First eggs!

[HarrounHomestead]

Well would you look at that?!?! While we were removing 6 roosters from our original flock we found these! Our chicks are 16 weeks old and these are the first 2 eggs. One was on the ground and the other was in a nesting box.

These are small eggs, but it's early, so I was expecting them to be small. When would the hen(s) try and start hatching eggs? We are looking to increase our flock that way. We are now at 6 hens and 1 rooster.

Any other tips anyone wants to leave here or link to other posts would be great!

 

[Debbie292d]

Congratulations!

You could try leave the eggs in one nest and see if one of your hens chooses to sit on them. They may need a larger clutch of eggs before they will sit on them though.

Unless you happen to have a broody silkie, they'll sit on a rock.

 

[2ndTink]

What breeds do you have? Some are more prone to going broody than others. Like Debbie said, silkies will brood a rock. Mine are are trying to hatch hay and linoleum

 

[FrostRanger]

Very nice!
No idea if or when your girls will be broody as broodiness depends on breed and the individual bird in question. If you do leave a nest full of eggs though, I'd leave fake eggs in there 'cause Idk about where you're at, but at least here it's been very hot and I would not want to clean up hot spoiled eggs. I'd use fake eggs in a color your birds don't lay to make it easier on you when collecting eggs or just otherwise make them distinctive. I can tell you that ceramic eggs make terrible omelettes lol

 

[wrathsfarm]

I'm going to add some info I've learned from experienced breeders.
If I remember right you want to only hatch eggs that are at least 60-65 grams in weight for standard size. And your much better off waiting til your girls at minimum 1 year old.

Hatching small eggs from small pullets equals small progeny with no regard to how your flock is growing in terms of health and vigor.
Hope some of it helps and I'm by no means telling you what to do. Just some things I've learned along the way.

 

[HarrounHomestead]

What breeds do you have? Some are more prone to going broody than others. Like Debbie said, silkies will brood a rock. Mine are are trying to hatch hay and linoleum

Lol!

I believe I have 2 silkies, 1 sultan and 3 easter eggers. I want to try and figure out who is laying. I went out at 1:08pm today and found two more in the same nesting box.

How long is it ok to leave the eggs in the nesting box to see if they will try and brood?

 

[HarrounHomestead]

I'm going to add some info I've learned from experienced breeders.
If I remember right you want to only hatch eggs that are at least 60-65 grams in weight. And your much better off waiting til your girls at minimum 1 year old.

Hatching small eggs from small pullets equals small progeny with no regard to how your flock is growing in terms of health and vigor.
Hope some of it helps and I'm by no means telling you what to do. Just some things I've learned along the way.

Thank you very much! I was wondering about the size/weight of the eggs. I was pleased that they have yolks. I ate the two from yesterday and there were 2 new ones today.

 

[wrathsfarm]

Thank you very much! I was wondering about the size/weight of the eggs. I was pleased that they have yolks. I ate the two from yesterday and there were 2 new ones today.

I'm not sure what the weight is for smaller breeds, @2ndTink and @Debbie292d are the experts there.

I forgot to also add. Lovely first eggs, btw. Congrats

 

[HarrounHomestead]

I'm not sure what the weight is for smaller breeds, @2ndTink and @Debbie292d are the experts there.

I forgot to also add. Lovely first eggs, btw. Congrats

These are the ladies. There are 2 silkies that look the same. The first picture is the brown one in the center.

 

[GlicksChicks]

I have incubated 2 batches of eggs from pullets. The chicks started off small, but caught up very fast. I raised them up with 6 chicks we bought from the store, 4 Buff Orpingtons and 2 Golden Sexlinks, and most of our pullets we hatched from those eggs are the same size, if not bigger than the Orpington pullets who are around a week older than them. No health issues with them at all so far.

Some of the pullets have also outgrown their parents, and they are only 16 weeks old right now

The pullets I hatched are curcled in red. The bright yellow ones are the Orpingtons they were raised with, and the ones not circled are their parents.