Hen too young to lay but won't leave nest.

[knabtastic]

I'm new to chickens and really don't know what their behavior means sometimes. I have a black sex-link pullet/hen that had always seemed kind of "slow", like missing a few marbles slow. Now she won't come down out of the nesting area of our coop. We let our chickens free range in the backyard during the day and our other black sex-link and leghorn chickens come down and out of the coop shortly after we open the door, but our "special" Emerald will stay up in the top with the nesting boxes all day and never come down. At first we thought she might be nervous about using the latter to come down, but for a while she was doing just fine and we thought she was over whatever phobia she may have had. Now we have to lift her down or leave the upper flaps open so she can jump down (which she hasn't been doing for the last few days). I thought at first that she might be egg bound with her first egg, but her comb isn't even red yet, so I don't think she is making eggs. None of our chickens have started laying yet, but we think they will in another month or so. I'll post some pics of the coop and of Emerald so you can see what I'm talking about (if I can figure out how).

Do I keep picking her up and putting her in the yard, or do I let her chill out in the coop as much as she wants? She doesn't eat or drink the whole time she's hanging out in the nestding box area, so I can't think that is good for her.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Does she seem in good health otherwise, her size and weight is good for her age? How does she act when she is out in the yard, like a normal chicken? By slow do you just mean since she was reluctant to use the ramp, or is there something else going on? Another question would be is she being bullied by other members of the flock?

 

[HEChicken]

It sounds like she may be the low hen in the pecking order and is intimidated by the other hens. Perhaps they bully her when she comes down so she finds it easier to stay up there out of their reach. Unfortunately, there isn't always much you can do to boost the confidence of a chicken, but time usually helps. I've found that pecking order has a great deal to do with age so as I add new birds to the flock, the status of the original birds increases. So, being the low hen in the pecking order isn't a permanent position.

I wouldn't force her to come down, as that may only exacerbate her feelings of intimidation. Rather, I would just let her be, but keep a close eye on her in case she is actually ill rather than just hiding out.

 

[knabtastic]

Yes, she is deffinatly the bottom of the rung in the pecking order. By slow I meant that she is the least intelligent chicken of the bunch, but she's also the most friendly. My concern with letting her be is that she will starve herself, or dehydrate herself since she doesn't eat or drink while she's up there. She seems healthy otherwise, I'm new to chickens so I'm not sure what she should weigh, but she's about the same size as the others. One thing is that the other black sex-links that we got at the same time as her have reddening combs and waddles, but her comb has always been a dark blackish color like her feathers and she doesn't really have any waddles. We always thought that maybe she was just much younger than the others.

 

[knabtastic]

Quick update: Emerald died this afternoon. Can't say that we aren't surprised, but it is still frustrating not to know what was wrong.

 

[heartsizedfarm]

I'm sorry you lost your special hen. That posture she was showing in the photo, slumped, lethargic, tail down, that is certainly a sign that something is wrong. If you see that again in any of your other hens get on a thread quick and see if you can get some useful advice. Check for lice, give a wormer, give some special food like scrambled eggs or yogurt, bring them in the house for extra warmth and observation. Sometimes it can be fixed. But don't beat yourself up about it. Most times it cannot be fixed.