My hens age

[bigz1983]

Hey everyone I bought 2 buff Ameraucana hens at a small animal swap about 2 months ago. The person I bought them from said they were about 4-5 months old and should be laying soon but hadn't started laying eggs yet.

Well one of the buff Ameraucana hens died about 1 week after we got it home and I don't know why. The other hen which was about the size of a adult hen is still living.

Anyway the hen that survived is still not laying eggs yet. She was about full grown size when I got her. Is it possible the seller sold me a old Ameraucana hen that doesn't lay anymore and knew that other hen he sold to me was diseased or had a medical condition like bad kidneys?

How do I tell how old that hen is? She has been at my place for 2 months and no eggs yet.

 

[Farmgirl47]

I'm sorry about the one you lost. Do you have a picture of the other one?

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

The most visible external indicators of a chicken's age are:

1: The combs/wattles, beak and earlobes. This is because those features never stop growing. So, the bigger they are, the older the hen. However, different breeds have different sized combs/wattles to begin with and some breeds do not have wattles at all (usually bearded breeds/mixes like Ameraucanas, EEs and ect...)
2: Size. 4-5 month pullets/hens are not done growing yet. After the 2 months, there should be some growth (hip widening, height, weight, demeanor, ect...)

I am not an expert but I do know that there are lots of pros on here that could tell the age if you posted some photos of the live hen

I hope this is helpful.

 

[Farm boy 14]

Hey everyone I bought 2 buff Ameraucana hens at a small animal swap about 2 months ago. The person I bought them said they were about 4-5 months old and should be laying soon but hadn't started laying eggs yet. Well one of the buff Ameraucana hens died about 1 week and I don't know why. The other hen which was about the size of a adult hen lived.

Anyway the hen that survived is still not laying eggs yet. She was about full grown size when I got her. Is it possible the seller sold me a old Ameraucana hen that doesn't lay anymore and knew that other hen he sold to me was diseased or had a medical condition like bad kidneys?

How do I tell how old that hen is? She has been at my place for 2 months and no eggs yet.

I don't know how to tell but I can tell you that you should never buy from a farm swap. I did once and the chicken turned out to be a rooster when he said it was a hen. mine brought home mycoplasma. you never know there health or age.

 

[bigz1983]

Here she is. The seller told me that buys his Ameraucanas direct from the head of the Ameraucana chicken club

 

[Farmgirl47]

Oh wow, she's pretty! I have no clue on her age though.

 

[Farm boy 14]

One reason she may not be laying is because they don't usually lay until they are 8 months this old because they are slow to mature

 

[bigz1983]

One reason she may not be laying is because they don't usually lay until they are 8 months this old because they are slow to mature

Ok I was wondering about that but she was full grown looking when I got her and its been 2 months

 

[theoldchick]

Older hens get what I call, 'old lady legs'. You old ladies out there know exactly what I'm talking about. Young healthy chickens who do not have scaly legs mites have youthful looking legs. As they age the scales on the legs have a tendency to get larger looking and have more space between them. The feet have a tendency to spread out more and the toes will get that 'aged' look that no amount of youth cream can make look young again. And as always chickens are individuals who will start laying when the time is right for them. Make sure the diet is correct and that she can't hide eggs from you. And as previously mentioned this breed is notorious for taking their time to start laying eggs. Be patient. She WILL lay.

 

[bigz1983]

Older hens get what I call, 'old lady legs'. You old ladies out there know exactly what I'm talking about. Young healthy chickens who do not have scaly legs mites have youthful looking legs. As they age the scales on the legs have a tendency to get larger looking and have more space between them. The feet have a tendency to spread out more and the toes will get that 'aged' look that no amount of youth cream can make look young again. And as always chickens are individuals who will start laying when the time is right for them. Make sure the diet is correct and that she can't hide eggs from you. And as previously mentioned this breed is notorious for taking their time to start laying eggs. Be patient. She WILL lay.

Ok maybe I'm just getting impatient.

I have been doing more research on the buff Ameraucana breed and I have read that pure bred buff ameraucanas that come from smaller private hatcheries can take around a year before they start laying eggs.