06/09/2026
What are your thoughts? I definitely agree with most of these points and have hatched pullet eggs myself from 9-10 months hens with great success and no ftt. I also have a few 1-1.5yr old hens that lay smaller eggs - I considered getting rid of them because of this, but they create some of my cutest chicks so I can’t do it. I don’t like to ship the smaller eggs, but if I do ship around 50g, it’s because the chicks hatching are healthy and thriving. That being said, if you ever have questions please reach out!
What is a pullet egg?
Like actually, how do you define it?
I shared the photo in this post back in January. The brown eggs were from a pullet who had only been laying for a few weeks—her eggs weighed 65g. The olive eggs were from a two-year-old hen—her eggs weighed 55g.
You can’t tell the age of a bird by the size of her eggs. Not every line lays large or extra-large eggs, and some pullets lay surprisingly large eggs right from the start.
This is my process:
A pullet starts laying and I put her in a pen. For the next three months, I observe her.
• Do I like her egg color?
• Does she lay at least 4–5 eggs per week?
• Does she go broody in those first 3 months?
• Has her egg size reached at least 50g?
Once she checks those boxes, she goes in with a rooster and I begin hatching and shipping her eggs.
Hatchability is highest during a hen’s first year laying and gradually declines as she ages. The best chance of hatching a chick comes from a young hen in her reproductive prime. That is why every egg you receive from me will be laid by a hen between 9 and 18 months old.
I don’t select eggs based on the age of the bird who laid them. I select them based on performance.
And once a pullet has proven herself, I don’t see any reason to treat her eggs differently just because she’s still technically a pullet.