- Dec 18, 2017
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We have nine hens and a cockrell. 5 of the hens and the rooster were raised together and are now 3 years old. We added two buffies and 2 autralorps last autumn.
One of the hens from the original batch is behaving oddly. I imagine she's ill. She's quite, but not desperately, slow. About a week ago she started roosting separately at the back of the pen and has continued to do so (see pic). She's usually on her own in the run; she will join the others when we throw down corn but moves off again to the undergrowth.
We've inspected her. Her backside is a bit of a mess but there are no obvious blockages and she doesn't feel egg-bound. I don't know if she's laying or not: we get between 6 and 8 eggs daily and I believe I can identify 4 as being sufficiently distinctive that they likely come from the new hens, so she may or may not be.
She doesn't appear to be being picked on. Any suggestions of anything to try, or might it just be old age? I believe hens are quite social, so isolating herself is not "normal"?
Thanks
One of the hens from the original batch is behaving oddly. I imagine she's ill. She's quite, but not desperately, slow. About a week ago she started roosting separately at the back of the pen and has continued to do so (see pic). She's usually on her own in the run; she will join the others when we throw down corn but moves off again to the undergrowth.
We've inspected her. Her backside is a bit of a mess but there are no obvious blockages and she doesn't feel egg-bound. I don't know if she's laying or not: we get between 6 and 8 eggs daily and I believe I can identify 4 as being sufficiently distinctive that they likely come from the new hens, so she may or may not be.
She doesn't appear to be being picked on. Any suggestions of anything to try, or might it just be old age? I believe hens are quite social, so isolating herself is not "normal"?
Thanks