Egg bound???

[ecajean]

I'm sure this has been addressed, but I am on a really REALLY slow dial up computer (I connect at 26 Kbps!) and I'm homeschooling so I can't sit and wait for pages to load, especially when I am looking for something and needing to browes thru several pages.

Anyway if someone knows a good thread that may talk about why my hen has all of a sudden stopped laying eggs? Nothing has changed, other than we are going on the fourth day and no egg. She usually would go at the most every other day...could it be that she is egg bound? What do I do about it?

Thanks
Erica

 

[Wynette]

Erica, what breed, how old, what are you feeding?

It's possible she's in molt; they either slow way down or stop completely when they're molting. I'm going through this myself. They also looks REALLY scraggly! You'll find lots of feathers around if that's what is going on.

Also, they all need breaks now & then, so it could be she's just taking some time off & rejuvenating her egg-laying equipment.

 

[ecajean]

She was hatched 3/8/08 so that'd make her...what...6 months. She began to lay at the first part of August. She is a Cuckoo Maran. And she eats Lay pellets. I think the 16% protien. There are feathers around but she still looks good.

thanks for the help!
Erica

 

[Wynette]

Well, she shouldn't be in a "hard" molt if she's that young. It could very likely be just due to the daylight hours becoming shorter. They need 12-14 hrs. of sunlight to be in "egg lay" mode. That's probably all it is.

 

[cmom]

Did you feel her and see if you could feel an egg inside her?

 

[ecajean]

I think I figured out what has happened, I have another Maran hen that I JUST put in with the pair and the next morning one was out and I just assumed it was the new one, but maybe it was the old one that got out and the new one is in with the roo and is taking a long time getting use to the place? And I think you're right about the daylight, I don't have a light in the pen. Maybe that's all it is. I don't feel any eggs in her either.

Thanks everyone, you know too, I sold four hens to a gal about two weeks ago and she told me that they hadn't started to lay yet and I suggested the daylight thing too her as well as the getting use to the pen. Probably should have taken my advice, lol.

Erica