Laying Down? Lazy or Something Else?

[6eight]

We have (3) one year old Australorps that roam the backyard. One is currently tied up (not literally) with 9 babies she hatched a few weeks ago. I have noticed that one of the other hens has starting laying down alot and my daughter has nicknamed her "lazy pants". At first I just thought it was the normal progression of aging as I sit down alot more than I used to

. Recently I have also noticed that when she is walking around she often keeps her tail feather down. When she pecks at the ground she does the same thing. The other one has her tail "loud and proud" so I am not sure if I am dealing with an ailing hen or just a lazy one.

There are no other signs that I have noticed, but I wanted to check here for some advice! She is still laying and still comes running over when I am heading to the shed where their food is.

Thanks,
K

 

[PSJ]

hmmmmm..... the fact that she is still eating and drinking is a good sign. I would defintely keep an eye om her to make sure there are no other changes tho.

 

[BunkyB]

If you are talking about laying on the side lets say with a wing stretched out it sounds like she is soaking up the sunlight like birds do when they are dust bathing. If she is still running around and jumps to meet you with feed coming her way are you sure she is sick? Does she do this all the time or just outside during free ranging?

The tail feathers pointing down makes me think. Does she do that all the time or just sometimes? LOL I am asking more questions than you... If you are familiar with the birds dust bathing habits from spending time with them does the habit look familiar? My concern is the down tail you mentioned... Steve

 

[6eight]

They dust bath in a certain part of the hard and it is a blast watching them rolling around. She lays down (not on her side) free ranging. Typically she looks like she is just taking a break, but a lot of them. She will also continue to peck and eat while she sits. Once they decide to move to another part of the yard she gets up walks over as if everything is fine. When she knows they are going to stay in one place for a while she sits back down.

As for her tail she doesn't do it all the time. She will walk around with it up or down. The same when she sits. That is the part that has been so confusing. I have read some bad things about arching backs, but so far it hasn't been consistent. She still eats and lays, but if this is an early sign I hope to catch whatever it gets worse.