Our First Egg Experience Timeline

[Chickenchitter]

I'm writing this because I knew the signs of a hen getting ready to lay but no timeline. So I hope this is helpful to some of you wondering the same.
Our hens are seventeen weeks old. We we made the nesting boxes (2) flush with the back of their house and tacked a piece of plywood in front to keep them out. About 3 weeks ago after they had been roosting on their perch for a while, I removed the plywood. They never entered the boxes so I was worried they were going to be stubborn. The first of five hens to lay is a Barred Plymouth Rock. About two weeks ago her comb and waddles started getting redder. About 5 days ago she started to squat when I would put my hand on her back. She would stay there and stick her folded wings out a little bit. Yesterday she started to get noisy with long baawks. Today I looked in the window and a few pieces of straw were on the floor and I could see she made a nest in one of the boxes. There it was...Our first small but perfect brown egg!!

 

[KristyB]

How fun! My EE’s are 5 weeks old. I can’t wait to see them start laying eggs!

 

[TheAmundsons]

This gives me hope! Several of our pullets are pretty much at the same point! We've been waiting for the first egg, but nothing so far. We leave tomorrow for a week's vacation, and I just KNOW they are going to start laying while we're gone!

 

[JenLiz]

Our Golden Laced Wyandotte started laying this past Sunday (19.5 weeks old) and she has been giving us one egg every day and they are small like yours. It’s so cute! I do hope they get bigger LOL

 

[aart]

Yep, classic timeline, Congrats!

 

[springvalley123]

That is wonderful! I think the timeline is very useful. My naked neck (turken) pullets are 17 weeks and 5 days today, and this evening when I was putting them up for the night, there were two tan eggs in the nest box with the ceramic egg! One is 29 grams, the other 46 grams. I was just noticing that their wattles and combs were growing and getting brighter, this past week!

 

[Chickenchitter]

Update: 4 out of 5 are laying. Hazel my Americana is not laying yet. I know because no green or blue eggs yet! Lol!! We’ve gotten 4 eggs a day for the last 3 days!!

 

[aart]

Update: 4 out of 5 are laying. Hazel my Americana is not laying yet. I know because no green or blue eggs yet! Lol!! We’ve gotten 4 eggs a day for the last 3 days!!

Americana (most likely are actually Easter Eggers from hatchery) can also lay brown eggs....or blue/green or pinkish.
Best do a butt check to see if she's already laying.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/