Egg Bound or No? (Pictures Included)

[Tytytytyler]

My hen, Nugget, is my only white egg layer and I have not gotten any white eggs lately, so I know she has not laid an egg in a while. A few days ago she was acting like she way laying one and never did. She never acted like she had any kind of problem behavior or health wise. Today she was waddling like a penguin and just being very lazy compared to her norm and there is a huge swelling underneath her in her lower abdomen. It is a hard swelling, and not squishy. She's feels so swollen tight, I feel like her breast bone might pop out of her skin.

I soaked her in warm steamy water that was just the right temperature so that it wouldn't cook her or anything for thirty minutes and I don't know if that had any effect, seeing as she didn't pass anything during the soak.
She is still eating, drinking, and pooping. She is just waddling and lazy. But she is sticking with the group and isn't allowing herself to be left behind.

After I soaked her though, her swelling became visible, so here are pictures. I don't know if she's full of liquid because like I said, it is a hard swelling.

I totally didn't notice her face in this one until now! Haha!

[That is wet red dirt in her feathers, not egg yolk if anybody was wondering.]

 

[Telamon]

Maybe some mosquitos bit it and it got swollen. The swelling could probably affect the eggs, because the inside is swollen so the eggs can't get through. ( BTW, I love her face in the first picture

)

 

[Jloeffler]

I second the fadein pic 1!! How long has she been laying? Could this bean unusual egg that is causing problems? Maybe more than one soak is necessary. I also read that putting vegetable ? Oil on the vent prior to soaking can help. Search penguin walk in the thread search to find several threads. Hope this helps!

 

[Tytytytyler]

I forgot to say that she is 2 years and 4 months old and is a frequent layer. She's never had any problem like this before, even when she may have laid a soft shelled egg.

And yeah, I've been researching on my own, I just thought maybe someone would know if I included pictures if soaking was the way to go. I really don't know what a liquid swelling would feel like if it were that, because I know a lot of bloated bellies are from liquid. I feel like it's really hard to be liquid.

And I planned on soaking her again tomorrow if she doesn't lay anything by then either.

 

[Jloeffler]

Quote:
Yeah, that sounds like not a new layer problem! I have several who haven't laid yet & yesterday, shortly before reading your post, I went outside to find one of them doing the penguin waddle. I tried to feel her belly - not a task which either of us enjoyed! - couldn't feel anything. I am really impressed at how well you can describe what you felt. I hope someone can help who has more experience than me!

 

[SaraFL]

Never dealt with this myself, but I did read on another thread that the person inserted their finger into the vent and had a feel around - maybe that would tell you something?