How unusual is this?

[aart]

Amazing that egg didn't break when it hit the rocks!

Yep, some birds will only lay 2-3 a week, some lay 6-7.


Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers.
Leaving them locked in the coop for 2-3 days can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests.
They can be confined to coop 24/7 for a few days to a week, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon.
You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it. ..at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.

 

[bbhorsefly]

Amazing that egg didn't break when it hit the rocks!

Yep, some birds will only lay 2-3 a week, some lay 6-7.

 
Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers.
Leaving them locked in the coop for 2-3 days can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests.
They can be confined to coop 24/7 for a few days to a week, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon.
You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it...at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.

I kept them all locked up today until she laid. She's the only one currently laying so I just waited her out. She was near frantic pacing the run fence to getting her preferred spot. Then she'd waddle like a pregnant woman that needs to pee double time to the coop and emerge a few minutes later and do it over and over again. So we checked the coop about a half dozen times until there was finally an egg in the nest box. It was about 3pm by the time she let it go. The egg yesterday was around10:30am. Her last streak of eggs was 10:30, 1:30, 3:30. I hope that delay doesn't mean we won't get an egg tomorrow. I'm sure it's just working itself out and she'll find a pattern, or not. I think I'm just a little obsessed because she's the only one to watch. Haha 5:6 is pretty good numbers so far!

I took my egg photography to my bathroom where I have daylight bulbs so it would really show her color. My kitchen lights tint them orange so they just look brown.

 

[heatherlaw]

That's a beautiful egg! I had a silkie start laying at 20 weeks and was getting 6 eggs per week until she went broody. I was told silkies are terrible layers and not to count on more than one egg a week. Not Jane, she a faithful little lady. When she went broody I let her sit her own eggs and now she's running around with 3 adorable chicks and is being a fantastic mum shes also my head hen, despite the fact that she's by far the smallest. I don't pay too much attention to the 'rules' on what's normal. Every bird is different

 

[aart]

Quote: Time of lay will often regularly vary day to day...then a day off. That's why it's easiest to just keep them confined for a few days to a week.

It takes about 25 hours for an egg to form, a new ova is released shortly after an egg is laid.
A new egg could be laid approximately every 25-26 hours, so an hour or so later every day until one is laid late in the day and another ova might not be released until the following day, so a day off.
BUT..very hen is different and only time will tell what a particular hen/pullets schedule might be. Not every hen/pullet lays every day..some only lay a few a week.

 

[Ridgerunner]

As Aart said it takes “about” 25 hours for an egg to go through the hen’s internal egg making factory, “about” being the key. And there are different triggers for when a hen releases the yolk to start a new egg through that journey. One of those triggers is when she lays her egg, but there are others. One of those others is daylight. If it is too close to dark she doesn’t release a yolk so she doesn’t have to lay it after dark. Then at daylight the next morning she starts another egg, so she lays a bit later each day until she skips a day and starts the cycle over.

But each hen is an individual. For some the journey through her internal factory is less than 25 hours, for some it’s more. Some triggers to release the yolk may be stronger than others in certain hens. I’ve had hens that follow the general trend and lay an hour or two later each day until they skip a day. I’ve had hens that lay an egg about the same time each and every day until they skip a day. One clear example of that was a few years back when my only green egg layer at the time popped out an egg every day for 8 or 9 days in a row, then skipped a day. She laid her egg before 9:00 am every day or she did not lay that day. She also went broody and hatched and raised her chicks. She was back laying my only green eggs 2-1/2 weeks after her chicks hatched and she was my first hen that weaned her chicks at three weeks. Not a normal hen in many respects.

Any hen of any breed is an individual and may follow breed patterns, but also may not. Some breeds, like Orpington, are known to go broody a lot. But I’ve had Orpington that never went broody. Some just don’t follow breed tendencies. But Easter Eggers are not a breed. There are no standards they are supposed to meet except the hens might lay blue or green eggs. Even that is not a given. There are no recognized colors or patterns. Their legs can be any color. They may or may not have a pea comb, muffs or tufts. They may or may not go broody a lot. They may lay really well or lay horribly. They may be aggressive or docile. There are simply no trends they are supposed to follow.

I crossed my colored egg layers with other breeds and have developed a hen that might lay a brown or green egg but also go broody a lot and lay a lot of eggs, though the eggs are a bit small. I’m working on that. I can say that mine have certain trends because I’ve developed those trends. But that is with my individual flock. That is not typical of EE’s everywhere because EE’s don’t have trends.

 

[AuntNomi]

I kept them all locked up today until she laid. She's the only one currently laying so I just waited her out. She was near frantic pacing the run fence to getting her preferred spot. Then she'd waddle like a pregnant woman that needs to pee double time to the coop and emerge a few minutes later and do it over and over again. So we checked the coop about a half dozen times until there was finally an egg in the nest box. It was about 3pm by the time she let it go. The egg yesterday was around10:30am. Her last streak of eggs was 10:30, 1:30, 3:30. I hope that delay doesn't mean we won't get an egg tomorrow. I'm sure it's just working itself out and she'll find a pattern, or not. I think I'm just a little obsessed because she's the only one to watch. Haha 5:6 is pretty good numbers so far!



I took my egg photography to my bathroom where I have daylight bulbs so it would really show her color. My kitchen lights tint them orange so they just look brown.

What a pretty egg! I have young Ameraucanas so I am waiting for them to grow up enough to lay and it takes forever. My leghorns and RSL laid an egg everyday for days when they started laying. I have a BSL and an Astralorp that I haven't quite figured out, they lay, but of course when they want to. I never open their coop til I feel like everyone has laid for the day. Occasionally I will have let them out and a while later someone decides that they are gonna lay an egg and goes back to the coop to do so. I have never had any of mine lay outside of the coop that I know of. But I have a few times had a hen in a panic to get back in and lay. Best of luck to you, hopefully your others will follow suit soon.

 

[bbhorsefly]

Thank you for all the words of advice! We finished our her first week lying at 5:7. I think she was fighting laying the one in the coop, so she laid it later, so her system didn't have the time to produce an egg for the next day. So I didn't get one yesterday. But on her one week anniversary, there was an egg in the nest box in the morning! So we've gotten a full half dozen of these green beauties! And this last one was the size of a normal store bought large. Hoping we have another fairly early tomorrow and see if she keeps this up! Thanks again everyone!

Here she is in the middle between her two sidekicks. She has become more inquisitive about the back door and I'll often find her standing on the back steps looking toward the door whenever I open it. She'll walk right in the house. Like we have some sort of connection and are friends now that she's paying her way. And I have to admit I try to make sure she gets a good share of any scraps and a special tidbit every now and again because she's a hard worker. Heehee

 

[AuntNomi]

Thank you for all the words of advice! We finished our her first week lying at 5:7. I think she was fighting laying the one in the coop, so she laid it later, so her system didn't have the time to produce an egg for the next day. So I didn't get one yesterday. But on her one week anniversary, there was an egg in the nest box in the morning! So we've gotten a full half dozen of these green beauties! And this last one was the size of a normal store bought large. Hoping we have another fairly early tomorrow and see if she keeps this up! Thanks again everyone!




Here she is in the middle between her two sidekicks. She has become more inquisitive about the back door and I'll often find her standing on the back steps looking toward the door whenever I open it. She'll walk right in the house. Like we have some sort of connection and are friends now that she's paying her way. And I have to admit I try to make sure she gets a good share of any scraps and a special tidbit every now and again because she's a hard worker. Heehee

Pretty eggs