Will a 3-4 year old hen lay eggs?

[Adil_Ali]

I have been offered a trio of white Cochins. They are from an amazing bloodline. However their age concerns me. They have 2019 rings on them. That means they were hatched in 2019. It’s been a few years since that time and just wanted to know if the hens will lay well. I’ll be attaching some pictures.

 

[theoldchick]

They may not lay well but they will lay eggs. Make sure they are on a proper diet and so forth. That is a lovely trio, I wish you success!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

They just might not lay daily. I have a 9 year old WFBS bantam trio I still occasionally get an egg from. Not a ton, but something

 

[Ridgerunner]

That means they were hatched in 2019. It’s been a few years since that time and just wanted to know if the hens will lay well.

I assume you are in the northern hemisphere. So they are about 2-1/2 years old and have probably been through two laying cycles. They may have molted twice but probably only once. There is a good chance they are molting now or have just finished a molt.

They are Cochin. According to Henderson's Breed Chart they tend to lay fairly small eggs and only 2 to 3 a week. I know that can vary wildly by individual, but the point is that Cochin are not a breed you keep if egg production is a major concern.

I have been offered a trio of white Cochins. They are from an amazing bloodline.

It sounds like those are show chickens. Bred for show but not production. In the best of circumstances I would not expect a ton of eggs. I also would not expect a huge drop in productivity from their age but not much of a drop in 2 to 3 a week is still not a lot a week.

If you want some beautiful eye candy those are fabulous. If you want eggs I'd look elsewhere, not so much because of their age but because of what they are.

 

[Adil_Ali]

I assume you are in the northern hemisphere. So they are about 2-1/2 years old and have probably been through two laying cycles. They may have molted twice but probably only once. There is a good chance they are molting now or have just finished a molt.

They are Cochin. According to Henderson's Breed Chart they tend to lay fairly small eggs and only 2 to 3 a week. I know that can vary wildly by individual, but the point is that Cochin are not a breed you keep if egg production is a major concern.


It sounds like those are show chickens. Bred for show but not production. In the best of circumstances I would not expect a ton of eggs. I also would not expect a huge drop in productivity from their age but not much of a drop in 2 to 3 a week is still not a lot a week.

If you want some beautiful eye candy those are fabulous. If you want eggs I'd look elsewhere, not so much because of their age but because of what they are.

I’m not looking for egg production, I’m trying to breed them. I just don’t want to buy a trio that is not going to be laying any eggs. Thanks for the help

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I love my Cochins! Mine lay really quite well. They don't really start laying until they are close to a year old for Standard Cochins and 6-7 months for Bantam Cochins.
Those birds are beautiful and have several more years of laying ahead of them. They love to hatch babies too, so you can have some cochin babies if you want. I'd definitely get them if it was me.

 

[Perris]

Ridgerunner has lots of good points/advice there. If you know you want this breed, and the exhibition strain quality, I don't think you should be concerned about their age. One of my 4 year old Swedish Flowers laid 120 eggs this year; not a huge number, but not bad at all for a heritage breed, and the same sort of yield that you might expect at 2-3 eggs per hen per week. And more than enough to breed them, if you want to, so you'll have young birds with the great looks too.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I’m not looking for egg production, I’m trying to breed them. I just don’t want to buy a trio that is not going to be laying any eggs.

Then get them. They should lay well enough for you to get plenty of eggs to hatch.