lorric372
In the Brooder
Hi all,
This thread will be as random as the title! My around-a-year-old Welsummer was adopted as part of my original three in April. She was always the bottom of the flock and was also last to lay, however is a happy little soul normally although very flighty and won't be held.
About 2.5 months ago she got a bad attack of Bumblefoot, that took a good 6 weeks of treatment that included force feeding her antibiotics. Not a nice experience for anyone but she doesn't like to be held so we have to grab her and then put the syringe in her mouth. Since then she's been more flighty (wont take food from me, runs away when I come in to the run etc). That's fine, as long as she is happy!
However she has not laid an egg for us since she finished the antibiotics, which has been about a month to six weeks now. She has since also started moulting, so I assumed the lack of eggs was down to that, but she has also now become a bit of a d*ck. I caught her yesterday fighting, albeit short lived, with one of my 6 month olds (fingers crossed for eggs soon!) and today shes been pecking my actual Top Dog on the head, although doesn't appear to have drawn blood (I'm at work and was using cameras to check on them - don't judge its a slow day today!).
Is onset of aggression, flightiness, and lack of eggs all normal for going in to a moult, and is it normal for this to kick in a good month before the moult? Or is she moulting and also decided she's done being bottom hen? Has the added stresses of losing the original head hen in July, Bumblefoot, new hens, and now a moult pushed her over the edge? Is she just a nobhead?
We've had a lot of bad luck with illness and also lost two hens over the last few months so I'm a bit fidgety lately!
TL;DR: is my chicken being a sod to other chickens and not laying eggs all down to moulting?
This thread will be as random as the title! My around-a-year-old Welsummer was adopted as part of my original three in April. She was always the bottom of the flock and was also last to lay, however is a happy little soul normally although very flighty and won't be held.
About 2.5 months ago she got a bad attack of Bumblefoot, that took a good 6 weeks of treatment that included force feeding her antibiotics. Not a nice experience for anyone but she doesn't like to be held so we have to grab her and then put the syringe in her mouth. Since then she's been more flighty (wont take food from me, runs away when I come in to the run etc). That's fine, as long as she is happy!
However she has not laid an egg for us since she finished the antibiotics, which has been about a month to six weeks now. She has since also started moulting, so I assumed the lack of eggs was down to that, but she has also now become a bit of a d*ck. I caught her yesterday fighting, albeit short lived, with one of my 6 month olds (fingers crossed for eggs soon!) and today shes been pecking my actual Top Dog on the head, although doesn't appear to have drawn blood (I'm at work and was using cameras to check on them - don't judge its a slow day today!).
Is onset of aggression, flightiness, and lack of eggs all normal for going in to a moult, and is it normal for this to kick in a good month before the moult? Or is she moulting and also decided she's done being bottom hen? Has the added stresses of losing the original head hen in July, Bumblefoot, new hens, and now a moult pushed her over the edge? Is she just a nobhead?
We've had a lot of bad luck with illness and also lost two hens over the last few months so I'm a bit fidgety lately!
TL;DR: is my chicken being a sod to other chickens and not laying eggs all down to moulting?
