Is it egg bound or sterile?

[peanutgallery]

Hello again y'all.

As I stated in my newbie introduction (posted just a few minutes ago) we have 4 Rhode Island Reds and 4 white hens that I do not at this time know the breed. We started getting eggs in September this year.

We every day were getting four of each. Four brown eggs and four white eggs. One day we got four brown eggs, three white eggs and one white "robin egg". No lie. It was so so small it wasn't bigger than an inch diameter. I just searched my picture library as I thought for sure I had taken a photo but could not find it. So sorry too. I believe it was October when this happened. Oh I just remembered, but don't know if it was the day before or a couple days before the robin egg that we had gotten one really huge white egg.

Since then we are getting four brown eggs and three white eggs. I assume the "robin" egg layer isn't laying anymore. I do not know what is wrong or if anything is wrong. Could it be she is now sterile? I can only assume this since we only get three white eggs now. Its possible from your forums that she is egg bound...but would the robin egg have been layed if she is? I don't quite understand how to tell.

Every day when we go out to the coop and yard...there is NOT a hen acting funny. They are all running around, pecking, clucking etc. No one is "brooding" I think is the word for sitting on an imaginary nest. There does not appear to be anything abnormal. Remember now though, we are new at this and certainly may be over looking some symptom or such. My main concern is that I have an ill hen and don't even know it.

We feed them crumbles, water and scratch every day. The day I have kitchen scraps (my schedule doesn't always allow this) I do not give them scratch. They have eaten the greens from the yard and what they could reach outside the yard. When we are working out there, we let them out of the fence to roam free around the area we are in. Because we have woods and lovely predators we don't leave them out of their yard when we leave the area for their own protection.

The other question I posted isn't an emergency, disease or injury....but want to know how to make the hens not run from human touch as I stated in my intro. I think its their nature to run from you, but they do come running when they see or hear us near.

Any advice or info on what to look for will be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance.

 

[justbugged]

Sterile is not part of why the hen isn't laying. If she had been laying then it highly unlikely that she has suddenly become sterile. There are a number of other reasons that she may be taking a break from laying. I am not sure where you are. but at this point of the year most of the US no longer has enough daylight for hens to continue to lay. She could also be heading into a molt. those are a couple of ideas as to what could going on. It is also possible that she may egg bound. From what little I have read there isn't much you can do about it if she is. I hope somebody else will have more info on that for you.

As for making the hens more friendly, it's all about food and time with hens. Offer the them treats so that they have to take it from you hands. It will take time to make them friendlier. But then some hens will never warm up to you, and others decide that they want to hang out with you.

 

[txcarl1258]

It is possible that you "robin" egg layer is laying inconsistently. She may be laying on a day the other hens are taking a break. If she is in fact egg bound she should be acting sick and probably wouldn't live more than a few days. Again like justbugged said she may be molting or there isn't enough day light for them to lay consistently.

 

[peanutgallery]

Thank you so much for your info! Txcarl this happened about a month ago and she is still here! Thank Goodness. I assume she is okay since you said she would be sick. It very well could be that she started decreasing her lay before the weather got cold. I will just keep on eye on all our white hens through the rest of the fall and winter. It will be interesting to see if we start getting the "extra" egg again in the spring. Guess that little "robin" egg was the last she had before her decreasing cycle.

I will start working at your suggestion justbugged about going out to the "yard" and letting them take the snacks out of my hand. If this works, I know it will take time, then I can slowly take one grandchild at a time to teach them also.

It really is fun having the ladies...but it's nothing like what I know from having a dog! LOL