Do you think they could be laying? -Update:THEY ARE!!!

[CrazyCatNChickenLady]

I have 6 EE that are about 6 months old. I noticed last weeks their combs are now bright red. They always dodged my hand but recently they just squat and let me pet them(Even putting their butt way up in the air and fan out their tail!) They are free range and are never locked up but sleep in the coop. So I decieded last night to lock them up in the coop/run, woke up this AM and checked on them at about 9:30am.. Nothing.(edited to add: then I let them all out to free range!)

One of them had flown over(they are very flighty) but I managed to actually keep 5 birds in!

We live on 3+ acres in a heavily overgown forest! So if they are laying outside to coop that would be one true easter egg hunt! Do YOU think they are laying? Any suggestions?!!

 

[SunnyDawn]

EEs are usually slow to mature so it's likely that they aren't laying yet. You are going to have to lock them up a bit longer in the coop and run area to be sure but I'd expect it to take longer with EEs especially this time of year.

 

[CrazyCatNChickenLady]

EGGS!!!! I got EGGS!!!!

one of the girls was missing this AM so I went looking for her, I found her in the nesting boxes, but we(me and the other chickens following me!!!) disturbed her and she went elsewhere and I couldn't find her for a while.

Then another of my girls was acting funny. She was like looking for something. Kept jumping in differents places around the yard. Like a stack of old tires, under a trailer, behind some bags of recycle, the wood pile, the brush pile, then finally ended up in the coop. I checked the coop after a while because the Roo was making funny noises from inside! and found her in the corner of the coop under the nesting boxes! So I left her be and waited til she left the coop, went to check and I found an EGG!!!!! It's a pale green med sized egg!! So I decided to search further and found 1 more under the nesting boxes!!! same exact color!! SOOO exciting!!! now if only they layed them where they're supposed to!!!

 

[Chicken Chat]

Congratulations on the eggs! I put golf balls in my nest boxes when I have young hens that are starting to lay to give them the idea that it is a great place to lay an egg. I've never had them lay anywhere else.

 

[pacetruckguy]

I used old plastic Easter eggs with a little gravel in them. My girls have always laid in the nest boxes as well. Con grats on the eggs! The first time is very exciting.

 

[vickie2133]

Congrads on the eggs.

 

[chickenqueen2010]

My girls behaved the exact same way right before the began to lay! It's a wonderful thing isn't it?! Congratulations! If you're anything like me I don't think you'll lose this excitement any time soon!