Moody, Easter Egger pullet - can they be like teenage girls?

[FiddleChics]

I have 10- eighteen week old pullets. My 2 Red Stars, and 1 Australorp have already started laying. (yippee!!!) The whole flock is mixed breed, but they're happy, healthy & are getting budding, vibrant combs... and some have wattles too. They all get along really well, and are a happy little flock. (2 Red Stars; 2 Australorps; 2 Easter Eggers, 2 Buff Orpingtons, and 2 Blue Easter Eggers.... then 2 Red Star hens that are starting their 2nd summer).

Upon a late night check which I always do before I go to sleep, I opened the coop door & noticed 1 of my Easter Eggers "Sophie"... went scurrying from a nesting box, and jumped back up onto the roost with the other girls- in quite a flurry - which caught my attention for sure! She hasn't laid yet... but she was definitely checking out the nesting box and seemed to feel quite flustered that I caught her at it! But she settled onto the roost with everyone, with no problem.

But today, "Sophie" the Easter Egger - seems out of sorts. She's sitting off by herself and moody. When I went over to her - both times, she jumped up and strutted away, running up to the other pullets... and I saw no problem with her... but on a second trip out to the run... there she was... sitting off by herself again, and she didn't come running over to me, with the rest of the girls - which they always do.

As per the advice of BYC friends in another post... beginning this week, I moved the whole flock over to Layer Feed, from mixed flock feed... So that everyone gets the added calcium now, for their first eggs... and had calcium available to help themselves as well.

She's not being picked on, there's no sign of lice, mites or bites. Her droppings are regular, and she has generally been one of the more assertive pullets in this group of 10, because she's larger, and well developed. Her little comb looks red as always, and she's walking, eating & drinking. Now, maybe it's me, and I'm applying human characteristics to my pullets, but... as the mom of 2 daughters... "Sophie's" behavior - struck a memory chord with me. I know all too well, the moody, PMS days - associated with teenage girls!

Sooooo.... though I know young pullets are all drama, drama, drama... and they're often viewed as awkward teenagers.... this made me start to think. Soooo... My question is: Can some adolescent hens... also act a bit moody when their hormones start changing them into adulthood? Is it possible, that "Sophie" can feel these strange, new changes going on inside her - with her eminent egg laying days just weeks away? Is it possible she's acting this way because she's confused about these feelings? Or she's not quite sure what's going on with her - but knows somethings happening? Am I wrong in attaching human characteristics to this? Is there something else it could be?

 

[sylviethecochin]

The hormone change definitely affects them, but I don't think they're confused about it (chickens have never struck me as being particularly prone to self-examination) just angry for no particular reason.

EDT: She'll probably be rather confused the first time an egg comes out (the only time I saw a pullet lay her first egg, she seemed very surprised) but I don't think they wonder why they're doing stuff like setting in the nesting boxes, if that makes sense. They feel like doing it, so they do it.

 

[FiddleChics]

The hormone change definitely affects them, but I don't think they're confused about it (chickens have never struck me as being particularly prone to self-examination) just angry for no particular reason.

EDT: She'll probably be rather confused the first time an egg comes out (the only time I saw a pullet lay her first egg, she seemed very surprised) but I don't think they wonder why they're doing stuff like setting in the nesting boxes, if that makes sense. They feel like doing it, so they do it.

lol Thank you @sylviethecochin for your input... And you're probably right, I just think of them as people... and do worry! Your words makes sense. I hope this is all it is with her. She wasn't interested in visiting tonight... so I'm a bit more worried.... Tonight, when it's dark and they're all in the coop, I'm going to go check her out again... maybe I'll figure something out. I don't know any 'real life' chicken people - so BYC is all I have... It can be stressful... I do love them so.

 

[FiddleChics]

Discovered this morning - a broken, soft shell egg, under where "Sophie"' was sitting on the roost last night... so I guess that was it... I'm relieved! Solved!

 

[aart]

Hormonal? Yes.
Like teenaged girls? Not even close.

New layers can be quite goofy acting, they don't know what they are doing at first and can be confused and anxious, it can take up to a month or so before they get it all figured out. Putting some fake eggs or golf balls in the nest might help show them where to lay. They may scratch around in the nests for weeks before laying, spreading the bedding everywhere. They will scratch around a bit less in nest as they get used to the routine. Meanwhile, eggs everywhere, some of them can be rather funky looking, soft or thin shelled, huge double yolked eggs.

Oh, and...a softshell egg can make them behave oddly, harder to move down the tract without the hard surface for the contractions to push against.
Had bird once standing mostly stock still staring off into the distance for a good hour or so.....I kept checking on her, and eventually she was off chickening and I found the softshell where she had been standing.

 

[FiddleChics]

Hormonal? Yes.
Like teenaged girls? Not even close.

New layers can be quite goofy acting, they don't know what they are doing at first and can be confused and anxious, it can take up to a month or so before they get it all figured out. Putting some fake eggs or golf balls in the nest might help show them where to lay. They may scratch around in the nests for weeks before laying, spreading the bedding everywhere. They will scratch around a bit less in nest as they get used to the routine. Meanwhile, eggs everywhere, some of them can be rather funky looking, soft or thin shelled, huge double yolked eggs.

Oh, and...a softshell egg can make them behave oddly, harder to move down the tract without the hard surface for the contractions to push against.
Had bird once standing mostly stock still staring off into the distance for a good hour or so.....I kept checking on her, and eventually she was off chickening and I found the softshell where she had been standing.

Hahah! Thanks for the input @aart Yes, I saw a soft shell beneath her roosting spot this morning... and a 2nd, odd shaped, smaller "egg-ish thing" next to that - as well.. so I guess 2 of them are starting to get their motors going! This morning, she seems ok... better than yesterday for sure, eating, drinking and doing her normal, chickeny stuff with the rest of the goofy girls! Never had Easter Eggers before... the Red stars just do their thing - without much to-do about it... I just was not sure what that was!

 

[aart]

and a 2nd, odd shaped, smaller "egg-ish thing" next to that

What did that look like....pics would be good.

 

[FiddleChics]

What did that look like....pics would be good.

I didn't take a picture of it... that would have been a smart move. I went out to the compost to try & find it - unsuccessfully. This was a tiny, mis-shaped, yellow, gelatnous blob, in plenty of clear mucus. It was hanging on the fabric wire - below the roosting bars, where the droppings fall through to the tray below (for easy cleaning). There was no soft shell or shell material - and it didn't look like an internal egg, or cooked egg. It was slimy and small... but definitely not a dropping. Unfortunately, I cna't think of WHO was sitting next to "Sophie" to pin point which pullet it was. I"m watching them all though now, for any sign. Everyone's eating, drinking, scratching, and pooping quite nicely... so all seems well... but I'm still watching.

 

[aart]

I didn't take a picture of it... that would have been a smart move.

Next time.