Hen’s Tail is Down

[ReneeeW]

Hi there - I’m a fairly new chicken mom & have recently adopted 4 laying age hens.

This is Louise who is 7 months old & has not started laying yet. Her sibling of the same age just started two days ago. She’s the runt & does get picked on occasionally - mostly stays to herself & sleeps alone in a corner, however she does walk around and eat with the flock. In the last couple of days she’s been walking with her tail down. She sometimes lays down while foraging in the run (tail is up when laying down), but she’s actively walking around throughout the day. Always first in line for a treat & doesn’t appear to have any other issues...

I’m not sure if this is a result of being bullied or possibly an impacted egg, (or both). We’ve only had them for about two weeks.

Would appreciate any feedback.

 

[ReneeeW]

A couple of other things I’m observing today. She doesn’t heed the warning call the rest of the flock does when they see a predator in the sky. They all hide while she stays outside in the open. We get the occasional hawk circling. Also, her balance is slightly off, so she has to ope a wing every so often to get back on her feet.