My chicken is skinny, lethargic, and is laying bloody eggs. Any advice?

[LhickenChicken]

Hi, my chicken, Lhicken, is having some issues. She is very skinny and lethargic, has a swollen vent, and her feathers look like junk. She's also not preening herself.
Lhicken's also laying huge eggs that have blood on them. (They're not lash eggs.) She's not herself. She was usually top of the pecking order but now she's near the bottom. I isolated her with two of her friends, and they're not bullying her. I've tried to give her arnica but she won't accept it. Any ideas on what this is and what to do?

 

[MysteryChicken]

Can you get pictures of the bird in question, including her vent, & eggs?

Also, list what she gets as a main diet including treats, & how often?

 

[LhickenChicken]

I can't get pictures. As a layer, we have a mix for layer feed of barley, peas, flax, oats, and alfalfa. She also gets feed-grade lime, diatomaceous earth, and sunflower seeds.
As for treats, she gets kitchen scraps and bugs when she can get them.

 

[nuthatched]

I can't get pictures. As a layer, we have a mix for layer feed of barley, peas, flax, oats, and alfalfa. She also gets feed-grade lime, diatomaceous earth, and sunflower seeds.
As for treats, she gets kitchen scraps and bugs when she can get them.

I'm sorry to say but that's a very poor diet. It's high in carbs and fat and low in nutrition.
dried legumes can be toxic to chickens, flax, and sunflower seeds are high in fat, oats cause sticky poops and constipation. There's very little protein in there and chickens desperately need protein for eggs, skin, tissue, and feathers, if the minimal protein she's getting is going to eggs, it's not going to her body. That's why she looks moth-eaten, she has no protein the rebuild her body and feathers. Lime is also caustic to skin, organs, and the respiratory tract, and it may be causing some of the issues. De can cause respiratory problems in you as well as your birds so please wear a mask when you're around it.
If you want to mix your own feed, that's great and it can be done but that recipe is not beneficial to your birds in the slightest.
I recommend you switch to a high protein feed 18%-20%, ASAP and feed it until you figure out how you want to proceed.
Lack of proper nutrition causes the others to pick her, she's the low hen, she goes first.

 

[Razzlefrazzle]

How old is she? Are the eggs double yolkers or just large?

I agree a change of diet might help. I'd also try to get her to stop laying by keeping her in the dark 12+ hours a day to give her a chance to rest and recover.

 

[LhickenChicken]

Well, I decided to give an extra fat diet because of the wintertime. This is my first year owning chickens, so I'm not quite sure. Thanks for your help

 

[LhickenChicken]

Eggs are single-yolkers. She's about a year old. What do you suggest feeding her so that she can get protein and fat so she and the rest of the flock can be healthier? Because I didn't know that they didn't get enough protein. They never had this problem in summertime!

 

[LhickenChicken]

Also, she didn't lay today, only yesterday

 

[nuthatched]

Well, I decided to give an extra fat diet because of the wintertime. This is my first year owning chickens, so I'm not quite sure. Thanks for your help

It's a good idea in theory, but fat doesn't build up on a chicken so much on the outside, like us, it builds up in her body cavity. Around her heart, liver, and organs, too much and the organs fail. It doesn't keep them warmer, exercise, a draft-free coop, and good feathers help that.

 

[LhickenChicken]

It's a good idea in theory, but fat doesn't build up on a chicken so much on the outside, like us, it builds up in her body cavity. Around her heart, liver, and organs, too much and the organs fail. It doesn't keep them warmer, exercise, a draft-free coop, and good feathers help that.

Oops. I'll try less fat and more protein, but what do you give her for more protein?