Determining age?

[Ryder_sanders]

We found this girl about a month ago, she had been dumped at a local park inhabited by lots of wild chickens. We took poor Thick Chick home with us and she has laid a beautiful big egg every single day except for the last week. This last week she has stopped laying and then laid fairy egg yesterday and skipped again today.
I have no idea how old she is but she looks magnificent and healthy and is very active. Are there any secrets that would help me determine if she is in the sunset years or stopped laying for some other reason?
She is the head hen and always gets her treats first, lol. However one of my other hens went broody in her favorite box(no eggs in there) so that may be the reason.

 

[sourland]

She appears to be in excellent condition. Can you post a picture of her legs and feet?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

It's nearly impossible to tell how old a chicken is from their appearance after they reach the age of maturity. There are some subtle hints. Birds from 1 1/2 onward lay large eggs (which indicates she is not in her first year of laying) as the eggs in the first laying year are smaller. Birds also from age 2 forward usually have some parasite build up (but not always in hygienic conditions). General feather appearance can help, a little. Older hens tend to look a bit more feather scraggly (sometimes), combs a bit floppier (sometimes), claws a bit longer (unless they are wearing them down well with scratching).

The only way to tell from a laying hen vs an old crone is the width of their pelvic bones at the vent. 1 to 2 finger width with a small round vent indicates not laying. 3 to 4 finger width with a smile shaped vent indicates laying.

Then the frequency of laying can often indicate. Younger hens often lay almost daily, if a higher frequency layer (like Barred Rocks, RIRs, Leghorns, Sexlinks). Those do slow down to 3 or 4 a week as they age gradually tapering to 2 or 3 per week.

She looks to be in the prime of life to me. It could simply be the transition from her prior life to the coop life. Sometimes weather shifts can impact them. She may go into a molt. It's really hard to know.

I look forward to hearing what Sourland has to say after looking at the legs.

LofMc

 

[sybonbon]

You can usually tell by the feet. A young chickens feet are soft and smooth. As they get older they appear more scaly. IMO

 

[Mrs. K]

Or looking at her beak. I agree with LOM - prime of her life. More than a pullet, my gut is saying 1-2 years old. At three, the beak and feet look older. Not very exact, but to me she is not there yet.

But as previously stated, we are all guessing based on experience, but after they are pullets, and full size, it is hard to accurate. However, I would be more than willing to add a bird like that to my flock.

If she has been running wild, parasite might be a concern, but on the other hand, bright eye and shiny feather are a good indicator of good health.

 

[Ryder_sanders]

She appears to be in excellent condition. Can you post a picture of her legs and feet?

As soon as possible! Thanks

 

[Ryder_sanders]

Or looking at her beak. I agree with LOM - prime of her life. More than a pullet, my gut is saying 1-2 years old. At three, the beak and feet look older. Not very exact, but to me she is not there yet.

But as previously stated, we are all guessing based on experience, but after they are pullets, and full size, it is hard to accurate. However, I would be more than willing to add a bird like that to my flock.

If she has been running wild, parasite might be a concern, but on the other hand, bright eye and shiny feather are a good indicator of good health.

 

[sybonbon]

IMO and comparing to my 6 year old, her feet look young. They look similar to my 2 year olds.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Ditto. I think her feet look around the 2-ish mark. Feet tend to get more "craggy" as they age (as we all seem to do, LOL).

But again, there is no guarantee as there is no certain way to determine the age of a mature hen...we only have hints and suggestions. (Like any good girl, she ain't sayin'

LofMc