15 week old hen laid an egg?!??!

[ben0125]

This afternoon I came home to feed our 15-week old rooster and 2 hens, they are a cross breed of Plymouth rock & Silkie, however, out of the corner of my eye I see a little white egg (The mother lays the same colour egg) in our little bush. I didn't think a chicken would lay so early? Is this normal, or am I doing something wrong???
If it helps the rooster has been crowing and fertilizing our bigger hens for a few weeks now.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It isn't normal but not unheard of. You probably aren't doing anything wrong.
Keep in mind that you are in the southern hemisphere so your days are still lengthening. That is the primary determinant of inducing production.
That, unlike up here where everyone is complaining about their birds' lack of production.

 

[aart]

I think she is trying to lay again, she's gone in the coop which for starters she never does, but it looks like she is trying to find a spot to lay and also making an unfamiliar fast clucking noise. Currently, shes been in the nest box for around 10 minutes now and hasnt moved since. 1:52pm

Update: She just laid her second egg, I cleaned the little amount of blood that was on it and it is bigger than yesterdays. I was watching this time and once she laid it she was trying to push the egg under herself and was still in there trying to pick up straw and improve the nest? She still hasn't moved since I have taken the egg.View attachment 1200337

All normal behaviors....there's a wide range of 'normal'.
New layers can appear a bit spastic about finding where to lay.
Some birds will sit in the nest for a time before and/or after laying,
could be 5 minutes or 45 minutes.
The moving of nest bedding is an instinct to cover the egg or nest to hide it.
They often put bedding on their backs....
...but I've had birds pick bedding and drop it out of the nest.
They do all kinds of strange stuff, just observe and be patient and you'll learn a lot.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Not all hens ever go broody, though breeds like silkies and cochins are prone to do so. Some wait till they are more mature, some will do so as pullets.
I've had Orps and Penedesencas go broody after laying about 10 eggs and some breeds not go broody till they were 2 or 3 years old and the majority of breeds never go broody.

 

[JeanR]

Notice the blood on that first egg. It was certainly not easy for that pullet to lay her first egg. Hope she waits a bit for her next eggs--may be soon, or a week or 2. Fertile or not (but it likely is, as you have rooster), she will not become broody until she has laid a"clutch"--which for a first clutch, may be as many as 20 or more eggs! The dear little hens do not look like Silkie crosses, but may have Silkie characteristics! So DO NOT LEAVE her eggs in the nest, but collect and mark the date on it with pencil, every day she lays. Assume you want to hatch? Patience! Eat those first eggs and enjoy them, and just collect and date them, keep them in an egg carton on you kitchen counter (or other cool place, not refrigerator). When the box is full, just eat all but about 6 and then just keep the last 6 eggs, adding new ones and eating the older 7th one-- UNTIL she SETS. For a first hatch,. 6 eggs is best for her to be successful! When she SETS, you will place the 6 eggs under her, at the same time, so they will hatch at the same time--21 days after set. And the other pullet will be laying also, any day--so LOOK at their eggs and find differences (size, shape, shell color or markings--each hen will likely --have slight differences), so you can label the hen id, as well as the date. It is a great project--and you will enjoy learning about these lovely little chickens! Good luck.

 

[MageofMist]

All normal behaviors....there's a wide range of 'normal'.
New layers can appear a bit spastic about finding where to lay.
Some birds will sit in the nest for a time before and/or after laying,
could be 5 minutes or 45 minutes.
The moving of nest bedding is an instinct to cover the egg or nest to hide it.
They often put bedding on their backs....
...but I've had birds pick bedding and drop it out of the nest.
They do all kinds of strange stuff, just observe and be patient and you'll learn a lot.

I once had a hen pull out the bedding from the nestbox, lay in the pile of hay she made on the floor and lay an egg in it. She hasn't done it since, but chickens can be darn weird at times.

I have 3 hens now that appear to prefer crushing the cat bed that I use as a nestbox and use the top of it to lay eggs. I just collect the egg and pull it back up for the hens who use the inside of the cat bed instead of the top, but I have seen the hens crawl in it even with a hen already sitting ontop of it.

 

[MageofMist]

I have had a silkie hen start when she was just 4 months old, which is about 17 weeks of age. To make it odder, it is winter here so the day length is getting shorter. I was concerned at first, but so far she has had no issues laying the eggs other than the regular straining that I see all my new layers do during their first month or so of laying.

 

[ben0125]

I have had a silkie hen start when she was just 4 months old, which is about 17 weeks of age. To make it odder, it is winter here so the day length is getting shorter. I was concerned at first, but so far she has had no issues laying the eggs other than the regular straining that I see all my new layers do during their first month or so of laying.

Alright, thanks!

 

[ben0125]

It isn't normal but not unheard of. You probably aren't doing anything wrong.
Keep in mind that you are in the southern hemisphere so your days are still lengthening. That is the primary determinant of inducing production.
That, unlike up here where everyone is complaining about their birds lack of production.

Thanks! Would you have an estimate of when a hen will be ready to go broody?

 

[ben0125]

Not all hens ever go broody, though breeds like silkies and cochins are prone to do so. Some wait till they are more mature, some will do so as pullets.
I've had Orps and Penedesencas go broody after laying about 10 eggs and some breeds not go broody till they were 2 or 3 years old and the majority of breeds never go broody.

The people we got the chickens from said the mother laid eggs every day, should we expect egg nearly every day? or get another today?