Egg Lump Question

[dalasgalas]

This is a really noob question.

I have two new pullets that are old enough to lay. One is a bantam and just last week just started laying dinky little brown eggs. The other is a huge black mother of all chickens who I'm fairly certain should start laying soon.

When I pick her up I can feel an egg shaped lump just below her breast. Is that an egg working its way down to the shoot out area?

Everyone is eating and pooping normally. They free range and are fed egg layer feed and sometimes they get treats like table scraps or scratch.

Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[PirateGirl]

Here is a basic chicken anatomy illustration. I suspect what you are feeling is the crop. It fills up with food during the day and forms a lump near the breast.

Eggs are formed in the ovary and eventually come out the cloaca just under the tail.

 

[dalasgalas]

View attachment 1565465
Here is a basic chicken anatomy illustration. I suspect what you are feeling is the crop. It fills up with food during the day and forms a lump near the breast.

Eggs are formed in the ovary and eventually come out the cloaca just under the tail.

That's what I thought. Hm. This piggy really eats a ton of food. I have no idea where she is finding it. Might be why there are no tree frogs left in my back yard.

And thank you for not heckling me for thinking maybe my chicken's innards were upside down.

 

[PirateGirl]

No worries. Soooo many animals the stomach is somewhere inside the abdomen where we can't see it. It's kinda crazy that chickens have their crop right up front and just by looking you can see if it's full or empty! It's totally the size and shape of an egg too

 

[aart]

The other is a huge black mother of all chickens who I'm fairly certain should start laying soon.

This cracked me up!!