I have just bought 2, 16 week old buff orpingtons an a light sussex!!

[cazzzyboy]

i waz wondering if anyone can tell me when to expect my first eggs off my buff orpingtons and light sussex? That is as long as they are hens!!! :/Im new to this so please bear with me. also what i was wondering is ... do you need a cockrel to make hens go broody and produce fertile eggs? I also have 3 silkies which im kinda hoping to breed off. will a silkie cock fertilize orpington eggs? maybe just asking silly questions but just trying to learn.

 

[Zaxby's2]

You should expect eggs somewhere between 18 to 23 weeks old, you don't need a cockerel to make a hen go broody, but do need one to get fertile eggs, and a silkie rooster will mate with an orpington, as well as any other breed.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your chickens! And

 

[cazzzyboy]

thanks very much for your help. few weeks from now and hopefully ill be getting some free breakfasts!!!

 

[chicmom]

Quote:
Hello!

A young hen (pullet) will begin laying around 20 weeks of age, give or take a few weeks. They will lay eggs without the rooster, but it does take a rooster for the eggs to be fertile.

Now, a cockerel is just a name for a young rooster. Cockerels/roosters do not make a hen go broody. It's kind of a hormonal thing a hen goes through....Some breeds are very broody, like silkies, while others rarely go broody. I think buff orps do go broody occasionally. Broodiness sort of happens randomly.

A silkie rooster might try to mate with a large fowl hen, but I think it might be difficult, although not impossible.

Hope this helps!
Sharon