I agree with @Folly's place that your feed is the likely cause. I understand what you are saying about them not being keen to eat a pellet or crumble, when they have had a whole grain diet, but this is a bit like giving children a choice of what they want to eat every day without any restrictions.... pancakes and waffles or meat and veg. They will usually choose the stuff that is less good for them and not eat a balanced diet.
If you watch chickens free ranging, they will scratch and peck at the tiniest specks of insects in the dirt that are hard for us to see, so they can very easily differentiate between the different components in a mixed grain feed. The chances are they will bill it out onto the ground so that they can find their favourite bits and the fines which contain all the essential vitamins and minerals will be wasted. Usually it is the higher carbohydrate components of the feed that are favoured over the pulses which contain more protein. Hi levels of carbohydrate in the diet will be laid down as fatty deposits and these build up in and around the abdomen and vent, reducing the diameter of the opening and making it hard for the bird to push an egg through it and prolapse is a risk. More seriously, fatty deposits start to form in and around the internal organs and in particular the liver, which can become weak and unstable as a result. This leads to Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome and can result in sudden death if the liver ruptures. If your girl is straining to pass eggs every day and her liver is fatty, she is at serious risk. I have a necropsy photo of my neighbours bird that died of such a condition. He fed them a diet high in scratch grains, which is essentially what your feed is but with added pulses, vitamins and minerals. It was shocking to see so much fat and provides a sharp mental reminder to me to be cautious/mean with the scratch.
I'm afraid I would enforce some tough love and change to a pellet or crumble. Yes, they will not like it because they have been used to "waffles and pancakes" whenever they fancy them, but a healthy balanced diet is probably more important for chickens than it is for humans because their bodies are operating at a high production level.... akin to a top athlete.
If you are unconvinced by my argument, remove the feeder and scatter some of the feed down on a hard surface for her and watch which bits she eats first and which are left till last. A pellet or crumble is homogenous so every piece contains a balanced ration. There is also much less waste with a pellet because they do not bill it out to find the "best bits" because there are none. Yes it may look boring but it contains all the same ingredients that your grain feed does and if your birds free range then they will get some variety in their diet through that. Free ranging is a huge treat in itself. Another option would be to soak or ferment your feed and then pulp it in a blender although I am led to believe that there are less issues like this with grain feeds if they are just fermented.
Watch, how and what she eats and assess her body condition by feeling her body.... those feathers hide a lot of issues. Laying birds should be lean, not plump like super market meat birds. Pay particular attention to her abdomen and vent area for being well padded.
I wish you luck with your girl and hope that if it is excess fat, you can reverse it before it is too late.
Regards
Barbara
If you watch chickens free ranging, they will scratch and peck at the tiniest specks of insects in the dirt that are hard for us to see, so they can very easily differentiate between the different components in a mixed grain feed. The chances are they will bill it out onto the ground so that they can find their favourite bits and the fines which contain all the essential vitamins and minerals will be wasted. Usually it is the higher carbohydrate components of the feed that are favoured over the pulses which contain more protein. Hi levels of carbohydrate in the diet will be laid down as fatty deposits and these build up in and around the abdomen and vent, reducing the diameter of the opening and making it hard for the bird to push an egg through it and prolapse is a risk. More seriously, fatty deposits start to form in and around the internal organs and in particular the liver, which can become weak and unstable as a result. This leads to Fatty Liver Haemorrhagic Syndrome and can result in sudden death if the liver ruptures. If your girl is straining to pass eggs every day and her liver is fatty, she is at serious risk. I have a necropsy photo of my neighbours bird that died of such a condition. He fed them a diet high in scratch grains, which is essentially what your feed is but with added pulses, vitamins and minerals. It was shocking to see so much fat and provides a sharp mental reminder to me to be cautious/mean with the scratch.
I'm afraid I would enforce some tough love and change to a pellet or crumble. Yes, they will not like it because they have been used to "waffles and pancakes" whenever they fancy them, but a healthy balanced diet is probably more important for chickens than it is for humans because their bodies are operating at a high production level.... akin to a top athlete.
If you are unconvinced by my argument, remove the feeder and scatter some of the feed down on a hard surface for her and watch which bits she eats first and which are left till last. A pellet or crumble is homogenous so every piece contains a balanced ration. There is also much less waste with a pellet because they do not bill it out to find the "best bits" because there are none. Yes it may look boring but it contains all the same ingredients that your grain feed does and if your birds free range then they will get some variety in their diet through that. Free ranging is a huge treat in itself. Another option would be to soak or ferment your feed and then pulp it in a blender although I am led to believe that there are less issues like this with grain feeds if they are just fermented.
Watch, how and what she eats and assess her body condition by feeling her body.... those feathers hide a lot of issues. Laying birds should be lean, not plump like super market meat birds. Pay particular attention to her abdomen and vent area for being well padded.
I wish you luck with your girl and hope that if it is excess fat, you can reverse it before it is too late.
Regards
Barbara
