How unusual is this?

[bbhorsefly]

I started my flock at the end of May with some Easter Egger chicks. We got our very first egg 4 days ago! It was from my pullet. They were loose in the yard when we heard horrible squawking like I've never heard before. She was standing at the back door "singing." So we all ran outside looking for an egg. Found it on the floor of the coop! I wasn't expecting another egg for a few days since I've read it takes awhile before their systems regulate. The next day, she dug herself a nest in some drainage river pebbles. I carried her to the coop to try out the new nest box. It was too small. She just got up and walked out, but left behind a beautiful green egg! She started singing and strutting! I was surprised to get another egg so soon. I talked to a couple people that have kept flocks for years and they said that was so unusual that it was highly likely that the first egg wasn't even hers. But they couldn't explain her egg song which alerted us to it. None of the other pullets were around or at all interested in its presence. I figure we just got super lucky and go back to not expecting an egg for awhile. Yesterday, the very next day, we hear her singing away, she was still standing over the green egg she laid in her best in the rocks. My chicken friends are shocked. The first three eggs three days in a row from the same pullet. Is that so extraordinary? Now it's day four and I'm really curious what she's going to do. She's also laying in the afternoons. Could that have something to do with it?

 

[Morning]

Once my leghorns started laying, they never looked back. One a day for several months now. My sexlinks took longer. At 32 weeks they started.Pretty little rose colored eggs from them, but not daily. Yet. I've got a thirty three week old wellsummer that's still not laying. Willy the Freeloader.
As to the nest of choice, I swear , the only observation I've been able to see consistently, is that wherever they lay needs to be very private. I'd make the pebble next inaccessible, though, since you might get broken eggs. You might try putting one of her eggs in your choice of a nest and see if she'd get the hint.
I doubt that I'm the only one who thinks this but, heck, raising chickens in the summer was a lot more fun that raising them in the winter. Just sayin'

 

[wamtazlady]

When my first EE started to lay she laid for 13 days straight before she took a break of one day. Then she was back at it again. The EE I have now lays 2 or 3 eggs a week. There can be quite a difference between pullets.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I’ve seen so many different things with pullets laying that I can’t say anything is normal, or maybe everything is normal. I’ve had pullets start laying at 16 weeks and pop, pop, pop, practically every day after that. I’ve had then wait until 9 months to start laying, again pop, pop, pop. I’ve also has some that were really sporadic. The only thing consistent about them is their inconsistency.

You almost had that pullet but you need a door. Make a door for your nest. The next time you see that pullet on her nest in the gravel, move her to the nest and lock her in there until she lays the egg. Usually that takes about 30 minutes but I had one take three hours. Stubborn hen! Usually they get the message the first time I do this but that stubborn hen took twice.

If you haven’t done it, put a fake egg in your nest to show them where to lay. I use golf balls but ceramic or wooden eggs or plastic Easter eggs work too. I’ve seen enough to be convinced that it often works. Does it always work? No! Someone posted on the forum that their chickens would not use the nests until they removed the fake eggs. Darn inconsistent hens! But it does work more often than not.

 

[PlanterJeff]

I also started my flock around the same time as you and I had a similar situation as you transpire on the 21st of this month. One of my hens wondered back to the hen house leaving the others, so I knew what she was up to. I followed her over there and witnessed her laying her first egg. I was super excited and took it inside and cooked it right away. I then went out to thank her for her hard work only to find her in the box again. She laid a second egg! No lie. Since that day she has produced and egg a day taking off every Sunday. I had to laugh because she has followed this schedule for two weeks now! She took off yesterday, but like clockwork she laid again today. I guess crazier things have happened. My brother told me that he had a chicken who laid two a day quite commonly.

 

[aart]

..... The only thing consistent about them is their inconsistency.....

Boy, ain't that the truth!!!

 

[Happy Chooks]

Quote:

..... The only thing consistent about them is their inconsistency.....

Boy, ain't that the truth!!!

Yep!

To the OP, some hens start laying and never miss a beat. Others are hit and miss while their bodies adjust. There is no set pattern, each bird is an individual.

 

[HomesteadFrau]

I started my flock at the end of May with some Easter Egger chicks. We got our very first egg 4 days ago! It was from my pullet. They were loose in the yard when we heard horrible squawking like I've never heard before. She was standing at the back door "singing." So we all ran outside looking for an egg. Found it on the floor of the coop! I wasn't expecting another egg for a few days since I've read it takes awhile before their systems regulate. The next day, she dug herself a nest in some drainage river pebbles. I carried her to the coop to try out the new nest box. It was too small. She just got up and walked out, but left behind a beautiful green egg! She started singing and strutting! I was surprised to get another egg so soon. I talked to a couple people that have kept flocks for years and they said that was so unusual that it was highly likely that the first egg wasn't even hers. But they couldn't explain her egg song which alerted us to it. None of the other pullets were around or at all interested in its presence. I figure we just got super lucky and go back to not expecting an egg for awhile. Yesterday, the very next day, we hear her singing away, she was still standing over the green egg she laid in her best in the rocks. My chicken friends are shocked. The first three eggs three days in a row from the same pullet. Is that so extraordinary? Now it's day four and I'm really curious what she's going to do. She's also laying in the afternoons. Could that have something to do with it?

It's normal at least in my experience. My last flock(before the neighbors dog and the red fox) had some of my R.I.R's lay for many days straight and some were more sporadic at the start. In fact Miss Henrietta Featherbottom started laying and layed three eggs in a row, then three double yolkers in a row, then three more regular eggs. She then had a modest one day break(I wouldn't have been upset if she stopped for a month after that lol) and started right back up like a Champ. Congrats on the first eggs!

 

[Peeps61]

My EE hens usually have some hiccups and glitches in the works before settling down to being awesome layers. I would get double and sometimes even triple yolk eggs from them! The laying every day is not unusual in young layers.

 

[bbhorsefly]

Thank you all for the replies! From what I was being told, I would be "lucky to get 2-3 eggs a week from a good layer" and that just doesn't seem right to me. She did take a break on the fourth day but presented us with another egg today! So 4:5, not too shabby! I hope she keeps this up and that the others follow suit soon. I could not get her to stay in the coop to lay. I'll just have to keep everybody locked in the coop/run tomorrow until she lays, I think. She was freaking out when I separated her. But I'm hoping a couple days of laying in the coop will help her go back to it when she's out ranging again. She ended up laying today's in the rock nest she made. Standing completely on end as if in an egg cup:

The color seems to be lightening a bit too. I like her sage green!