Hen acting strange

[Mertzy19636]

I have followed this site for a long time, I have had chickens for the last 8 years, I got 3 day old chicks this time instead of starter pullets, they are 6 months old and just started laying. I have one hen I swear has brain damage or something, she constantly paces back and forth in the run and runs up in the coop in between pacing, she is an Olive Egger hen, she has laid 5 normal eggs so far, yesterday she laid just the yolk, no shell. I have 6 hens and she is the only one doing this. I have very good layer feed with extra calcium and protein, has anyone else had a hen like this?

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I have followed this site for a long time, I have had chickens for the last 8 years, I got 3 day old chicks this time instead of starter pullets, they are 6 months old and just started laying. I have one hen I swear has brain damage or something, she constantly paces back and forth in the run and runs up in the coop in between pacing, she is an Olive Egger hen, she has laid 5 normal eggs so far, yesterday she laid just the yolk, no shell. I have 6 hens and she is the only one doing this. I have very good layer feed with extra calcium and protein, has anyone else had a hen like this?

Hi, glad you stopped lurking and started posting!

Has she always been pacing like that, or just since around the time that she started laying? New layers can be (understandably) disturbed by the sensations inside them, and maybe the pacing helps manage this. (Think of human moms in early labor, grimly marching up and down the hospital hallways.)

 

[Mertzy19636]

Hi, glad you stopped lurking and started posting!

Has she always been pacing like that, or just since around the time that she started laying? New layers can be (understandably) disturbed by the sensations inside them, and maybe the pacing helps manage this. (Think of human moms in early labor, grimly marching up and down the hospital hallways.)

Sounds logical, seems like it just been the last month or so she has been doing it, just have never had any hens act like her before.

 

[CombNWattles]

Some birds are more ‘wild’ in temperament than others. Is she smaller/slimmer than the rest? For some reason those tend to be more active and flighty.

What is the square footage of the coop and run?

 

[Mid Wales chicken keeper]

I have followed this site for a long time, I have had chickens for the last 8 years, I got 3 day old chicks this time instead of starter pullets, they are 6 months old and just started laying. I have one hen I swear has brain damage or something, she constantly paces back and forth in the run and runs up in the coop in between pacing, she is an Olive Egger hen, she has laid 5 normal eggs so far, yesterday she laid just the yolk, no shell. I have 6 hens and she is the only one doing this. I have very good layer feed with extra calcium and protein, has anyone else had a hen like this?

I have a hen who had very similar behaviour when she started laying, even now she's still a diva about it. It's not abnormal for young chicken to lay a dud egg or two, so unless she continues with eggs without shells I wouldn't worry about it yet.

 

[Ridgerunner]

6 months old and just started laying.

The egg making and egg laying processes are pretty complicated. There are a lot of things that can go wrong. It is not unusual for a pullet just starting to lay really weird eggs in strange places at unexpected times. I'm kind of amazed at how many get it right to start with. Even established layers can have a glitch but it is much more common in pullets just starting to lay.

That shell-less egg is not common but it is not that unusual. Most that do something like that straighten out within a couple of weeks. If she continues to regularly lay eggs like that then there may be something wrong with her but give her a bit more time.

I do not know why he is pacing like that. Each one is an individual and has its own personality. That's why some people like them as pets, they can be quite a bit different. It could be "strange feelings" as mentioned. Is another pullet laying in the nest she wants to use? It could be something totally different. As long as she is not disturbing the peace of the flock I would not be concerned about it.

Good luck and let us know if this is still going on in a couple of weeks.