Egg bound?

[cheapcheepcheep]

Hi everyone,
Tonight when I poked my head in the coop to make sure everyone was ok, I noticed my alpha (though she may not be the alpha anymore, I think there's some changes going on in the coop) had no feathers on her "underbutt" area. I tried to get a picture, but I was holding her in one hand and the phone in the other, so it's not great. It's a big patch beneath her vent (vent looked ok) with no feathers, and a little scabby. I put Blu-Kote on it, thinking it was pecking, and put her back in the coop. Now I'm concerned it might be a bound egg. The bald patch was soft, and something I read said it would feel like water balloon, which it kind of did. I poked it expecting to feel an egg. Does this sound egg bound? I don't want to stress her out by pulling her out of the coop again (and getting blu-kote all over myself) but I want to make sure she's alright. Should I bring her inside for some alone time, and maybe check for an egg?


This is a really terrible photo, sorry. You can see some of the skin in there, though.

 

[cheapcheepcheep]

Ok, well I gave her the old college probe, and I got about two knuckles deep, and I don't think I felt an egg, but I may have? I guess I'm not sure what I'm supposed to feel. She walks ok and acts normal. I've brought her inside and put her in a dog crate for the time being to keep an eye on her for a day or two. Hopefully it's just pecking. If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears. And at least one finger.

 

[cheapcheepcheep]

This morning, as I was getting the other chickens ready for morning, I wondered if I should let her back in the run. I came inside and the smell hit me at the doorway. She had dropped a massive (and obviously stinky) poop, so I'm thinking there's not a blockage, so I put her back out. I stopped giving them scratch too. I've read that can contribute to dietary shortfalls, since they eat all that instead of the regular food. I'll keep an eye on this. I might even let them out this weekend, though we still have about 2 feet of snow on the ground. I think they're all pent up from this winter (we all are around here).