First egg took a year

[diona]

I got 4 sex link hens last spring. Three have been laying since around August. One is gimpy and is definitely the lowest in the pecking order. She has never laid an egg. Until today! Almost 1 year later. It was small and a little bloody. Her vent looked fine and she's acting normal, eating and drinking normally. Has anyone heard of this? It taking almost a year for a hen to lay the first egg?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Congratulations. Many breeds can take that long, most are ornamental or meat breeds, or even show quality birds can mature more slowly.

I'm still waiting on one from last May. Usually sex links are quick to mature and start laying, but if she was stunted and grew more slowly than it would take her longer to reach sexual maturity.