Your birds won’t lay eggs if the nesting box is dirty. Therefore you must clean the material of the nesting box once or twice a week. Change the nesting box with something comfortable and fresh.
The straw, wood shavings, or shredded paper can keep the nests smelling clean. Therefore we recommend you use these materials in your coop. Your chicken coop cleaning frequency will depend on the following factors:
- The size of your coop
- The number of chickens you are raising
- The litter method you are using
Once a year, you need to clean your coop thoroughly following the deep litter method. The deep litter method is convenient and sustainable. In cold climates, the deep litter method works best for large cages.
However, irrespective of the type of chicken coop, we recommend you clean your cage thoroughly every month. The question is, how do you know when to clean your chicken coop within the month?
The answer is to smell your coop. If you smell stinky, clean it instantly because ammonia is the source of the bad smell. Ammonia can cause respiratory problems in your birds and you. Therefore clean your coop immediately when it smells stinky.
How To Keep Your Chicken Coop Clean For A Longer Time?
If you follow the tactics below, you can get rid of cleaning your chicken coop frequently. Those tips are:
- We suggest you invest in removable roosts to thoroughly clean them by detaching them. You won’t need to clean them frequently if you thoroughly clean them.
- Basically, the dropping boards are shelves that overnight collect your chicken coop’s deposit. So we suggest you invest in dropping boards. From the board, every morning, you can scrap the pop. And then, you can add the pop to your compost pile.
- Using a feather duster and stiff brush, regularly dust your coop.
- As the deep litter material, you can use sand. Sand is easy to clean. Moreover, compared to pine shavings, sand has lower moisture levels, bacterial counts, and fungal populations.
Other Reasons Why Your Chicken Stops Laying Eggs?
Your chicken stops laying eggs, not only for the dirty coop. Also, there are some other reasons why your birds refuse to lay eggs. And those reasons are:
1. Age
Naturally, at 6 months of age, your birds will start laying eggs. Depending on the breed type, your hen’s egg-laying age can vary. But after a certain age, usually, after 1 or 2 years, your chicken can stop laying eggs.
2. Insufficient Nutrients
Just like a human, your birds also require nutrients in sufficient amounts. If they lack nutrients, their body won’t function properly. So they must intake the proper nutrients. Lack of nutrients is another cause for which your chicken stops laying eggs.
But it does not necessarily indicate that you have to give protein shakes to your chicken. The best option to ensure enough nutrition for them is to feed them layer pellets.
3. Breed
Some chicken breeds are best for laying eggs, while others are best for producing meat. Instead of the layer, if you pick the broiler breed, they won’t provide you with as many eggs as you expect.
Layer breeds are best for laying eggs. Some excellent layer breeds are White Leghorns, Rhode Island Reds, etc.
4. Empty Feeders
Empty feeders create stress among your chicken. Out of focus, your chicken reduces or stops laying eggs. Yes, it’s true. Even if your chicken’s stomach is complete, they still love watching the full feeders. The full feeder, to some extent, brings peace to them and reduces their stress.
5. Excess Light In Nesting Box
Daylight triggers your chicken’s egg laying. But there should be dim light in the nesting box. Your birds will feel comfortable in dimly lit, and they will lay an egg. Similarly, they can stop laying eggs by feeling uncomfortable if excess light is in your coop’s nesting box.
6. Climate Change
Your chicken responds significantly to climate change. Generally, during the mild season, your hens produce eggs in good numbers. But during winter, their egg production can be reduced to some extent.
If you want your hen to produce eggs even in winter, you must ensure the necessary facilities for them to stay warm. The warm weather will trigger them to produce eggs at the optimal level.
Informative Videos on Coop Hygiene and Egg Production
Explore these videos related to coop hygiene and its impact on egg production to learn about the importance of keeping your chicken coop clean and how it affects your hens’ laying behavior.
Why Have My Chickens Stopped Laying Eggs | Top 8 Reasons
Chickens not laying eggs!! Here’s what you can do about it
Why Are My Fresh Eggs Already Dirty?
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Did All My Chickens Suddenly Stop Laying Eggs?
Suddenly all your chickens can stop laying eggs for different reasons. The most common reasons are your chickens are stressed, dirty coop, have poor nutrition, low light, molt, or age. Naturally, these factors are responsible for stopping your bird’s egg production.
How Long Can A Chicken Go Without Laying An Egg?
Without laying an egg, your birds can go for 21 days. When your hen is broody, she won’t lay eggs for up to 21 days as they need time to fertilize eggs.
How Do I Get My Chickens To Lay Eggs Again?
If you want your chicken to lay eggs again, you must clean the coop and ensure enough nutrition for your chicken. In winter, you have to provide a balanced diet for your birds to encourage them to lay eggs.
Adding extra protein to your chicken’s diet is an excellent idea to make your birds stress less and more fertile.
Wrap up
Optimistically this guide on” will chickens stop laying if coop is dirty?” has been helpful for you. Hopefully, as a responsible chicken coop owner, you now understand the importance of keeping your cage clean. Take our suggested tips for granted.
Cleaning your coop is easy. Moreover, you need to clean your chicken coop to reduce the stress level of your hens so that they lay eggs. So clean the cage regularly and ensure your chickens are laying eggs perfectly.
