how long do you wait for pullets?

[moodusnewchick]

I have pullets from ages 16-25 weeks. Should I expect each of these girls to lay before December? I'm trying to figure out if some should be culled for being non-producers, or if I really need to wait until Spring since this is downtime for laying. I'm struggling with the logistics of feeding non-producers throughout the winter only to be culled in spring vs keeping the non-producers b/c they add body heat to the coop. hmm. any thoughts?

oh, and some of the 25 week olds are laying.

 

[lurky]

It sounds like you are just lacking some patience maybe

My entire flock started laying at 26-28 weeks of age. Some people get chickens the same breeds as mine and they are laying at 18 weeks. Its the same with people incubating.....if they dont hatch by 6 am on day 21 they are ready to give up

(you know who you are)

Just relax.....enjoy the chickens.......take deep breaths......I am sure the chickens will lay eggs before winter. I have a string of LED light in the coop on a timer til 9 pm. It takes like zero electricity and mine lay all winter long. Just a thought. I hope your birds all get it in gear soon

 

[PurpleChicken]

Quote:
It's about time you logged on. I was gonna call you today to see where you've been.
Guess work is keeping you busy.

Anyhoo, since your birds mostly free range, are young, don't have lights in the coop, and
we are going into winter I wouldn't expect a lot of egg action until late winter/early
spring. It's gonna be very sporadic(bad spelling?) until then.

I've NEVER culled a pullet for lack of production. We only have 14 layers now but still
get 9 to 12 eggs a day. Want some?

How are those rangers? We gotta cull all mine and PP's next Sunday. You available and
ready to process yours?

 

[PeeperKeeper]

We've been dealling with a sick flock and expected some delays and especially now with the decreasing sunlight. We got our first eggs yesterday. The 2 hens we suspect are 30 weeks old.
I'll be even more shocked if our 16 week olds start producing in the next 4 to 6 weeks. Waiting is TORTURE!

 

[LynneP]

A breeder near us had pullets beginning to lay in December of last year. They were June hatches, mostly sex link crosses, and he sold them for $10 each. The rooster had been RIR. These girls have been good layers for an acquaintance of mine.

At our latitude some of the birds are bred specifically to endure reduced light. The breeder did say that he goes out to his huge coops at 5 am and turns on the lights. It takes about 3 hours to get the chores done so his pullets had three extra hours of light at that time.

 

[moodusnewchick]

Ok, all of my girls can stay. I'm trying to be more practical than impatient. Thanks for your replies!