Start laying eggs?

[DonaldG]

How old will the chicks be when they start to lay eggs?

 

[chickens r life]

About 20 weeks

 

[jerrey]

About 20 weeks

how long do you feed grower feed

 

[redsix]

The guy at at the feed store said to leave them on the starter and grower until they are old enough to lay.

 

[MeepBeep]

There is not set age to switch to layer, you should instead feed them starter/grower until they actually start laying eggs... And you can even continue after that, just offer a side dish of oyster shells (or baked crushed egg shells) for the extra calcium as they need it... In other words don't waste the starter/grower when they start laying eggs you can finish off what you have...

Layer feed forces them to take in higher amounts of calcium, this is only needed when they are physically laying eggs not before and not after... When they are not laying eggs or for roosters this forceed excess of calcium can be detrimental to their health if it's forced upon them for extended periods...

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Not all breeds start laying at 20 weeks, some can take up to a year, the average is 5-6 months, I don't switch to layer until at least half of them are laying, and sometimes I don't feed layer and leave them on grower or switch to an all flock with oyster shells available.

 

[chickens r life]

Not all breeds start laying at 20 weeks, some can take up to a year, the average is 5-6 months, I don't switch to layer until at least half of them are laying, and sometimes I don't feed layer and leave them on grower or switch to an all flock with oyster shells available.

Well, there is always going to be that one breed or chicken that's out of the ordinary. It's atypical for a chicken to lay at a year old but I suppose it can happen.

 

[MeepBeep]

The time of the year and weather conditions can also extend the laying start times beyond the average...

This is especially true for late season hatchings that in many cases wait until the next spring and warm weather to start laying...

That is why I always tell people to wait until they are physically laying before switching to layer, instead of tossing out an arbitrary age to switch over...

 

[DonaldG]

So our chicks won't start laying till beginning of October, then only for a little while as I plan on shutting them down for the winter. Figure it'll be too hard for them in -30 degree weather.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They should continue to lay through their first winter once they begin, so I'm not sure how you're gonna shut them down, they will do it, so make sure you continue to feed them well and provide fresh warm water everyday.