How to tell the age of a chicken?

[marlene]

Is there a way to tell how old a chicken is?
If there is i would like you to share with me as i'm trying to figure out how old the pullet(??) i rescued is, i was told she was 30 weeks old, but some how i don't think she is.
Thanks.

 

[JodyJo]

Post a pic, maybe someone one here with the same kind can help you out.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=504
Here is the link on how to, in case you don't know.

 

[marlene]

Thanks for the link. Pouring down with rain here at the moment, when it stops i will take a pic and post.

 

[BWKatz]

Oldtimers have told me that unless <year old and not laying , you couldn't tell age of hen. However you can look at vent and if dried, puckered and no longer rosy, the hen is past laying.

 

[marlene]

I was told she is about 30 weeks old, don't know why i don't believe it, i just have a feeling. I was told she was laying but she has not layed in the 4 days she has been here. It could be because of the change or the fact that she is not well, i noticed she had an impacted crop, so i have been treating her for the last 3 days.

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
Younger birds are difficult to tell how old they are. Older birds beaks are more rounded rather than pointed. Also older birds' scales on their legs/feet are usually larger/wider in size. Trust your feelings, your bird is probably older. Keep in mind that chickens take time to adjust to their new surroundings, changes in feed etc...give her time. Once she gets used to things, she should start laying again.
Check her crop the following morning before she feeds, it should feel empty. Otherwise it's possible she might have an impacted crop. You can type "impacted crop" in the BYC search box and read up on how to treat it. Hopefully it wont require surgery. Maybe a piece of bread soaked in olive oil given her to eat/swallow will alleviate the problem if in fact she has an impacted crop.
Good luck.

 

[marlene]

Quote:
Younger birds are difficult to tell how old they are. Older birds beaks are more rounded rather than pointed. Also older birds' scales on their legs/feet are usually larger/wider in size. Trust your feelings, your bird is probably older. Keep in mind that chickens take time to adjust to their new surroundings, changes in feed etc...give her time. Once she gets used to things, she should start laying again.
Check her crop the following morning before she feeds, it should feel empty. Otherwise it's possible she might have an impacted crop. You can type "impacted crop" in the BYC search box and read up on how to treat it. Hopefully it wont require surgery. Maybe a piece of bread soaked in olive oil given her to eat/swallow will alleviate the problem if in fact she has an impacted crop.
Good luck.

Thank you Dawg53. She definatelly was impacted, i checked her the morning after she arrived. It was the size of a tennis ball and rock hard. I have been giving her olive oil and yogurt and massaging a few times a day, today she is visibly better and her crop is nearly emptied.
With the age thing, i will look at the things you mentioned. So if the beak is more rounded and the scales are larger and wider, what age would the chicken be ?? i know it would only be a rough age.

 

[Smiles-N-Sunshine]

Check their teeth!

But seriously, I've been wondering that myself. I have Black Australorps covering a four-year span, and the only way I can tell them apart is the color of the leg bands I put on them.