Mating and egg laying questions.

[chichi56788]

I have 2 silkies. A 6mo pullet and a 5mo cockerel. I just got them back from the state fair and put them in a cage together to quarantine them. I was just turning around when I heard a loud noise coming from my pullet. I turned around and thought they were fighting...It took me a while to relies what was going on.

Im relatively new to raising chickens so I have a few questions:

1. Does the pullet get hurt?
2. She hasn't started laying yet. Will mating make her lay?
3. When she does lay, will her eggs be fertile?
4. Is it normal for them to mate this young?
5. Is there anything specific I should do?

 

[gryeyes]

Yah, chicken sex is not pretty. But at least it doesn't offend the eyes for longer than a very few seconds!

1. Does the pullet get hurt?
If the cockerel/rooster grabs her comb, there could be blood. Having feathers pulled OUT is painful, if she struggles that much. Just having feathers pulled isn't pleasant but certainly well within normal ranges of chicken behavior.

2. She hasn't started laying yet. Will mating make her lay?
No. She has to mature first. Nothing will FORCE that - it will be on her own internal, hormonal schedule.

3. When she does lay, will her eggs be fertile?
If the rooster(s) keep mounting her, her eggs will be fertile.

4. Is it normal for them to mate this young?
It is perfectly normal for the cockerel to mount everything in sight at this age. He's full of raging testosterone and is crazy with it.

5. Is there anything specific I should do?
Well, if you want to be the one in charge of all the birds and need the rooster(s) to know you are The Boss, you should knock him off hens/pullets every time you see him mount one. Not everyone practices this, though, or finds it necessary.

Other than that, just check the girls over to make sure there's been no cuts to their combs, because you need to stop bleeding if there is any.

If you are worried about fertilized eggs - some folks are, think they're icky and can't be eaten or something odd like that - let me reassure you there is NO difference in taste between fertilized and un-fertilized eggs, and embryos cannot develop without incubation, either artificially in an incubator or under a broody chicken (one who sits 24/7 on the eggs). You wouldn't see ANY development at all for the first five to seven days, so go ahead and gather the eggs daily and eat them as usual. Once they start laying, anyway.

Welcome to chickenhood!

 

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
That pretty well covers it, and gryeyes did all the typing.

 

[chichi56788]

Quote:
Well I dont eat eggs, so I dont think that will be a problem. I actually want them to be fertile. 2 more questions:
1. About how long do you think until she starts to lay?
2.Is there anything to encourage her to lay?

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
Answer to #1: She'll lay when she's mature enough. If the rooster is mounting her and she's holding still for it, she is probably close.

Answer to #2: See answer to #1.

 

[chichi56788]

Quote:
Answer to #1: She'll lay when she's mature enough. If the rooster is mounting her and she's holding still for it, she is probably close.

Answer to #2: See answer to #1.

Well after the initial "squawk" she held still. I hope she lays some eggs soon.

I want to hatch some eggs!