Chicken sick. Egg Bound?

[Juleschicksdublin]

Since yesterday morning, my 1 year old buff has been sitting in the nesting box with feathers poofed out. When I pick her up/take her out...she just jumps back in. She looks sickly and her underneath feathers (not by vent, but where legs meet body) are kind of matted. Last night I was worried she had some sort of parasite, but I thought it was odd that the other 5 hens seem healthy. This morning I am researching egg binding and worried it is that!

I can't feel an egg. I have tried giving her Tums, but cannot get her to ingest. I tried making a slurry and using syringe and wrapping little pieces in raisin.

Can this self resolve? What else should I be doing? I feel like I'm against the clock here, as I read it can kill them in 24 hours!
I'm a new chicken owner and this is my first illness. I wonder why this would occur so suddenly?!

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. I would first try to determine if she is broody. Does she have missing feathers on her chest and abdomen? If you remove her and take her outside, does she run back to the nestbox?

Insert a gloved finger into her vent an inch or two to feel for an egg.

Try to remove her to a dog crate or pen. Mix a small bowl of wet chicken feed, and a bit of plain yogurt. Crush a human calcium tablet or tums into the food. You may also give her small pieces of tablet directly into her beak in the back of the throat.

Some causes of egg binding are dehydration, low calcium levels, and vent damage from previous pecking, egg binding, or prolapse.

 

[Juleschicksdublin]

Welcome to BYC. I would first try to determine if she is broody. Does she have missing feathers on her chest and abdomen? If you remove her and take her outside, does she run back to the nestbox?

Insert a gloved finger into her vent an inch or two to feel for an egg.

Try to remove her to a dog crate or pen. Mix a small bowl of wet chicken feed, and a bit of plain yogurt. Crush a human calcium tablet or tums into the food. You may also give her small pieces of tablet directly into her beak in the back of the throat.

Some causes of egg binding are dehydration, low calcium levels, and vent damage from previous pecking, egg binding, or prolapse.

e
Yes, she is missing a small amount of feathers. If I take her out of box, she returns right away.
I am trying to get calcium in her, but haven't been successful
I don't feel an egg...?

 

[Eggcessive]

Then I would suspect that she is broody or wanting to sit on eggs. But I would try to make sure that she is not sick. Try putting an egg in front of her and see then if she pulls it under her. My broodies tend to walk around clucking and holding their tails in an upside down V, if I remove them from the nest. There are pleny of videos online showing broody behavior.

 

[Juleschicksdublin]

Ok. I think she may just be broody. Because she's liking eggs under herself.

But now I'm wondering what's up with her abdominal area. Feathers all gross and some coming out underneath. I don't see mites saw one white /yellow scaly thing ?

 

[Eggcessive]

Pictures might be helpful. If you don’t want her to hatch eggs, you will need to break her from being broody. Here are some articles on how to do that:
https://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2012/01/so-youve-got-broody-hen.html
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/broody-breaker-when-hens-mood-to-hatch/