hellotrixie
Songster
Sorry in advance for such a long post, but I wanted to be thorough. I'm new to posting here on BYC, but I've been using the forums for research for a while now.
My 9 month old hen Frenchie (I think a French Marans - anybody have thoughts?) has not been holding her tail up since Sunday. She isn't pointing it down, or pointing her vent down. It is more like she's just holding her tail straight out instead of up. She normally holds her tail much higher. I'm attaching a pic to show what she's doing now.
Other than the tail thing, she's behaving completely normally. I've spent a bunch of time observing her for signs of illness but I don't see anything. She is eating and drinking, with an empty crop in the morning and a quite full crop at night. I've observed her eating and drinking in the coop, and she is also very interested, as usual, in foraging in the yard. I normally let them out to free range around 4 hours before dark. She stays out with the rest of the girls the entire time, and is able to run/jump/fly. She does not seem lame in any way.
I think she is the alpha hen, and is usually first to eat, drink, enter/exit the coop etc. She's not getting picked on, and she's still bossing the others around at the feeder and at roosting time. When I visit the coop to do chores, she is very vocal and yells to be let out. She'll often fly at the door as you open it, a habit she has kept up despite her tail being droopy.
I don't think she's egg bound because she's laying regularly. She took today off, but she laid three days in a row before that. As I understand it, it is pretty normal for them to slack off laying some in the winter. I do have a light on in my coop from 7-9am and then again from 4-7pm. They leave the coop around 7:30am, and they don't go in until dark so they aren't really getting that much supplemental light.
I have not been weighing her regularly because all my hens are difficult to catch/handle (despite daily handling from the time they were day old chicks until they went out into their coop). She doesn't feel thin to me though. She's always been weighty, and comparable to my Black Sex Link. This is still the case.
Her poops (and the poops of my entire flock) are normal, as compared to the poop pics here: Poo - The Chicken Keeper's Guide. I've been checking the droppings board in their coop daily. The coop is about 6' x 6' and I use pine shavings for bedding. Including the space under the coop, they have about 100 sqft. of run space. As mentioned, they also get free range time almost daily.
I've given her a physical exam as best as I know how. I've felt her all over and compared her body to my Black Sex Link. The only thing I noticed is that her tail feels "looser" than my BSL. When I move Bertha's tail (the BSL) I feel what I can best describe as "resistance" as the chicken resists my manipulation. Frenchie's tail does not have much "resistance" at all (although it has increased a bit over the last couple days), but in other ways feels normal compared to my BSL. I don't really think the bone is broken or anything like that. There are no other signs of injury or illness. Her abdomen is soft and pliable. Her comb/wattles are red and her eyes are bright. She is feisty as usual.
My other three girls all seem normal, with upright tails and regular habits. I do have an Easter Egger who seems to be about to come in to lay. Her pelvic bones had been really tight until last weekend, and she started squatting early this week. My Golden Comet has been picking on this hen, and Frenchie tends to "mediate". I'm wondering if she could have been injured in some kind of squabble?
I suspect a physical injury (soft tissue maybe?) more than an illness. I have not separated her because she seems to be doing fine despite whatever is going on with her tail, and she doesn't like to be separated from my other hens. My plan is to continue to monitor her at home. I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions about what might be causing her to keep her tail low, and what to continue to look out for. My research online has suggested everything from a bad mood, to shock, to egg peritonitis and a whole host of other serious ailments.
Thanks and Happy Holidays!
My 9 month old hen Frenchie (I think a French Marans - anybody have thoughts?) has not been holding her tail up since Sunday. She isn't pointing it down, or pointing her vent down. It is more like she's just holding her tail straight out instead of up. She normally holds her tail much higher. I'm attaching a pic to show what she's doing now.
Other than the tail thing, she's behaving completely normally. I've spent a bunch of time observing her for signs of illness but I don't see anything. She is eating and drinking, with an empty crop in the morning and a quite full crop at night. I've observed her eating and drinking in the coop, and she is also very interested, as usual, in foraging in the yard. I normally let them out to free range around 4 hours before dark. She stays out with the rest of the girls the entire time, and is able to run/jump/fly. She does not seem lame in any way.
I think she is the alpha hen, and is usually first to eat, drink, enter/exit the coop etc. She's not getting picked on, and she's still bossing the others around at the feeder and at roosting time. When I visit the coop to do chores, she is very vocal and yells to be let out. She'll often fly at the door as you open it, a habit she has kept up despite her tail being droopy.
I don't think she's egg bound because she's laying regularly. She took today off, but she laid three days in a row before that. As I understand it, it is pretty normal for them to slack off laying some in the winter. I do have a light on in my coop from 7-9am and then again from 4-7pm. They leave the coop around 7:30am, and they don't go in until dark so they aren't really getting that much supplemental light.
I have not been weighing her regularly because all my hens are difficult to catch/handle (despite daily handling from the time they were day old chicks until they went out into their coop). She doesn't feel thin to me though. She's always been weighty, and comparable to my Black Sex Link. This is still the case.
Her poops (and the poops of my entire flock) are normal, as compared to the poop pics here: Poo - The Chicken Keeper's Guide. I've been checking the droppings board in their coop daily. The coop is about 6' x 6' and I use pine shavings for bedding. Including the space under the coop, they have about 100 sqft. of run space. As mentioned, they also get free range time almost daily.
I've given her a physical exam as best as I know how. I've felt her all over and compared her body to my Black Sex Link. The only thing I noticed is that her tail feels "looser" than my BSL. When I move Bertha's tail (the BSL) I feel what I can best describe as "resistance" as the chicken resists my manipulation. Frenchie's tail does not have much "resistance" at all (although it has increased a bit over the last couple days), but in other ways feels normal compared to my BSL. I don't really think the bone is broken or anything like that. There are no other signs of injury or illness. Her abdomen is soft and pliable. Her comb/wattles are red and her eyes are bright. She is feisty as usual.
My other three girls all seem normal, with upright tails and regular habits. I do have an Easter Egger who seems to be about to come in to lay. Her pelvic bones had been really tight until last weekend, and she started squatting early this week. My Golden Comet has been picking on this hen, and Frenchie tends to "mediate". I'm wondering if she could have been injured in some kind of squabble?
I suspect a physical injury (soft tissue maybe?) more than an illness. I have not separated her because she seems to be doing fine despite whatever is going on with her tail, and she doesn't like to be separated from my other hens. My plan is to continue to monitor her at home. I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions about what might be causing her to keep her tail low, and what to continue to look out for. My research online has suggested everything from a bad mood, to shock, to egg peritonitis and a whole host of other serious ailments.
Thanks and Happy Holidays!
She's loud and bossy and lays very large pale brown eggs. This is the first time I've notice anything off with her. I will definitely check her for signs of molt.
