Seriously, 30 weeks and no eggs?

[Bec]

I have 3 almost 11 month old silkies that haven't laid me a single egg yet!

They are in a pen so no hidden nests!

 

[HHandbasket]

I can feel your frustration. My RIR, BR, and wellie are all 29-30 weeks and don't even show ANY signs of comb or wattle development yet. The BR sings the egg song all day, every day, has for about 10 days now, but no squatting and no other signs of maturity (as I said, not even comb and wattles yet). My leghorn was 22+ weeks before she laid, as well (they usually start earlier, closer to 18 weeks). Our EE was right at 29 weeks when she laid her first egg & right now, she's our only one laying (the leghorn died). We acquired another young EE pullet last week who was hatched out March 1st and started laying a month ago (lady I got her from was thinning her flock & this poor girl had been loved fairly aggressively by their rooster & is missing a lot of tail feathers). However, she's only been here a few days & hasn't laid for us yet, but the lady I got her from said she lays a pretty, light-green egg (so now we have 2 EE's that lay the pretty light-green eggs).

I am getting tired of waiting for the rest of the flock to start laying. We have a coop light now in hopes that will help, but I am worried that the flock isn't even developing combs or wattles at 7 months of age! They hatched in April & this is already November!

I think the people we got our original flock from must have not fed them right or something. I can't imagine why it's taking so long, except for the climate change, maybe? I have a friend who has a BR & EE a couple of weeks older than mine--her BR has had a comb and wattles for 2 months and hasn't started laying yet!

It doesn't make it any easier, either, that we were new to chickens and lied to about the ages of our birds by the scheister who sold them to us (he is now out of business). When we got them in May, were told they were 3 and 4 months old and that they'd be laying eggs by July/August! I've since learned what chickens look like at different stages/ages, and our birds were, in actuality, about 6-8 weeks when we got them. They were fully feathered, good sized pullets and were living outside amongst a large flock and had long since outgrown any chick down (though I think the wellie may have had a tiny bit...she was obviously a little younger than the rest by a week or two and has been sick almost constantly since the beginning and hasn't grown much).

ALL my girls should be laying by now, but only 1 is (she's been laying about 3-1/2 weeks now). This has been one expensive egg project, lemme tell ya! Good thing we love the chooks cuz if we were doing this solely for the eggs, we'd be about 3 kinds of PO'd right now.

 

[BWKatz]

I think everyone needs to have a white leghorn just to make the wait for the others easier. Even if they're a late bloomer u have an egg by 22wks.

 

[plantmgr]

I had a bantam cochin last year that didn't lay until months after all the other pullets I had. She was the only bantam I had (hatchery mix up) Once she started laying, she was slightly sporadic - then after two weeks went broody and i could never get her out of the nesting box. She stayed broody for over 2 months, with no more eggs, and then something got into the pen and she got eaten. UGH!

 

[berniead]

I have 11 hens and 2 roo's. All are americauna but 2 - one rhode island red and one dominique. The red is laying and 2 or 3 of the americauna laying. They began laying in late July. They are all 26 to 27 weeks. I assume I can tell the ones laying by the fact that they are molting. What is up with the others? They are so beautiful but ... Shouldn't I be getting more than 2-3 eggs per day?

 

[forstadt]

Quote:
Pullets that were hatched in spring mature in the late autumn as the length of day shortens. The best bet is to let them have only natural light, which will trigger maturity at the proper time and avoid some serious egg-laying problems later on. Pullets hatched from April through July should not be exposed to artificially-lengthened days (i.e., coop lights). This according to Gail Damerow of Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. The decreasing length of the natural day will trigger the physical maturity of pullets (combs, wattles, eggs).

 

[new chick 203]

We're at 31 weeks now and zippo! I love my girls though, they crack me up. It's cheaper than therapy.

 

[HHandbasket]

Yes indeed, it's a good thing I get so much more from my chickens than just eggs. If we were depending on the chickens to feed us, we'd be having to process them because they're sure not providing us with any eggs! We get 4 eggs a week from my black & gold EE, and this is only the 4th week she's been laying. She was 10 weeks old when she came, and she's been here 24 weeks so she's 34 weeks now. The other 3 that came when she did (RIR, BR, wellie) are all 30 weeks now but still nothing, same as your girls. All 3 of these ladies, however, have reddened in the face somewhat this past week, but they still have no combs or wattles. Lola, who is new to our yard but was hatched March 1st and living elsewhere and started laying a month ago, is starting to squat for us and is showing signs she may lay here at her new home, as well. It will be nice when she resumes laying.

While we wait, we just enjoy the time we spend with the chooks and watching them hanging out doing their little chicken things that they do.

 

[dandelionheart]

:lol I'm thinking that if this world were run by chickens and we were the ones laying the eggs they'd be having this kind of conversation. Some girls reach full height in 5th grade and people like me aren't full grown until they are a senior in HS, some start their periods when they are 9 and others not until they are 16 or 17. And variations happen within the same family too not to mention diet, exercise, stress... And I say this as an impatient caretaker of a 32 1/2 week EE who still hasn't laid. Her sister has been laying for two weeks and Georgia has been squatting, singing, etc... for at least that long - come on girl!

Curiousity has me more than anything... what color will her eggs be?!?

 

[jossanne]

28 weeks here and nothing from 14 girls, including light brahmas, standard Cochins, blue wyandottes and a bantam Cochin. To add insult to injury my approximately 30 older hens are coming out of molt so we're getting 2-3 eggs a day from over forty girls! Darn bunch of freeloaders!!!