- May 30, 2012
- 11
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I have a 3-4 year old Comet layer (see photo taken today) that is normally the queen of the flock of 6. I've had the flock for 1 year. I noticed a difference in behavior yesterday. Since it got in the 90's over the last 3 days she has been staying under the shaded coop (more so than the others). This am I picked her up and he struggled to get down and went back under the coop. She always has a large crop - I only got a second of a feel and it was large but hard for me to tell if squishy or hard. I don't see anything abnormal in the rear area - nothing irritated or sticking out.
Last night she refused to walk the plank to the upper level coop to roost at night or lay - which she always does. I put in a small pan of cool water and the drank w/no problem. She was in the yard this am but he is not seriously pecking he is nibbling the tops of grass and kinda slowly messing around. They stay in the same fenced area.
She did preen for about a minute today. She was under another shaded area that I pulled back and when she stood up a little egg squirt came out. She did poo just a little earlier - white w/may be a little green - not a lot.
She normally lays huge eggs each day or every other (from what I've read due to age - they have gotten bigger and bigger) and my gut feeling is that she is internally laying (which I know little about) or an egg is stuck. I'm not sure which way to address this. I have never done chicken ER!
One other thing I did - which I'm reading was wrong - was I crushed (I did not grind to a powder) their egg shells because their egg shells were feeling thin -- I also have been doing this for the last 3 days. Maybe 2-3 eggs crushed to as small as I could crush w/a spoon and mixed w/some flax seed and peaches (without skins or pits). I did not sterilize the eggs due to ignorance - I'm freaking out that either the bits are lodged or I poisoned my chicken. Everyone else seems great - one chicken is starting to molt - others act perfecly fine.
The upper back back part looks larger than the other chickens - but she has always been a very fluffy chicken.
I'm reading various treatments for this or that ---- molassas in water -------- or olive oil - but be careful to get over the hole in back of tongue ---------- or if egg clogged then handle carefully or an impacted egg might crack... I'm fearful of doing too much or giving too much.
I was going to cook 1 cup of dry instant oatmeal and lure her out but am wondering if u can add olive oil to oatmeal and feed to all chickens w/out harming them and how much to add - it would be safer than a novice sticking down throat! But will the oatmeal clog up more ?
Which end I should start with? Thank u.
Last night she refused to walk the plank to the upper level coop to roost at night or lay - which she always does. I put in a small pan of cool water and the drank w/no problem. She was in the yard this am but he is not seriously pecking he is nibbling the tops of grass and kinda slowly messing around. They stay in the same fenced area.
She did preen for about a minute today. She was under another shaded area that I pulled back and when she stood up a little egg squirt came out. She did poo just a little earlier - white w/may be a little green - not a lot.
She normally lays huge eggs each day or every other (from what I've read due to age - they have gotten bigger and bigger) and my gut feeling is that she is internally laying (which I know little about) or an egg is stuck. I'm not sure which way to address this. I have never done chicken ER!
One other thing I did - which I'm reading was wrong - was I crushed (I did not grind to a powder) their egg shells because their egg shells were feeling thin -- I also have been doing this for the last 3 days. Maybe 2-3 eggs crushed to as small as I could crush w/a spoon and mixed w/some flax seed and peaches (without skins or pits). I did not sterilize the eggs due to ignorance - I'm freaking out that either the bits are lodged or I poisoned my chicken. Everyone else seems great - one chicken is starting to molt - others act perfecly fine.
The upper back back part looks larger than the other chickens - but she has always been a very fluffy chicken.
I'm reading various treatments for this or that ---- molassas in water -------- or olive oil - but be careful to get over the hole in back of tongue ---------- or if egg clogged then handle carefully or an impacted egg might crack... I'm fearful of doing too much or giving too much.
I was going to cook 1 cup of dry instant oatmeal and lure her out but am wondering if u can add olive oil to oatmeal and feed to all chickens w/out harming them and how much to add - it would be safer than a novice sticking down throat! But will the oatmeal clog up more ?
Which end I should start with? Thank u.
