First Egg Countdown

[Pele]

Hi all, I've seen this done in the hatching forums and thought it was a fun idea: a first egg countdown. I have 3 gold sex-links that are exactly 16 weeks old as of yesterday, and I'm losing my mind waiting for eggs! I say we introduce our girls here who are on the edge of egglaying, and post our first egg when it comes!

(yes this is just an excuse to see more pictures of chickens too

)

I'll post pictures of my girls tonight when I get to my home computer. How exciting!

Edit: the pictures as promised!

Two days old:

Darla at 15 weeks (they all look the same, so I'll just post her)

 

[Pele]

Wow I didn't expect so many people to have hens they are waiting on! It's good to have company

.

Update: Drusilla grew a big ol red comb overnight! She now looks like a mature Gold Comet hen!

. She is probably sick, however, of me following her around the yard and commanding her "squat! Squat you freeloader!"

I swear it's the chickens that turned me crazy, I wasn't this way to start with!

 

[Harrietsmum]

No, No, No!! This is how chicken maths works.........the first egg costs $850............. and all the other eggs after the first are free!

Quote:

 

[meemnum1]

My mood theory is completely wrong!!!!! Somebody laid an egg!!!! My very first egg!!! It's pink and pretty and small and perfect!!! Thank you for the encouragement everyone and listening to my nagging for 3 weeks.

 

[gwydiana]

After 6 weeks of waiting one of my RIR's came through for me for the first time! I'm so in love with these little girls. this is her first egg and my first egg ever! I've never owned chickens before.... so very cool!

 

[specsussex]

I heard the Egg Song this morning! What a beautiful sound, after 23 weeks of waiting. My Easter Egger Scarlet laid a pretty pale blue egg...

 

[DawnCols]

My girls were hatched February 10th.
If my math is correct, that means they are now 18 weeks and 3 days.
Now, I have one RIR that lays nearly every day, which might make it tricky to be certain when I get my first egg from the new girls. But I want to know, because it will be my first "first egg". (The RIR was already laying when I got her.)

Here are pics of my girls from a week ago

A jealous RIR wants in the picture (after all, she's been paying rent here for almost a year!)

And of course, my BOs from when they were tiny and cute:

 

[bs288]

Look what I found this morning!! I don't know who laid it but it was a surprise. My oldest ones are now 15 weeks old

 

[DawnCols]

Alright, I hate to admit to ignorance, but I have to ask:

What does this egg squat look like?

I have adult chickens who lay eggs. The only way I know they're about to lay is I find them sitting in the nest when I open the coop--and they give me the evil eye like "can't a girl get a little privacy around here?"

 

[Flowerbh]

Just a reminder that it is a good idea to put "fake eggs" in your nest boxes before your girls start to lay. This does several things. One, it lets the newbies "check" out the eggs. Chickens will try to eat anything at least once. So if they peck on a plastic egg and it is not something to eat, they will learn not to mess with it because it wasn't tasty. On the other hand, if they saw a real egg for the first time in there, they are likely to peck on it, break it open and find they love to eat the eggs....then you have an egg eater and it is almost impossible to cure that. Second, the fake eggs let your girls know where to lay their eggs. A chicken will lay their eggs where they think they are safe and if they see other eggs there, they want their eggs there, too. I use plastic easter eggs. Some people use golf balls or wooden balls. It is just a good idea and will help you in the long run.