Bloody nesting box

[greenthumbmama]

A couple days ago, my kids brought in 2 VERY bloody shelled eggs from the coop. I figured perhaps the hen who laid them had a rough time of it. The last couple days, the eggs have been fine. HOWEVER, I went out myself today rather than sending the kids and when I looked in the nesting box, the walls were covered in smeared blood. Like a massacre had happened in there! I haven't been able to figure out which one of my chickens laid the bloody eggs because none of them have bloody feathers and all are acting normal. But is it normal for there to be blood all over the walls??

Thanks for any input....

 

[satay]

Can't say I have ever seen anything like that before. How big are your nest boxes?

 

[greenthumbmama]

Well, I think about 18"x18". There are three of them and they all seem to choose to use only that one.

 

[satay]

I have seen blood on eggs occassionally but never splatted all around the box. Especially if the hens are showing now signs of blood on them. I hope someone with more knowledge than me may be able to help you out on this one.

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

I wonder if there was a squabble and someone got their comb or wattles picked/pecked – they might have retreated to the nest box and when shaking their head splattered the walls and eggs. Combs and wattles can bleed fairly freely yet when the flow stops the injury is hard to see.

 

[Diavolicchio]

(inappropriate comment deleted by staff)



John

 

[pattycake]

I agree with the person above, and that it's probably a bloody comb rather than any connection to the bloody eggs. Someone got bitten on the comb, then went to lay her egg, and every time she turned around in the nest it got all over the box. That's happened in my coop a few times...

 

[greenthumbmama]

It makes the most sense that they might have been fighting. I went out yesterday afternoon and my smallest hen (Bantam Partridge Cochin) was missing some feathers on her head. I figured they were having a pecking order fight or something. I've been watching them today closely ready to isolate the bully. I'm guessing the blood may have been from that fight.

 

[Vermontmaple]

Funny b/c I was going to ask the same question. We have blood all over the coop and wondered this: Does a chicken bleed when they lay their first egg? I think it was this chickens VERY first egg.