Chunky Chicken or Eggbound?

[Taylorc29]

Hi all!

My one year old easter egger (one of 4), Colombo, is behaving differently than her sisters and I can't figure out what her deal is. She eats and drinks water just fine. She stays on the roost about an hour longer than her sisters and goes to bed about an hour earlier. She enjoys laying down in the run during the day more than the other three. Her tail is down almost always. I am 95% sure she is laying eggs regularly, but I'm worried she might be egg bound?

How am I sure she's laying eggs? I get 2-3 eggs every day and hers are smaller and closer to white than her sisters.

She had some unsightly poo stuck to her fluff so I brought her in this weekend when it warmed up and bathed her thinking that would cure her tail-down attitude, but she seems "full" Her back end below her vent feels firm and ... round.

Anyway, I'm not sure if she's just a little different than her sisters or if she's got a problem. I've attached pictures. She's the brown one. The black on is Ma and she's a camera hog.

 

[aart]

but she seems "full" Her back end below her vent feels firm and ... round.

Is belly solid hard or like a water balloon?

This is what I do when I have a bird that is acting 'off'......
I isolate bird in a wire cage within the coop for a day or two....so I can closely monitor:
-their intake of food and water,
-crop function(checking at night and in morning before providing more feed),
-and their poops.
Feel their abdomen, from below vent to between legs, for squishy or hard swelling.
Check for external parasites or any other abnormalities.

Best to put crate right in coop or run so bird is still 'with' the flock.
I like to use a fold-able wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller mesh(1x2) on bottom of crate under tray.
Then you can put tray underneath crate to better observe droppings without it being stepped in. If smaller mesh is carefully installed, tray can still be used inside crate.

 

[Taylorc29]

Droppings look normal. She's eating and drinking normal.

Her abdomen feels more like a firm water balloon than a solid hard mass.

 

[aart]

Could be ascites, which is caused by diseased organs.
Just keep an eye on it.