Hen/pullet puffed up standing on 1 leg - hasn't layed in 1.5 months

[ella2025]

So do we think they are just cold and Orpington stopped laying because of winter? The Brahma hen/pullet that I said is a bit less skinny than Orpington stopped laying a week or two ago. Right now, my best layer is a... Drumroll... Silkie! She has always been super consistent in laying, stopping only for a short broody session that I broke within a few days. But she's a bit puffy too from what I can see. Pretty much all my hens are and I think maybe that could point to them just being cold?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Provided that she's not only standing on the same leg all the time, she seems cold to me - they'll pull up a leg at a time to warm up under their feathers. And her paler, floppier comb would match the stoppage in laying. Regardless of breed some birds handle it cold temps better than others, some worse.

 

[ella2025]

Provided that she's not only standing on the same leg all the time, she seems cold to me - they'll pull up a leg at a time to warm up under their feathers. And her paler, floppier comb would match the stoppage in laying. Regardless of breed some birds handle it cold temps better than others, some worse.

Thank you! I'll keep an eye on her anyway but it's nice to know she's not sick.

 

[SourRoses]

You know, my half Orpington hens with a lot of floof do the standing on one leg in cold temps a lot more often / longer than the others. And our temps haven't gotten too cold down here yet, but days that sink below 65 or so I notice it. When they walk off then I know they're okay.

I'm guessing that their floof may make a more accessible foot warming spot than the chickens with smoother feathers? Maybe the others are all jealous of those pantaloons?

 

[Yardmom]

I don't have Brahma or Orpingtons, but I have a lot of other breeds/mixes. The only ones to lay in winter other than an occasional pullet are Silkies.