# When start to lay?



## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

I bought 4 Easter Egger hens at the beginning of August that were about 12-16wks old. I was told they would start to lay in September. Well, 3 of the hens turned out to be roosters. and the remaining hen still isn't laying. She gets Homegrown layer pellets, 15 hrs of light, and table scraps. Still no eggs!


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

Check for lice/mites...also is she alone or with 3 roosters? Stress will cause her not to lay and each rooster can handle 15+ hens alone.....so if she is with 3, it's a lot of stress.. Also, are you sure she isn't hiding them from you?


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## Karen (Jun 22, 2010)

Make sure she is getting plenty of calcium, and the nesting area is warm enough, as well. All of these are factors, especially the stress and the calcium, as they need that for bone density as well as shell production!


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

No i got rid of the roosters. She is in the coop with my silkies and rules the roost. She is exceptionally healthy, I don't find lice or mites. I actually separated her tonight wondering if the egg is being eaten.


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

That could be too....good idea on separating...make sure she still gets light though and leave her until you see an egg (or remnants of one)


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

No egg from her today. I just don't know what it could be. She is on the same diet all my laying hens have been on for the past 5 years.


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

If I post a photo do you think you could help me tell her age?


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

Possibly


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

Here she is.


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## PygmyMom (Mar 3, 2014)

She is gorgeous! Assuming youngest age when you got her she would be around 24 weeks now. I've had hens wait to start laying until upwards of 30 weeks. I agree, give her some calcium supplement in her food. She will lay soon I am sure. Sometimes hens are like goats and are stubborn little critters lol! 

I would also give her a warm bath in lukewarm soap free water and rub her butt. Sometimes the glands need caressing to get the eggs a-laying.  If she does have an egg that's bound this should help get it out. But IMO she likely just hasn't started laying yet. Good luck!


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## Greybird (May 14, 2014)

When a hen is actively laying her hormones will cause her to have a brighter red, slightly larger comb. Comparing her picture to my hens, I don't think that she has started yet.
As a general rule of thumb, I look for the first eggs shortly after a young hen finishes her post-juvenile molt. To check her progress, look at her wing feathers. 
The 10 primary feathers (the big ones, on the "hand" part of the wing) molt in order from the wrist joint toward the tip. When the last one on the very leading edge part of the wing is fully grown and hardened then she should be about ready to start laying. 
If that coincides with the middle of winter then she might decide to wait until early spring no matter what you do. 
Increasing the day length with artificial light will definitely increase the odds of getting her started, but Easter Eggers have not been as selectively bred for mass-production as some of the more traditional laying breeds. (The color of their eggs is as important as the quantity.) Like the ancestral breeds of chickens, they still have a tendency to lay more heavily in the spring and early summer.


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

Okay thank you! Tomorrow I will check out her Wings.


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

Sorry it took so long but I got more photos.


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

She should start laying soon...


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

She laid her first green egg today!


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## ChrisM (Jan 13, 2014)

Now you just have to find a green pig for some ham and you're good.


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

:stars:


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## eqstrnathlete (Mar 16, 2013)

Now I'm waiting for my silkies to start laying. They are aprox 22 wks old.


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