One eye open, one closed

So I have a 4 months old RIR who, when I went to lock the hens up for the night, was on the opposite side of the roosting bar from the rest of the hens. It's weird, because they're usually all right next to each other in a big heap. She was as far away as possible.

When I let them out in the morning and they all ran out, she stayed behind in the coop and was just sort of standing there looking confused. She did eventually go out, but she seems very....tired. She just keeps standing around. Then I noticed her left eye was closed, while the right one was open. She did open it up and I didn't see anything wrong with it, then she closed it again.

I tried to pick her up, but she ran away. They're not much for being picked up, so this wasn't odd. Nothing else seems wrong that I can see.

Any thoughts or things to look for? What can I do to help her?

Thanks

I would look at her droppings to see if she is having any diarrhea or blood in her droppings which can be a sign of coccidiosis. Place her in a pen or crate for the rest of the day to keep a close eye on dropping, eating a drinking. Does her comb look red like she could be getting close to laying? If so, I would check inside her vent 1-2 inches to search for an egg. If she seems puffed up or hunched, I would think about starting some Corid (amprollium) in the water to treat for coccidiosis. Was she vaccinated for Mareks or coccidiosis? Have you wormed the flock before? Check her crop to feel for fullness and also look her over for any lice or mites, especially around her vent. Here is some info about coccidiosis: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/12/coccidiosis-what-backyard-chicken.html

Hi,
In my experience with my girls, your RIR probably got pecked by one of the others. It takes a few days for them to recover, and she'll keep her distance from the others, nothing you can do, just keep an eye on her, make sure she eats and drinks even if you have to keep the others away from her while she does this.
Good luck!

Litchfieldgirls said:

Hi,
In my experience with my girls, your RIR probably got pecked by one of the others. It takes a few days for them to recover, and she'll keep her distance from the others, nothing you can do, just keep an eye on her, make sure she eats and drinks even if you have to keep the others away from her while she does this.
Good luck!

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That definitely could be, though she seems pretty high in the pecking order, and watching them all, they're all pretty docile with one another.

Eggcessive said:

I would look at her droppings to see if she is having any diarrhea or blood in her droppings which can be a sign of coccidiosis. Place her in a pen or crate for the rest of the day to keep a close eye on dropping, eating a drinking. Does her comb look red like she could be getting close to laying? If so, I would check inside her vent 1-2 inches to search for an egg. If she seems puffed up or hunched, I would think about starting some Corid (amprollium) in the water to treat for coccidiosis. Was she vaccinated for Mareks or coccidiosis? Have you wormed the flock before? Check her crop to feel for fullness and also look her over for any lice or mites, especially around her vent. Here is some info about coccidiosis: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/12/coccidiosis-what-backyard-chicken.html

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To both of you that responded:

Since my original post, she's gone back and forth from "acting strange with one eye closed" to "acting normal with both eyes open." It's kind of odd.

I got "lucky" enough to see her poop and it was nice, solid, and brown. Also, I watched her eat and drink while out there. She even politely pecked one of the other hens that were at the feeder so that she could eat. They were all vaccinated for Mareks, but not coccidiosis. Her comb IS red and her wattle is also red and bigger, but she is just 2 days shy of 17 weeks, so I'm not sure if she'd be ready to lay yet. I only have one 18.5 week old Sex Link laying so far. Other than the red comb, she isn't exhibiting any other signs of laying. Ignores the nest boxes, doesn't do the "squat". I'll keep my eye on her and see what happens.

. There she is on the left. Does she look like she should be laying soon?

Her comb is getting red, so she will be laying soon.