Ready to lay or. . ?

[Dona Worry]

I noticed today that Romana, 17 week old Australorp, has a much brighter and redder comb and wattle than she has had. Does this mean she is getting ready to lay? I wasn't planning to really get things set up in the nesting boxes for another 3 weeks at least.

 

[Boonie Stomper]

Have you noticed any squatting? She may be close so put a temporary nest with a fake in it and let her check it out. You can add more nests later.

 

[Dona Worry]

Have you noticed any squatting? She may be close so put a temporary nest with a fake in it and let her check it out. You can add more nests later.

No, but I don't really pick them up.
I'll get the nesting boxes set up, just in case, and put out oyster shell--I just picked some up today.

 

[rachelsflock]

Still looks like a pullet to me.

 

[Dona Worry]

Still looks like a pullet to me.

She is definitely bigger and more mature in appearance than the others. . . But *I* think she is still rather young to be laying. Isn't 25 weeks more average? With 20 weeks being the earliest?
But she HAS become more vocal, she sounds less like an adolescent and more like a hen, has palled around with the cockerel more. . . So idk.
It's possible I am wrong about her age, too.

 

[LittleMissCountry]

My black sex link started laying between 17 and 18 weeks old, but she had a full comb and wattles at the time, and would squat when I touched her back. My other black sex link has not started laying, and is 21 weeks.

One of my buff orpingtons started laying last weekend, right at 21 weeks. She also has a full comb and wattles and squats when I touch her back.

 

[aart]

Still looks like a pullet to me.

She'll be a pullet until she's one year old then she'll be a 'hen'.
It's age, not laying status, the differentiates between pullet and hen.
Is why those smaller eggs laid in the first several months are called 'pullet eggs'.

I noticed today that Romana, 17 week old Australorp, has a much brighter and redder comb and wattle than she has had

It's not that bright, but could be getting redder. Was her comb dark as a chick? I have a black combed 16wo starting to redden up, it's exciting, but I know we're still a ways off from eggs.

Pullets can drive ya nuts with the color frequently changing from brighter to paler, with exertion and then rest. SMH. The vocalization can be a good indicator, they can get quite noisy when near POL.

Yep, get those nests set up, put some fake eggs in some of them. It may still be a few weeks away. Messing in nests is the key clue IME. Setting up nests earlier is good to make sure they won't be sleeping in them before the eggs come.

 

[ash_en_em]

My BA started laying at 18 weeks, and she had VERY wide hips and her comb and wattles were a lot larger than what is pictured here. Her ears had even started to grow out more. I have four and none have squatted (even though only one is currently laying). I just "had a feeling" she was close based on her very large comb and wattles so I set up the boxes and put a fake egg in each box, then two days later she began laying.

Here is a picture of her from a couple of days ago, and she just started laying on Saturday. She's the one standing next to my rooster (she loves him and it's adorable).

 

[ash_en_em]

Also, as @aart said, they do get VERY noisy. She was a complete chatter box in the days leading up, and now she regularly sings the egg song after. My rooster likes to let out a few celebration crows for her too. Needless to say, I know when theres a new egg even if I'm at the neighbors lol