Is there a way to get bigger eggs from RIR pullets?

[tweetzone86]

Hello all!

I did the butt check just now and I have 4 layers out of 12 now! Woohoo! They are 22 weeks 3 days old now (RIR pullets).

So far the biggest eggs that have been laid are 1.6 oz, which I think puts them in the small size category (US scale)?

I am wondering if there's anything I can do (higher protein feed, etc) that can help get the eggs bigger sooner? I am going to sell the extras to pay for their feed, and would like to get to size Large eggs soon.

Note- I have supplemental lighting in the coop (the way I figure it is that chickens in the tropics aren't hurt by laying all year round, and we have very cold winters here and no heat in the coop (back half of a 10x20 shed is chicken zone the rest is our space) so I decided to supplement the lighting with a 4' long daylight shop light), they have free choice food and as clean as I can get it water (did food bin out of a sterilite tote from Walmart with 4" pvc elbows so no feed waste), and they are safe from predators. I also have clean bedding/change it out once a week or so, depending on how bad it is. I am feeding them 16% protein layer crumble feed with calcium (Dumor from Tractor Supply), along with mealworms (their treat for returning to the coop) and kitchen scraps.

Do I need to just give it time, or is there anything I can do to up the egg size sooner rather than later?

 

[Helloworld]

https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/livestock/production/poultry/pubs/bba14s00.pdf

 

[snow5164]

Give them time,
Their bodies aren’t ready to give you large eggs right away , if you push them with high protein or whatever you find you could cause reproductive issues .....

Not worth it ,
Be patient they are not machines.
I sell my pullet eggs for a little less

Ps:But my layer is 19% protein

 

[dunnmom]

Yeah, give it time. Even if you can make their eggs bigger, I wouldn’t advise doing it on purpose. One of my Buffs, when she was a new layer, laid a jumbo egg one day and it caused a nasty prolapse. Not fun for her, and not fun for me to treat it. I didn’t do anything to increase egg size, she just laid really big double-yolker eggs for awhile until her body figured things out. Things need time to stretch down there, it would be kind of like a first-time mother giving birth to a 10lb. baby, things could get really messy.

 

[aart]

Give them time...it can take weeks, or months.

I sell 'pullets dozens' by weight for same price to simplify accounting.
usually 6 hens eggs then enough pullet eggs to 'make weight'(24-27ozs).

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Maybe I missed it, but what breed are they? Some breeds tend to lay larger eggs than others.

 

[tweetzone86]

Maybe I missed it, but what breed are they? Some breeds tend to lay larger eggs than others.

They are Hatchery Rhode Island Reds I can't remember which hatchery they came from- the box got tossed (I ordered through TSC).

 

[aart]

Maybe I missed it, but what breed are they?

In the thread title

 

[dunnmom]

Some people, like myself, think pullets eggs are the bees-knees for cooking and baking. There’s no guarantee that a RR hen will lay large eggs, it’s a generalization. People who buy farm fresh eggs aren’t usually all that picky about egg size as long as they aren’t too small. It’s sort of understood that you’re buying irregular dozens, just be up front about what you have and people will likely buy them anyway.

 

[ShellyBlanco]

My RIRs lay Xlarge eggs after laying for two months. Be patient.