Hen does not appear ill, but will not lay an egg!

[Ganjaroo]

I have 3 extremely spoiled chickens, (two hens and a roo), who are all two years old. One hen is a good layer, but the other hasn't laid an egg in 10 months. My concern is way she (sometimes) boots my laying hen off the of nesting box to take up residence herself, although she still has not laid an egg! I added another nesting box thinking this may solve the issue, but she will still run my laying hen off no matter which nest she's in. Also, her tail goes up and down while she nests or is resting, ..I'm not sure if that is normal or not. She seems very happy and healthy otherwise, so I am at a loss. Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!

 

[TwoCrows]

Welcome to BYC!

Sounds like she could just be broody, at least that is what broodies do...don't lay and kick others out of nest boxes. Does she growl at you when you try to move her out of the nest? Does she cluck cluck cluck all over the place when she is not on the nest? This is broodiness. As for the tail bobbing, it could be something, or nothing. I have a hen that breathes heavy and her tail has been bobbing up and down for 3 years. Some birds breathe faster and harder than others. Not that this is a good thing, but there is nothing you can do about it.

I would give her a good once over to make sure she is truly healthy. Start at the beak and work back to the tail, looking for mites, lice, crop issues, pale comb, injuries, bumblefoot, feel her abdomen to make sure it is fairly firm and not squishy like a water balloon. Have they ever been wormed before? Worms can cause hens not to lay. Some birds eat their eggs and others lay them in a secret nest somewhere out in the field.

She does sound broody to me, however her is a thread on why my chicken isn't laying and maybe you can glean some info on what possibly is going on...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/423023/why-arent-my-chickens-laying-here-are-your-answers

Good luck with your hen and I hope she starts laying those eggs soon!

 

[Ganjaroo]

Thanks for the reply, the advice, and the welcome!! No, she does not fuss when I move her from the nest, but yes, she IS quite chatty otherwise. Actually, she is quite bitchy and VOCAL when things don't go her way, lol, such as when it rains and she can't run the yard, the roo or the other hen is out of her sight, ..etc. She is quite the drama queen.

No, I have not wormed my chickens. Thank you for that point, because I am new to this and have never been clear on whether it is absolutely necessary to do so! Shall I do that just to be safe? It is not harmful to them at all if they do not have worms, .. is it?
Also, I do check my birds regularly, and did have some concern over the roo and this hens tail feathers. They are stalky looking and bare only at the base, yet I do not see any mites or lice. I dusted with DE anyway, just to be safe, but have not seen much difference. I was told that feathers can look this way during a molt as well, yet my chickens have never lost very many feathers.. If they did molt it was a very mild one, so I'm not sure if it is molting or not!

Sorry if I got carried away. I just have so many questions! Thanks so much for your time!

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Welcome to BYC!

Yep, sounds like broodiness. Has she plucked feathers from her chest? Like Two Crows ^ said, broody hens will chase other birds away.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! The hen does sound like she may be considering going broody, but if she has not laid an egg in ten months I would be considering a reproductive problem like internal laying, give her a really good exam like TwoCrows suggested, especially her abdomen and compare it to your hen that is laying normally. If you have mites/lice DE will not do anything for an existing infestation, you'd need to use something like Sevin or a commercial poultry dust, using a magnifying glass may help see bugs, and be sure to check their coop at night since some mites don't live on the bird.. you might post pictures of the feather damage you mention... the Learning Center has some articles on them with pictures to give you an idea of what you are looking for on the lice and mites https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/mites-chicken-pests-how-to-protect-your-chickens-from-mites and https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/lice-chicken-pests-how-to-protect-your-chickens-from-lice

 

[Ganjaroo]

Thanks so much to all of you! I'm so glad that I joined this site! I will examine the hen and compare..as suggested, and will check all of the links provided. Unfortunately, I can not posts pics at this time, but will try to post one that looks similar..if I can find one. So far, I have not!

 

[gander007]

 

[sourland]

If she hasn't laid an egg in 10 months, she may very well have an ovarian problem. Welcome to BYC.

 

[drumstick diva]

Your hen sounds like quite a character - hope everything turns out fine.