When oh WHEN will these silly hens start laying?

[annek]

mine were 19 weeks on Tues. and I have one leghorn that just started laying small eggs but one every day for the last 4 days (I think it is only one of them but am not sure, may be two), none of my rhode island reds are laying yet but are acting like its close. I have found 2 eggs in my flower pots, one broken in the container I use to catch the poop from the roost and one in the nest! Hopefully they will figure out where to lay and not leave them all over the yard, they free range all day!

 

[Big Red Roo]

Just remember a watched pot never boils.

Do kill yourself with worry It will happen.

 

[Chotii]

Quote:
The camera makes them shed all that dirt they threw all over themselves having a dust bath.

 

[Chotii]

My mother-in-law is beginning to make joking suggestions about how they need hormone tablets!!

 

[norcal]

Quote:
I've never read this before. We have no artificial light and a few of mine started laying at 18 weeks (that's 4.5 months). I have read that during the winter - that light at 14 hours a day will help w/ winter non-layers. However, I just read here yesterday that some folks get more eggs during the winter and even w/o extra light.

 

[Chotii]

Well, if they DO need 16 hours of daylight, I'm going to have to start running the light with a timer, inside the coop, because we're just far enough north that as of today at this latitude, here is the sunrise/sunset chart:

Sat 8/8/2009
Sunrise: 5:56am
Sunset: 8:32pm

IOW, just over 14.5 hours of daylight...in early August. How can that be too few hours of sunlight to get chickens to lay? Especially when *other* peoples' chickens are certainly laying?

Still, I have a timer on a light that turns on when it gets dark enough outside. I can have the timer it "turn itself on" at say 4pm, but if it's still bright out, the light itself will not come on. Then the timer can turn itself off at 11pm, which should assure enough light on them, regardless of season.

 

[norcal]

14 not 16 hours. And I don't know that this is proven, see my earlier remarks. Anyone else?

 

[SOchick]

I feel the same as you do, I have a black sex link that is 24 weeks old and I am starting to give her tours of the grill, telling her that one way or another, she will give me something to eat soon! My DH thinks I'm crazy!

I hope yours starts laying for you soon!

 

[penelopesvee]

so I want to tag onto this thread with a question - first thanks for everything here - what a amazing resource! This is my first post and i hope its in an ok place. I'm a new chicken raiser in oakland california with 4 20-week-old pullets, I switched to layer feed and put oyster shell out last week (I ran out of starter-grower and researched here first...) No eggs yet. 3 of them have comb changes to much bigger and redder - the black australorp, buff orpington and gold laced wyandotte - the RIR still looks like a teenager. The 3 sure look like they are ready to lay soon from reading here.
But now the day length is only 12 hours and dropping! So I'm wondering what to do:
no light and switch back to grower
a little light to keep them at 14 hours and stay with layer
no light and stay with layer
something else?
am I overthinking this? would love some thoughts...
thanks so much

 

[threehorses]

Quote:
I'd keep them on the layer. If you want, you can mix it. I did that this month as I have pullets coming into lay at this weird time of year. I did still offer oyster shell to all, so good move on that. It took some of mine a month after full comb changes to lay, and they're laying at the "wrong time of year" so keep at it .

If you want to do a little light that might help. But honestly I'd keep doing exactly what you're doing. Good luck with the first egg! I got a new first-egg today, first one from my frizzle cochins, and it's always exciting - no matter how many first eggs you experience.