I Think a New Laying Pullet Is Laying Almost Only Popped Eggs?

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

I log all my eggs and I can now tell almost all the eggs apart (despite them all being light brown due to different spots laying, time, egg songs, etc.) but I'm almost sure one of them has maybe given me at least 4 eggs and I thought she's been laying for almost a month now. I could be mistaken, and she isn't laying, because I've never caught her on a nest, and instead the few times I thought she laid, it was a double lay of someone else, but isn't this unlikely? Additionally, one of them stealth-drops eggs outside of the laying boxes, and I've been getting at least 3 popped eggs (also dropped outside of the laying boxes) every week. Sometimes I do not find a skin for the popped one, so there is a possibility of 6 at most a week. Similarly aged chickens (of the same type, hatched in the same week) have definitely been laying for 4 weeks. I know popped eggs aren't too concerning when they're still generally new, but should I be looking for symptoms of being egg bound for the one I believe is laying all these popped eggs? She's the lowest in the pecking order (has been before she was laying), so I'm wondering if there's tips to see if she's acting weird vs. falling behind on purpose so she doesn't get pecked. I know by the time if she starts penguin walking it'd be too late.

I should add that fowl pox is going through my flock right now, but nobody has wet pox or really concerning lesions, and as we enter colder weather I should be expecting less eggs. I can identify correctly 4 of my 7 laying chickens' eggs, if the 7 includes the one I think is laying the popped ones. So, I'm guessing between two eggs on some days unless I saw them on the nest. We've only had 7 laid eggs once. We've had 7 laid eggs 6 times if you count the popped remains I've found. I know not all popped eggs were from her, I've found probably 2 during the time I thought she was laying that could not have been hers unless she did a double.

All layers are pullets with at most 5 week age difference between the oldest to the youngest.

Should I be concerned? What can I look out for? I plan on getting a camera inside the coop soon, but haven't settled on one yet.

 

[MamaPoult]

Hi! Unfortunately I don't think I can help with this but my response will bump you to the top. I hope you find the help you are looking for, good luck!

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I log all my eggs and I can now tell almost all the eggs apart (despite them all being light brown due to different spots laying, time, egg songs, etc.) but I'm almost sure one of them has maybe given me at least 4 eggs and I thought she's been laying for almost a month now. I could be mistaken, and she isn't laying, because I've never caught her on a nest, and instead the few times I thought she laid, it was a double lay of someone else, but isn't this unlikely? Additionally, one of them stealth-drops eggs outside of the laying boxes, and I've been getting at least 3 popped eggs (also dropped outside of the laying boxes) every week. Sometimes I do not find a skin for the popped one, so there is a possibility of 6 at most a week. Similarly aged chickens (of the same type, hatched in the same week) have definitely been laying for 4 weeks. I know popped eggs aren't too concerning when they're still generally new, but should I be looking for symptoms of being egg bound for the one I believe is laying all these popped eggs? She's the lowest in the pecking order (has been before she was laying), so I'm wondering if there's tips to see if she's acting weird vs. falling behind on purpose so she doesn't get pecked. I know by the time if she starts penguin walking it'd be too late.

I should add that fowl pox is going through my flock right now, but nobody has wet pox or really concerning lesions, and as we enter colder weather I should be expecting less eggs. I can identify correctly 4 of my 7 laying chickens' eggs, if the 7 includes the one I think is laying the popped ones. So, I'm guessing between two eggs on some days unless I saw them on the nest. We've only had 7 laid eggs once. We've had 7 laid eggs 6 times if you count the popped remains I've found. I know not all popped eggs were from her, I've found probably 2 during the time I thought she was laying that could not have been hers unless she did a double.

All layers are pullets with at most 5 week age difference between the oldest to the youngest.

Should I be concerned? What can I look out for? I plan on getting a camera inside the coop soon, but haven't settled on one yet.

What's a popped egg? This is a new term for me. No-shells? Soft shells? Broken eggs?

 

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

What's a popped egg? This is a new term for me. No-shells? Soft shells? Broken eggs?

no shell but membrane. Membrane pops on the way out, so you get an empty membrane + yolk everywhere. Sometimes I'm finding yolk everywhere but no membrane so either someone ate it or it actually didn't form. Sometimes I get confused between soft shell and no shell so I just say popped.

 

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

I'd also like to add that calcium deficiency is very unlikely, she doesn't seem to be avoiding baked egg shells/oyster shells which they have in abundance. The eggs I thought were her had signs of too much calcium. But, this should be normal as they start laying because they intake a lot of calcium before lay.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

What breeds do you have, and how old are they? (I'm sorry, I should remember this, but my brain isn't retaining things well these days...)

If you knew which layer it was, it could maybe be explained away by two ova released in a day, one which has time to shell, and the other shoots through right afterwards and doesn't shell. That wouldn't be a calcium issue, but a timing issue instead. But when you don't know if the mystery layer is also laying normally, that's not very helpful.

It's possible that she isn't laying because she's stressed, although it's doubtful that she can do this deliberately. But stress can definitely mess up the reproductive cycle.

Can you separately house her for several days to see if she lays anything at all, and if so, what it looks like?

This is a toughie.

 

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

What breeds do you have, and how old are they? (I'm sorry, I should remember this, but my brain isn't retaining things well these days...)

If you knew which layer it was, it could maybe be explained away by two ova released in a day, one which has time to shell, and the other shoots through right afterwards and doesn't shell. That wouldn't be a calcium issue, but a timing issue instead. But when you don't know if the mystery layer is also laying normally, that's not very helpful.

It's possible that she isn't laying because she's stressed, although it's doubtful that she can do this deliberately. But stress can definitely mess up the reproductive cycle.

Can you separately house her for several days to see if she lays anything at all, and if so, what it looks like?

This is a toughie.

Barred rock and barred rock mixed with BYMs are my layers.
I could do this, good idea. I recently got all my dog cages back. I was avoiding to separate her incase the flock doesn't recognize her, because re-introducing her will start to become a pain. However, I'd rather figure out who my shell-less layer is. And if she is the shell-less one I guess I'll have to stick my finger up her bum to make sure she's not having yolk forming an abscess in her.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Barred rock and barred rock mixed with BYMs are my layers.
I could do this, good idea. I recently got all my dog cages back. I was avoiding to separate her incase the flock doesn't recognize her, because re-introducing her will start to become a pain. However, I'd rather figure out who my shell-less layer is. And if she is the shell-less one I guess I'll have to stick my finger up her bum to make sure she's not having yolk forming an abscess in her.

Yikes! Well, good luck with that...

Seriously, I hope it works out, and I understand your concern with re-introduction when she's already on the bottom of the order. I asked about breeds because I was concerned that maybe you had a production or production-mix hen with their scary repro problems.

 

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

Yikes! Well, good luck with that...

Seriously, I hope it works out, and I understand your concern with re-introduction when she's already on the bottom of the order. I asked about breeds because I was concerned that maybe you had a production or production-mix hen with their scary repro problems.

Yes, actually my BYMs are my best layers but one of them scared me today by almost prolapsing as she pooped and went into an egg-laying-like stance while standing. She was wider from the front view than from the side view! Luckily, it went back in without my intervention. Nobody else is having any issues, and the eggs my suspected chicken is laying are quite tiny but not fairy eggs (yolkless). The popped ones have a regular sized membrane than the small shelled eggs.

 

[NatJ]

I recently got all my dog cages back. I was avoiding to separate her incase the flock doesn't recognize her, because re-introducing her will start to become a pain.

Can you "separate" her where the rest of flock can still see her and interact with her? A dog crate inside the coop or inside the run might work well for that.

That way you can see what eggs she lays or does not lay, but she is not really away from the flock, so they will not forget her or fail to recognize her when you let her out again.