Are My Chickens A Good Size for 17 Weeks?

[HorsesRMe123]

My chickens are all 17 weeks old, almost 18 weeks. I have two Leghorns and 2 RIRs. Are they a good size for 17 weeks or should they be bigger?

Clementine (one of our RIRs): 3.6 lbs.
Vanilla (one of our Leghorns): 3.8 lbs.
Stella (one of our Leghorns): 3.8 lbs.
Cinnamon (one of our RIRs): 4.0 lbs.

I feed them very well every day. Since they don’t have anymore grass growing in their run, I put them into a playpen that has grass for a few hours a day. I give them an organic grower feed, cracked corn, mixed variety food, mealworms, oyster shells, grit, broken up eggshell, scratch grain, Brewer’s yeast, grass and alfalfa hay, and then I give them a different blend and variety of vegetables and fruits every day. Some include spinach, parsley, cabbage, grapes, strawberries, romaine lettuce, green leaf lettuce, carrots, kale, blueberries, apples, and pears. I also give them scrambled egg at least every other day.

Do you think they are almost egg laying size? I’m really eager to get our first egg!

 

[mommiesrcool]

I too have some RIR chicks mine are 10 weeks younger than your but I think yours are almost ready to lay an egg, if you want to be for sure you can check their pelvic bones. some pullets will take longer than others to lay an egg, another good sign that they will lay soon is if they squat. here's a thread that teaches you how to check their pelvic bone hope this helps!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/checking-pelvic-bones.1193492/

 

[HorsesRMe123]

I too have some RIR chicks mine are 10 weeks younger than your but I think yours are almost ready to lay an egg, if you want to be for sure you can check their pelvic bones. some pullets will take longer than others to lay an egg, another good sign that they will lay soon is if they squat. here's a thread that teaches you how to check their pelvic bone hope this helps!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/checking-pelvic-bones.1193492/

Thank you!! I’ll take a look at the article.

 

[mommiesrcool]

Thank you!! I’ll take a look at the article.

Glad I could help!

 

[aart]

I give them an organic grower feed, cracked corn, mixed variety food, mealworms, oyster shells, grit, broken up eggshell, scratch grain, Brewer’s yeast, grass and alfalfa hay, and then I give them a different blend and variety of vegetables and fruits every day. Some include spinach, parsley, cabbage, grapes, strawberries, romaine lettuce, green leaf lettuce, carrots, kale, blueberries, apples, and pears. I also give them scrambled egg at least every other day

I know nothing about weights, but I'd cut out most that stuff.
The grower feed and plain water should be the majority(90%) of their diet for optimal growth and health.

here's a thread that teaches you how to check their pelvic bone hope this helps!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/checking-pelvic-bones.1193492/

Here's another guide:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/

 

[HorsesRMe123]

I know nothing about weights, but I'd cut out most that stuff.
The grower feed and plain water should be the majority(90%) of their diet for optimal growth and health.


Here's another guide:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/

Thank you for the advice! The article is super helpful.

 

[HorsesRMe123]

So I’m thinking of introducing chick starter crumbles back into my chicken’s diet for more protein. I’ve heard other people use it all their chicken’s life. I’m not going to do that, I’m thinking of feeding them starter crumbles until they have gotten to the hen size and laying size they need to be. I kind of think they might be too small for 18 weeks? I’ve heard feeding crumbles can help the growth of chickens rather than feeding them a lower amount of protein like grower feed. What do you guys think of feeding them starter crumbles?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Granted breed makes a difference, but none of my current pullets have reached 4 lbs yet, and they're around 24 weeks. So yours seem pretty sizeable to me. However I deliberately keep protein lowered a bit (around 17.5%) to slow down their growth so they don't mature too quickly.

 

[HorsesRMe123]

Granted breed makes a difference, but none of my current pullets have reached 4 lbs yet, and they're around 24 weeks. So yours seem pretty sizeable to me. However I deliberately keep protein lowered a bit (around 17.5%) to slow down their growth so they don't mature too quickly.

Ok thank you for the advice! Great to know.