When will they lay -- please??

[Toby96]

New to this but looks fun lol,
I have 3 Rhode Islands and they are all about 22 weeks old, one has a larger redder comb and they are all very healthy, friendly and lively girls but not seen any eggs yet, there is no way they could be laying around the garden and they are on a laying mash, so is there anyway i can encourage them to start laying?

Thanks all!

 

[dun chick]

The one with the redder comb will probally lay first. Have you seen them squatting yet? IT will probally be any time now, but could be a couple more weeks.

 

[Cats Critters]

You just have to wait, they will lay when their ready.

 

[ChooksChick]

When my BR started to lay, I noticed them squatting when I reached out to pet them for about 2 weeks, and there was one Ba-gawking the egg song every day for about a week, and then I got our first egg. We had all 6 laying within 2 weeks.

I got a good hint from someone here to boost protein for them, so I got some freezer-burned salmon and brown rice and some past best-by date tofu and made a casserole by tossing it all chopped together in the oven in my dutch oven with an old bottle of carrot juice and an old quart of rice milk.

It came out smelling marvelous, and I fed it to them (cooled off) over the next 4 days. It seems like it may have helped, because the first one did lay in the next week.

 

[Toby96]

Thanks, heres one of the girls.

 

[Toby96]

one of them does squat when i pet them, thought it was just allowing me to pet her but glad its a sign

 

[ChooksChick]

Very pretty!! That's definitely a sign, so you're getting close!!! Make sure to take a pic of your first egg and post it to the first egg thread. Also, you can (if you're a sentimental fool like me) use a pin to poke a hole in the top and bottom of the first egg and blow it out- makes a great Christmas ornament, because the first ones are usually very tiny.

 

[Toby96]

Thanks a lot! Am lookin forward to finding an egg

Will do make it to a christmas decoration as can be a nice reminder