Hen Screaming Loudly for Hours

[The Welch Chickens]

Our Spitzhauben has been yelling very loudly all day and we can’t find out what is wrong.
She is 25 weeks old and has never laid; but most of the hens have.
She is just yelling and yelling about once per minute, pacing a bit too.

Unfortunately, our top hen in the pecking order passed away in her sleep last night and we found her this morning. It is the first death in our flock, but not the first chicken to leave, our rooster was re-homed recently and the flock got used to it quickly with no problems.
Could our Spitzhauben be stressed out because of the death?

Or could it be time for her to lay and she is in pain/stressed about that?

I will try to post a video which I have never done before, if it doesn’t work I’ll have to figure out a different way.

 

[Debbie292d]

Our Spitzhauben has been yelling very loudly all day and we can’t find out what is wrong.
She is 25 weeks old and has never laid; but most of the hens have.
She is just yelling and yelling every 2 minutes, pacing a bit too.

Unfortunately, our top hen in the pecking order passed away in her sleep last night and we found her this morning. It is the first death in our flock, but not the first chicken to leave, our rooster was re-homed recently and the flock got used to it quickly with no problems.
Could our Spitzhauben be stressed out because of the death?

Or could it be time for her to lay and she is in pain/stressed about that?

I will try to post a video which I have never done before, if it doesn’t work I’ll have to figure out a different way.

That sounds like a hen that laid an egg. Some call it "their song." I call it racket.

We have one, with a bit different voice, that has been doing that on and off for a month, and she's way past her egg-laying years, so not sure what that's about either.

Are you sure she didn't lay an egg somewhere you missed? Perhaps she's working up to laying one since she's due to. She's pretty healthy or she wouldn't be running around like that!

 

[The Welch Chickens]

We just let the flock out to free range; we usually do every evening for 45 mins or so. The Spitzhauben is busy foraging and hasn’t screamed again.

 

[nuthatched]

I think shes getting close to laying

 

[The Welch Chickens]

That sounds like a hen that laid an egg. Some call it "their song."

We hear the egg song all the time since they just started laying, it gets quite loud at times! I thought it might be the egg song because she was doing it all morning, but then she kept doing it all into the afternoon as well, so I got a bit worried.

Are you sure she didn't lay an egg somewhere you missed

I looked all over the coop and run but maybe it’s buried in the coop somewhere; I’ll poke around with a stick while they are all outside.

 

[The Welch Chickens]

I think shes getting close to laying

Yeah I think so too… I just hope she isn’t stressed about our top hen dying.

 

[Debbie292d]

Yeah I think so too… I just hope she isn’t stressed about our top hen dying.

I doubt it's the latter unless she saw something dramatic. You never know with chickens though, but I doubt it has anything to do with the one dying.

 

[nuthatched]

Yeah I think so too… I just hope she isn’t stressed about our top hen dying.

I doubt it, since they saw her before you did. There could be some adjustment but they'll get over it.

 

[The Welch Chickens]

I doubt it's the latter unless she saw something dramatic. You never know with chickens though, but I doubt it has anything to do with the one dying.

I doubt it, since they saw her before you did. There could be some adjustment but they'll get over it.

It wasn't traumatizing, it's like she just went to sleep and didn't wake up

 

[The Welch Chickens]

Thank you both so much for your advice, @nuthatched and @Debbie292d, I really appreciate it.