Hens about to lay, any signs?

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mariat
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Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by mariat »

Can anyone please tell me, do hens go a bit off colour just before they are about to start laying? One of my Point-of-Lay's was a bit down this morning, not wanting to come out of the coop, standing hunched up etc., but by this afternoon, she was looking much perkier and eating again. So, I'm wondering if she is coming into lay and that was the problem.

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fishpond
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by fishpond »

Could be.
You should know by Xmas :-D
Sorry, I have found that it is virtually impossible to predict what a chicken will do.
Main problem seems to be that they do not read very well. +f+
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fishpond
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by fishpond »

mariat wrote:Can anyone please tell me, do hens go a bit off colour just before they are about to start laying? One of my Point-of-Lay's was a bit down this morning, not wanting to come out of the coop, standing hunched up etc., but by this afternoon, she was looking much perkier and eating again. So, I'm wondering if she is coming into lay and that was the problem.


It sounds like a small blip in the egg laying system, have you checked for the possible remains of an eaten softy?
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mariat
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by mariat »

I clean out the poop from the coop (ooh that rhymes!) every day, and there was nothing unusual around. Also didn't see anything like that in the run.
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jackian
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by jackian »

How old are your girls? And the best sign is that when you put your hand on their backs they will Squat and let you stroke them .
I am not sure why yours was having a problem but keep an eye on her.
I m sure a more learned person will be along with help
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silverback
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by silverback »

Not uncommon for a young hen coming into lay, to get a softie now and again, this will make them a bit quiet and lethargic, and as mentioned by fishpond, if she had passed a softie, probably got eaten!...
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bmpsands
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by bmpsands »

Nothing much to add except this:

If a hen lays a softie, sometimes you have to look really hard for evidence because she or the other hens will eat it. My old girls laid softies, the surviving one still does occasionally, and all that I find is some yellowish, wetish slivers of straw.

It's very likely that your youngster was practising, I think. I'm not very experienced and most of my hens have been pretty mature when I've got them but I do remember some false alarms when we were sure we were going to get an egg and didn't.

Exciting, isn't it?
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secret squirrel
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by secret squirrel »

If
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secret squirrel
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Re: Hens about to lay, any signs?

Post by secret squirrel »

If your girl is young and is not ready to lay, her comb will be smallish and pale. It should be a reasonable size And red. Yes you CAN put your hand over their back to see if they crouch in submission. Mine just squawk and run. Lol
What colour are her legs? I believe their legs are white if they're in lay and yellow if not, (or the other way round).
Yes they sometimes lay softies when they are young and the others just eat them. They sometimes lay softies when they are old too.
Just keep an eye her. {hug}
Lorna {hug}
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