Ameraucana mysteriously stopped laying.

[Micsandoval]

About a month and a half ago one of my ameraucanas seemed sick. She had been laying for a week or two and then suddenly stopped.

Symptoms:
Minimal movement (would stand in one spot for extended periods of time)
tail down
watery, infrequent bowel movements
comb and skin around her eyes seemed dull
eyes closed (like she was in pain or extremely tired)
didn't run away when I would try to catch her

I thought she must be egg bound. So I brought her in the house and gave her several warm baths and tried to lubricate her vent with some olive oil. I couldn't feel an egg though. Anyway, fast forward about a week and she suddenly seemed fine. But I haven't seen an egg from her since. I didn't seem to be anything contagious, as all my other chickens seem perfectly healthy. I noticed that one of the other chickens picks on her particularly bad since she has stopped laying.

Anybody have a similar experience or know what could have caused this? And is she safe to eat if she isn't going to lay anymore?

 

[Judy]

You might want to research internal laying, which is a possibility. This can start with an internal infection, so I don't know that I would eat her. Something much less serious could also be at work here, though. Perhaps she is simply being badly frightened by something you may not even be aware of, such as a predator sniffing around at night. She could be in a partial moult. She could still be recovering from some illness or injury; chickens hide such things very well. Is it possible she is laying in a hidden nest? Those are just things that come to mind offhand.