What is the average laying age?

[Guest]

I have a bunch of young LF pullets and am wondering what is the overall average age to expect to start seeing eggs? I have one pullet that is 6 months and hasn\'t started laying yet. The others I have are only 4 or 5 months old. I wouldn\'t expect the 4 or 5 month olds to start laying yet, but I would think my 6 month old would have started by now.

Another thing I have noticed w/ all my birds for there ages they seem on the small side. All my birds are LF. Maybe I think they are small because I see them everyday. It just doesn\'t appear they are growing real fast.  At what age would you say they should be at their maturity (in otherwords they won\'t be getting any larger)?

Thanks
Kim

[Guest]

I have Black, Wheaten, Silver, and Lavender LF Ameraucanas. They are all 27 weeks old. The Black and the Wheaten are laying nicely. I got my first egg from a Black LF at 21 weeks old. My Silver and Lavender hens have not yet begun to lay as far as I can tell because I never see them in the nest, and I would be getting more eggs than I am if they were laying too. I also have four siver bantams hens of the same age, and they are all laying.

My Silver hens are smaller than my Black and Wheaten hens. My Lavender chickens are even smaller, but I know that they are about 3/4 LF and 1/4 bantam.

[Mike Gilbert]

My silvers run on the small side as well.    And they tend to start laying at a more advanced age than most varieties.
On the positive side, once they start they tend to be very good layers with good egg shell color and decent egg size.

[bantamhill]

You will find the age of first lay directly connected to the strain you have. Some lay early, while others in my opinion can be extremely late to start - almost 12 months here in Missouri. For me the buff and silver large fowl lay the earliest, but I know that it is a characteristic of the strain I have. My bantams always seems to lay the earliest. Don\'t give up . . . they will lay and breed for rate of lay . . . Ameraucana are a dual purpose breed and need to be good layers.

Michael