Acting Weird AFTER Egg Bound?

[antiqsolo]

Hey all,

My RIR, Coco, was acting strange a few days ago. I left her overnight, thinking she was just feeling off, but in the morning it was apparent something was wrong. Now, I'm new to this, so Google is my friend. I quickly figured out she was egg bound, brought her into the bathroom, gave her the full spa treatment and left her to do her thing. It wasn't until the next morning that she passed the egg. I regret not taking a picture of it. It looked like a half-dehydrated, absolutely shell-less mess. It wasn't all over the place, it was very compact, but the yolk looked cooked.

Now, I'd asked a homesteading group on Facebook what they thought (before Coco passed the egg) and someone mentioned Marek's... so I've kept her in isolation. I am hoping she just misses her friends now... However, she is still not drinking or eating unless I hold the food up to her face, she stands in the kennel and stares at me, looks around a bit.. she seems reluctant to walk (it's a big kennel, she can walk in there). Is she just tired? Does she need more rest? Or should I put her back in the coop? She seemed lethargic and off balance before she passed the egg, and now she has more control of her body. She's very aware, not lethargic.. just seems, off. This is a chicken that would run up to me in the coop for her morning hug; I don't know what's going on. I want to put her back with the others but if she has Marek's I don't want to pass it along any more than I may have already..

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Doesn't sound like Marek's.
Likely all related to the egg binding. A shell-less egg is difficult to pass.
What was she eating up till the problems started?

 

[antiqsolo]

I give all the girls a mix of Purina crumbles, whole corn, barley and oats.. just recently cut the corn intake in half and doubled the Purina (this was yesterday) in case that was an issue. I also no longer give them cracked corn as a treat, but I'll be giving them wild bird seed instead. They get kitchen scraps too (leftover pasta, salad, veggie scraps). Also, I have to switch them to Flock Raiser, as I've got three 12 week olds in with the older girls and only just realized that the layer crumbles could be harmful.. but she was eating pretty much the same as everyone else, no unique treats to her

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Sounds like you are making some sound improvements to the diet.
What was the point of mixing layer crumbles with corn, barley and oats? What would be the point of giving wild bird seed in place of grains?
All those things qualify as scratch grains. However seeds and grains should make up no more than 5-10% of the diet.
The layer feed is a complete feed that is already primarily corn and grain. Adding more grain or seeds will cut the calcium and protein significantly.
The fact that you have a bird that was egg bound and possibly has other issues indicates that there could be a nutritional issue.
Keep in mind that chicken feed is nutritionally complete for the age and production of the birds for which it was formulated. When one starts adding other feedstuffs, it can dramatically alter optimal nutrition.
Feeding chickens isn't hard or extremely expensive. The hard work has already been done. Buy a bag of complete feed and provide that. If one adds other things, they'll skew the nutrition unless they are very knowledgeable in poultry nutrition.

 

[casportpony]

@antiqsolo , did it look like the egg on the right?


http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2014/12/salpingitis-lash-eggs-in-backyard.html

 

[antiqsolo]

Sounds like you are making some sound improvements to the diet.
What was the point of mixing layer crumbles with corn, barley and oats? What would be the point of giving wild bird seed in place of grains?
All those things qualify as scratch grains. However seeds and grains should make up no more than 5-10% of the diet.
The layer feed is a complete feed that is already primarily corn and grain. Adding more grain or seeds will cut the calcium and protein significantly.
The fact that you have a bird that was egg bound and possibly has other issues indicates that there could be a nutritional issue.
Keep in mind that chicken feed is nutritionally complete for the age and production of the birds for which it was formulated. When one starts adding other feedstuffs, it can dramatically alter optimal nutrition.
Feeding chickens isn't hard or extremely expensive. The hard work has already been done. Buy a bag of complete feed and provide that. If one adds other things, they'll skew the nutrition unless they are very knowledgeable in poultry nutrition.

The feed store suggested mixing the barley, oats and corn into the crumbles until I can grow all their feed myself, and then supplement with a nutri-mix. And the bird seed would be instead of cracked corn, as a scratch every few days or so.. especially with my three youngest, I'm trying to get them hand-tame still. So treats help

 

[antiqsolo]

@antiqsolo , did it look like the egg on the right?


http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2014/12/salpingitis-lash-eggs-in-backyard.html

Similar! I actually figured it might be a lash egg; it wasn't whole, though. Looked like someone tried to fry it up

 

[casportpony]

Can you take her to a vet?

 

[BobDBirdDog]

You might also consider a little extra calcium to the diet. I have always held theory that eggs like that are because they are not getting enough calcium and are depending on the bone and body to generate the shell in the begining. then when the body transitions to the body draw, the better egg forms.

She could be a little sore from the bad egg, so just keep a close watch on her and keep the room informed/updated.

 

[antiqsolo]

I'll be adding oyster shells free choice in a couple days, and we always feed back their shells (but I know they're not enough, hence the oyster shells).

And no, I'm in Nova Scotia and we're experiencing a nor'easter to end all nor'easters! Tried to risk the highway today for chick starter, but it was almost totally white-out conditions. So vet is off the table. However, Coco is doing very well, I put her with the rest of the flock last night and they were all very excited to see her back! She's eating, drinking, and playing (albeit a bit less than normal, but she seems to be on the mend).