Easter Egger Sexing "tips and tricks" *Pictures Included*

[10whiskers]

How old are they, 10whiskers? Generally cockerels crow before pullets lay, so a longer wait is not necessarily a bad thing.

I'm guessing, now at 26 weeks. I don't think the lady at the store really knew. Plus, someone on here said people will sometimes say their birds are farther along than they are. (I guess hoping people will buy them thinking they are going to lay at any moment without the cost of care and feed.)
I took this pic about a week ago... (In the last week, Joonie's comb has turned beet red. Her face is red, now too.)

 

[Wishing4Wings]

Those are definitely pullets. Lots of things can delay the start of laying, but it's all comes down to when the hormones start flowing. This time of year, with decreasing sunlight, it will take longer, but it will happen. Also, most go through a molt around this time, and energy is spent replacing lost feathers. 26 weeks is not unusual at all, but we hear less about it because no one brags about it!

Joonie should start in a couple of weeks or so. Put out some free choice crushed oyster shell so she can increase her calcium as needed. Don't start layer feed until after they all start laying.

Keep us posted!

 

[kenzier093]

My EE pullet is 8 months and 8 days old and still no eggs! All the rest are laying. I looked at the two bones by the vent and they are still close together. She isn't molting either. I guess I will soon have to put the light in the coop.

 

[LadyCluck77]

My EE pullet is 8 months and 8 days old and still no eggs! All the rest are laying. I looked at the two bones by the vent and they are still close together. She isn't molting either. I guess I will soon have to put the light in the coop.

I had two start in the winter last year with no light, no problem.
The old myth is that they won't start until spring, but they do start in winter!:cd

 

[Wishing4Wings]

That's true with pullets, thank goodness! Once they get older, though, winter laying is less frequent.

 

[bruceha2000]

Quote:
They won't moult this year and 26 weeks isn't all that long. I had 2 birds of 6 breeds and they started between 18 weeks and 30 weeks. One EE was 21, the other 26 weeks. I had 5 weeks of separation in other breeds as well. All 12 hatched June 11, 2012 and 2 didn't lay their first egg until January 2013.

 

[Wishing4Wings]

bruce is right. I was trying to say that it's the time of year when chickens tend to molt and it will halt laying. Juveniles do go through several minor molts, but for many, it's so gradual you barely notice. I have two five month pullets, however, that are losing feathers big time right now. They don't look bad, just quite a few feathers floating around the coop. Others from the same hatch aren't losing any in a noticeable way.

 

[kenzier093]

bruce is right. I was trying to say that it's the time of year when chickens tend to molt and it will halt laying. Juveniles do go through several minor molts, but for many, it's so gradual you barely notice. I have two five month pullets, however, that are losing feathers big time right now. They don't look bad, just quite a few feathers floating around the coop. Others from the same hatch aren't losing any in a noticeable way.

I was told that once they are done molting and start laying, for the pullets that is, that they don't molt again until next fall. Mine are around 29 weeks old and they were hatched back in February so I thought they would molt again until next fall?

 

[Wishing4Wings]

Quote:
That sounds right. I thought her pullet Liza looked as though she was replacing a few feathers on her breast and not ready to lay yet.

 

[bruceha2000]

I was told that once they are done molting and start laying, for the pullets that is, that they don't molt again until next fall. Mine are around 29 weeks old and they were hatched back in February so I thought they would molt again until next fall?

I did too but it turns out mine had their second moult earlier than their first so it was a summer moult for some and a fall moult for others this year.
For instance my Anconas started their first "year or more old" moult in early Sept last year but moulted the 3rd week of July this year. My Partridge Chantecler moulted early July the first time, early June this year. One of my Black Australorps didn't have her first "year plus" moult until February this year and ALL my chickens hatched on June 11,2012! I hope she is moulting now because though she didn't seem to be bothered by a decreased feather covering in sub zero F temps, it had me worried. I have 3 other girls that are definitely moulting now (2 about the same time as last year) and the other 6 have all finished moulting. Waiting for eggs from all but the PC!

In any case, it is fair to say that what chickens of a given breed "generally" do is not what a "specific" chicken may do. Maybe they are very predictable if they are raised in controlled conditions, I don't know because my girls' daytime conditions vary with the weather and what they want to do at any point in time.