are there signs that our first egg may be soon?

[TheBeatlesAddict]

I read somewhere on here that laying down a lot was a sign. What are other signs?

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

I'm not sure laying down is much of a sign, but this is what I've heard/what I've had one of mine do before she layed. Very red combs, hearing the egg song (Which is a loud bok bok BAGAWK) having a hen throw shavings/hay/bedding on their back, making practice nests, and doing the egg squat. The egg squat was probably the most noticeable for me. An egg squat is when a hen crouches and spreads out her wings, she will often fluff up and shake once you back off. This isn't a sign of laying, more like a sign the hen just reached sexual maturity and is acknowledging the rooster (You). But eggs follow soon when a hen starts the squat, same as the egg song.

 

[TheBeatlesAddict]

I have a rooster. My girls and my roo will be 16 or 17 weeks Monday which I know is early but I also know it won't be too long. I need to know everything to get ready. I don't even have nest boxes yet.

 

[Bloomie]

Quote:
Sixteen of our hens are 17 weeks if ya go by what the feed store says, but 18-20 weeks if ya go by the egg laying age chart

, and after a couple days of "loud bok bok BAGAWK's"

we had our first 2 eggs today.

We've had nest boxes ready, complete with plastic Easter eggs, for weeks but do ya think they laid in 'em?
Nooooooo!

I think ya can relax and work on the nest boxes while listenin' & watchin' for eggs to come rollin' yer way, anywhere they can, til the hens figure out the best place to do this new fandangled job.

Happy Egg Hunting!

 

[HeatherLynn]

I had been wondering about the egg song. I have 16 teenage chickens currently ranging in age from about 15 weeks to 19 weeks but have not been getting any extra eggs of late but my chicken yard is just ringing with the sound of the egg song. They have probably built themselves at least a dozen nest sites. There is one of them that sits for hours singing. She is healthy and active otherwise.

 

[jafo]

Our first egg came at 20 weeks. I was home re-cooping from a knee surgury, and there was much comotion in the coop. The hen would squawk and the roo would answer, the hen would squawk and the roo would answer, this went on for like an hour. Makes me wonder what she's really telling him??? Afterwards, she gets up and everybod had to see what the commotion was all about. We had 5 Orp hens and a roo. Everyone had to see! There's no mistaking the egg talk. Once you hear it you'll know.

 

[MeatKing]

I"ve never heard the egg song> But I can't wait! Mine are only 11 weeks!

 

[slayden]

Several of my current hens started making really immaculate nests in the straw about a week before they began laying. They would remove all extra debris and dig down to the floor, neatly placing the straw in a circle around them. The first time I saw one do that I wondered if she's going to lay an egg soon and withing two days there was a nice-sized pullet egg in that very same nest. Since then several other hens have built similar nests but most just use the same location the first one built up.

Also, having a rooster around seems to 'encourage' the hens to lay a little sooner. After they begin to lay most of my hens patiently sit for mating whereas they used to scream holy hell before they matured.

 

[TheBeatlesAddict]

What do I use for bedding?

 

[JetBlack]

Quote:
One of my RIRs started doing that when she was just a chick! She could dig a nest in the bedding, in about 5 seconds, with this funny ice-skating motion.