Pullet laying questions

[lazy gardener]

If you can keep them in for a bit, that might prevent an egg being dropped where you don't want it to be dropped!

 

[OCeggs23]

I have 4 girls that have all started laying this past 6 weeks. Their behavior each was so different and not what I was expecting at all. One was super quiet about it, seemed to have no interest in the nest boxes or squatting, and we didn't even know she was laying until we caught her in the act! Another was nosing around the nest boxes for about a week but also didn't make a ruckus or squat or give other indicators until we caught her doing it. One was squatting like crazy and was the first to lay. (The first actually was laid while she was on the roost. The second made it into the nest box. The third was shell-less and laid in the grass in our backyard during their free ranging time.) Our 4th chicken was super loud with her egg song and squatting like a madwoman.
All this to say, each chicken (3 easter eggers and 1 welsummer - are all 25 weeks now and our earliest layer was an EE that started laying at 18 weeks) was so unique with their "about to lay" habits that it's hard to even say what's normal and what's not. I do know that it takes a while before they begin laying with any reliable frequency. And I know that even though they use the nest boxes 80% of the time, I will still find an egg in the coop or in the run. Crazy chickens! But the unexpectedness of it all makes it fun!

 

[lazy gardener]

My first layer was also an EE at 16.5 weeks. I find that they tend to be early. I don't think I'll ever keep a flock without a few EE.

 

[Little Coop on Salt Creek]

It looks like we have 6 girls that are "acting" like any day now. 1 Buff, 2 Wyandottes, 3 Easter Eggers... it is SO HARD to wait. My mama always said patience wasn't my strong suit.. boy, was she not kidding!

 

[Little Coop on Salt Creek]

If you can keep them in for a bit, that might prevent an egg being dropped where you don't want it to be dropped!

That is kinda what I thought. Especially since the goofy girls are hopping places I didn't think they would go when the impending egg is upon them.. hahahaha!

 

[Little Coop on Salt Creek]

This was a sigh of relief today after much waiting and wondering if anyone was going to notice my hard efforts at curtain making

 

[GC-Raptor]

My girls stay in their 500 square foot pen, till 2 hours before sunset.
If your pen is small, keep them in until noon, till all are laying regularly. That way if you come up short of eggs, you'll know it's time to do an Easter egg hunt.
Most of my 16 month old girls lay by 10 a.m. GC

 

[lazy gardener]

My girls lay any time, up to 4 PM.

 

[tjb]

I have 5 that have been laying right at 5 weeks now. Just the last week, they are on a consistent schedule laying by 10-11am, except my one EE. She lays as late as 4pm

 

[Little Coop on Salt Creek]

Hi all,
It seems like our girls are all getting in the mood to lay, but I have a few more questions that I don't know if there is cause for concern.
1. Our Easter Egger Rose laid her first egg last night before bed, but it looked like it was a soft shell egg. It was pretty collapsible but did look like it tried to have color. I watched her lay it.. she was just walking real slow with her wings down and then dropped it on the floor. Is the soft shell a reason for concern? Below are the best pics I could get of her.
at point of trying to lay
at point of lay
after she recovered a bit and went into the run
The egg

2. When I was in the run this morning, I looked down at a pretty good sized poo and said "Is that a piece of nest box shavings?"... Oh wait, it was a piece of poo with a shriveled up no-shelled egg. Before I could pack it off, of the girls grabbed it and made off with it. When I picked it up, it was like an empty inside of the egg.. just the membrane all shriveled up. I have no idea which hen pooped it, because I wasn't out there for that. Is that something I need to worry about?