23 weeks old and still no eggs

[marydrager]

I am new to this group and new to chickens. I have only had the for less than a year. I purchased 25 baby brown egg layers in early spring. They are now 23 weeks old and only perhaps one or two have laid an occasional egg. Should I just be patient and wait or am I doing something wrong. They have a new huge beautiful coop, a wonderful area to roam in , expensive feed, good quality scratch, supplement calcium, fresh water, lots of kitchen scraps....and a lot of love....I did not have this problem with the first 10 chickens I got back in October of last year. However there are only 5 left due to a very smart fox. Now the chickens are in an are that is fenced and protected from predators. They did have some sort of respiratory issue about a month ago due to cleaning out old hay in barn loft. We all got sick from it including the cats...Would this have anything to do with it. They all seem to be fine now. I think that because these are assorted, Black Giants, While Giants, Buffs, and two I don't know what kind. Maybe its there breed and it just takes some maturity.
thanks for any input
Mary:/

 

[MIKE555444]

Welcome Mary!!

I think you have the right idea... sometimes they just take longer.... I'm waiting on eggs also.. my Buff Orpingtons are 18 weeks now

Good Luck

 

[newchickmom]

You will probably start getting more eggs in another couple of weeks. I never plan on any before 25 wks.

 

[wundernurse]

Mine just started laying and they were about 27 weeks old. Be patient, they are on their way.

 

[valentinebaby]

It's possible the respiratory problem set them back a bit. However, I loved one of our fellow BYC'ers who said chickens are like young girls entering puberty - they all hit it at different ages - which I think is a good analogy. I had some NHR's that started laying at 17 weeks, my BO's started at 20 and my EE's at 20 1/2. But I'm still waiting on at least 2 of my BO's and they're now almost 22 weeks old, so you never know. Don't worry, they'll get there soon! So happy hunting!

 

[WalkingWolf]

Most of my birds started laying between 25 and 30 weeks. Give them some more time.

 

[Happy Chooks]

My last one just started laying yesterday at 24 weeks.

 

[Kezzie]

I have 26 and the first two didn't start laying until the day they turned 22 weeks...