Just layer Baby chick

[Peggsblueinc]

I have a hen that no what I do for her worming vitamins great food always has diarrhea. She won’t roost at night with the rest. She goes into a nest and sleeps there. Everyday I go and clean up after her. Yesterday I went in and there was what I thought to be an egg but was kinda yellowish. Had the shape of an egg but smaller. When inspecting it, it was a baby chick not formed all the way but definitely you could see the leg and wing and chest. No feathers just the chick. Never have seen or heard of anything like this happening. Today I went in and she had layed a soft shell egg. She hasn’t laid an egg in over a year. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing. Any suggestions.

 

[Aapomp831]

I have a hen that no what I do for her worming vitamins great food always has diarrhea. She won’t roost at night with the rest. She goes into a nest and sleeps there. Everyday I go and clean up after her. Yesterday I went in and there was what I thought to be an egg but was kinda yellowish. Had the shape of an egg but smaller. When inspecting it, it was a baby chick not formed all the way but definitely you could see the leg and wing and chest. No feathers just the chick. Never have seen or heard of anything like this happening. Today I went in and she had layed a soft shell egg. She hasn’t laid an egg in over a year. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing. Any suggestions.

That doesn’t make any sense unless you had a broody hen that was sitting on eggs. Eggs don’t develop into chicks without purposeful incubation - are you sure it wasn’t a lash egg? If you’re sure it was a chick, then it would have been an egg under someone who was sitting on it for at least a week or two.

 

[Ruby Rogue]

You must've gotten pics?

 

[Peggsblueinc]

No I didn’t get pic. I did put it in my poop pile. I’ll see if it’s still there. I know it doesn’t make any sense. Is it possible she by some chance she some how stored the egg inside herself and with the warmth of her body it started to develop and her body realized it wasn’t right and got rid of it. Like a miscarriage for lack of better word.

 

[rosemarythyme]

That's not how eggs work. The hen would be dead if she was eggbound (which is what holding in an egg would be).

Taking a wild guess, I'm wondering if it was a lash egg that happened to be shaped vaguely like a chick? Look up lash eggs and see if that's anything like what you saw. You didn't dissect the lump did you?

 

[Peggsblueinc]

No I didn’t. But I looked up lash egg. And tomorrow I’m going out and inspect it closer. It did look small like a lash egg. She has been sickly since last year. But still pecks around like the rest. Do you think she will make it. Or should I put her down. The rest of my girls are fine. And spend enough money on vet bills. Is there any antibiotics I can buy over the counter that might help.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'm not terribly familiar with lash eggs, other than recognizing them from photos on here. I believe they're caused by an infection in the reproductive tract, but I don't know if it can be treated.

Hopefully someone who is more familiar with it can advise you on what, if anything, can be done.

 

[PDXJULES]

Probiotics, even a little occaisional yogurt n food may help with bacterial balance for the diarrea. ACV and dish/rainbarrel cleaning too. Cecal poo is yukky and would continue now and then on a regular basis.

She might have split her oviduct inside and possibly had internal laying...and could have retained and started an incubation. if so, there would be bloating and other eggs inside to create health problems. I doubt a burst oviduct before the calcium depositing end can actually benefit the bird - unless shelless, and somehow her body can assimilate or pass the material - but my Wiley might be doing just that...since December somehow. Will know better this Spring.

Egg peritonitis or heart stopping from pressure would be likely outcomes., as ovulation continues. You'd see some weird ones if she's passing some outside from a damaged/partly healed uterus. I had such a thing happen - with my BJG Wiley - she had an egg song that recurred a lot during sick bay week, and began passing narrow calcium pelleted material, alternately from poo, and I've seen one shelless egg deposited on top of the pellets. As long as it doesn't make her sick or kill her, we are happy to keep her and if she becomes Broody we'll give her a chance to fulfill her Chickie-mom potential .Hoping she will be a gentle protector o the new batch of chicks i hatched 2 weeks ago- when they are ready to go outside. Will try to post a pic from a camera of the oviduct material she has passed occaisionally since being sick/eggbound late November first week of Dec.

Salpingitis is one of the reproductive tract diseases to research for lash egg pictures. There are also rubber eggs that are not pus masses...add calcium for those. Stop or reduce use of light if several eggs are coming at once on the poo board from young birds. You may find help under vent gleet also. Check all the basics and be sure she gets her fair share food of food/water if low on the pecking order. More than 1 feed station, and 1 always available helps this. If she's sickly and not able to resume normal laying in spring many farms would cull. Rehoming to someone with an older bird who needs a companion may also be an alternative. GL.