Six months and still no eggs...what's wrong?

[OverEasyMichigan]

This spring we added seven new chicks to our flock of five older hens. (One of the new ones turned out to be a Roo) The newbies are now six months old but none of them have laid their first egg.

We had them on starter feed for the first 18 weeks then switched them to layer feed. They free range for a few hours a day. When we thought they would start laying we confined the whole flock to the coop. We wanted to make sure the new ones knew where to lay their eggs.

After several days of no new eggs we decided to let them out again. During this time we kept an eye on the Roo to see how they all got along. He began to dominate the new hens...somewhat viciously... so we made arrangements to move him to our friend's farm. We thought they may have been too stressed by the Roo to start laying.

Well it's been a couple of weeks and still nothing. Are we missing something here? Any advice?

 

[fawkestheman]

no your not missing anything! i added 4 new chicks to my flock this year, their all 6 months now and they haven't laid yet. are the combs red and do they squat for you? it usually takes around 6-8 months on average to start laying. some just take longer than others too.

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

What breed are they?

 

[CountryFlock]

Breeds come in as a factor. Barred Rocks start laying early at 20-24 weeks sometimes earlier. The hens should start laying in a month. My chickens are about as old as yours and only one started laying so far.

A hint they will start laying soon is that they will start squatting for you.

 

[OverEasyMichigan]

Four are Buff Orpingtons and two are Brahmas. The Buffs are very friendly but now that you mention it, I notice that they don't squat.

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

Four are Buff Orpingtons and two are Brahmas. The Buffs are very friendly but now that you mention it, I notice that they don't squat.

Brahmas develop quite slowly. I am betting it will be a few more weeks. One good thing is that once they start your Brahmas should lay through the winter! I think my first BOrp was around 23 or 24 weeks when she started, she gave me 5 lovely pink eggs every week (yes they were pink!).

 

[donrae]

Do you have pics?

Those breeds are not known for their early development or high rate of production. If you want a bird that starts early and lays hard and fast, go with a sex link or production red, something like that. Your birds will start slower but may well last longer.

Something else to keep in mind, your older hens may be tapering off and the younger birds starting to lay at the same time.

 

[OverEasyMichigan]

Thank you all for the info. I didn't know they were "late-bloomers". I've been comparing them to the older hens (2 Reds and 1 Wyandotte). Thanks again!