I need your help figuring out what happened in the coop today.
The set-up:
Three of my little ladies started laying Saturday and I've gotten 8 eggs in the first four days. Nothing weird at all. Strong, smooth shells. No long delays between eggs. All three of them have been laying in the same spot in the corner of a large communal nest box -- very tidy. They are happy. I am happy. Well, I was happy. Tonight I went out to the coop with my flashlight to see what they had left for me and found something very strange. One egg was laying in the absolute worst place -- smack in the middle of the doorway to the coop and nowhere near the nest. Weird, but whatever. No biggie. More startling was what I found in the nest box. Two eggs smeared with bright red blood. It was all over the bedding and had actually dripped through the boards in the bottom of the box down onto the floor of the coop below it. Poor chickie!
The examination:
All of the ladies were on their roosts, so I started looking for the one who may need assistance. I knew for certain who 2 of the 3 layers were -- the Easter Egger was obvious because some of the eggs are a pretty blue. The RIR because I walked in on her private moment the other day (and she was none too happy about it). I started with them. Checked vents, toes, bellies, faces. Nothing. Then I started on the others. I found my third layer -- the australorp. Her chest and belly feathers are crusty with blood. I took her into the house and gave her a thorough examination. She looks messy but totally fine. Absolutely no blood around the vent, no obvious injury, acted totally offended and not in the least like someone who had recently experienced signficant blood loss.
The question:
What the heck happened? Is the injury internal? Is it that painful to give birth to a one small smooth little egg? Somehow I wouldn't think so. Is it possible to bleed that much from an external injury and show no sign of it? Do you think the girls are already fighting over the nesting area? Could a line have formed for the prized nesting area, resulting in one bloody chicken and one chicken (who couldn't keep her legs crossed long enough to get her turn) being forced to lay an egg in the doorway? If so, what the heck am I going to do when all nine girls start laying?
The set-up:
Three of my little ladies started laying Saturday and I've gotten 8 eggs in the first four days. Nothing weird at all. Strong, smooth shells. No long delays between eggs. All three of them have been laying in the same spot in the corner of a large communal nest box -- very tidy. They are happy. I am happy. Well, I was happy. Tonight I went out to the coop with my flashlight to see what they had left for me and found something very strange. One egg was laying in the absolute worst place -- smack in the middle of the doorway to the coop and nowhere near the nest. Weird, but whatever. No biggie. More startling was what I found in the nest box. Two eggs smeared with bright red blood. It was all over the bedding and had actually dripped through the boards in the bottom of the box down onto the floor of the coop below it. Poor chickie!
The examination:
All of the ladies were on their roosts, so I started looking for the one who may need assistance. I knew for certain who 2 of the 3 layers were -- the Easter Egger was obvious because some of the eggs are a pretty blue. The RIR because I walked in on her private moment the other day (and she was none too happy about it). I started with them. Checked vents, toes, bellies, faces. Nothing. Then I started on the others. I found my third layer -- the australorp. Her chest and belly feathers are crusty with blood. I took her into the house and gave her a thorough examination. She looks messy but totally fine. Absolutely no blood around the vent, no obvious injury, acted totally offended and not in the least like someone who had recently experienced signficant blood loss.
The question:
What the heck happened? Is the injury internal? Is it that painful to give birth to a one small smooth little egg? Somehow I wouldn't think so. Is it possible to bleed that much from an external injury and show no sign of it? Do you think the girls are already fighting over the nesting area? Could a line have formed for the prized nesting area, resulting in one bloody chicken and one chicken (who couldn't keep her legs crossed long enough to get her turn) being forced to lay an egg in the doorway? If so, what the heck am I going to do when all nine girls start laying?
