New Layer isolating & inactive third time in a month - please advise thx!

[FennecMom]

Hello BYC - Please help me figure out how to help dear pet 5mo Maran hen named Fennec.

She started laying within the last month. Since yesterday (and for the 3rd time since going into lay), she has gotten puffed up, stopped eating, and removed herself away from the other girls.

The first time this happened, I separated her into a dog crate where she drank Nutri Drench water, spent the night, lay an egg, and went on her merry way the next morning.

The 2nd time, symptoms seemed to resolve during the course of the day as she went (slowly) about her business in the coop & run. (Not sure if she passed an egg that time.)

This time - 3rd time - started last night. She stayed on the roost before bedtime; she did not come down to eat with her flockmates. Same thing this morning in the coop/run. I've now put her into dog crate. She has sipped a bit of Nutri Drench water, avoided food, and is alert but resting/napping (does not appear stressed or in pain).

Question - What is this small round bulge?
I feel a jelly-like bulge on her lower right. I think it is below her crop (but I am new to this since April & learning poultry anatomy from books). Could it be an egg in transit?

Also - This morning when I pulled her off the roost to check her, there was a broken egg below her in the sand litter. Shell was very thin but "crispy" (not hard like normal). Could not tell about yolk & white because litter.

Her vent appears normal this morning. Pale pink color. Small smudge of poo at lower edge, but nothing extreme.

Since first time this happened, I have been crushing up Tums and putting in a separate water dish in the run. (The girls do not ever seem to touch their bowl of oyster shell.) Fennec drinks regularly from this calcium water, in addition to the regular water kept in run.

Do you think this is an egg problem or could it be something else? Should I soak her lower half in a warm bath?

It seems worrisome that this has happened 3x in a month. What can I do to help her now & also going forward as she continues her egg laying?

Thank you in advance for your help. I really value all the experienced wisdom of BYC!

 

[cherrynberry]

Hello BYC - Please help me figure out how to help dear pet 5mo Maran hen named Fennec.

She started laying within the last month. Since yesterday (and for the 3rd time since going into lay), she has gotten puffed up, stopped eating, and removed herself away from the other girls.

The first time this happened, I separated her into a dog crate where she drank Nutri Drench water, spent the night, lay an egg, and went on her merry way the next morning.

The 2nd time, symptoms seemed to resolve during the course of the day as she went (slowly) about her business in the coop & run. (Not sure if she passed an egg that time.)

This time - 3rd time - started last night. She stayed on the roost before bedtime; she did not come down to eat with her flockmates. Same thing this morning in the coop/run. I've now put her into dog crate. She has sipped a bit of Nutri Drench water, avoided food, and is alert but resting/napping (does not appear stressed or in pain).

Question - What is this small round bulge?
I feel a jelly-like bulge on her lower right. I think it is below her crop (but I am new to this since April & learning poultry anatomy from books). Could it be an egg in transit?

Also - This morning when I pulled her off the roost to check her, there was a broken egg below her in the sand litter. Shell was very thin but "crispy" (not hard like normal). Could not tell about yolk & white because litter.

Her vent appears normal this morning. Pale pink color. Small smudge of poo at lower edge, but nothing extreme.

Since first time this happened, I have been crushing up Tums and putting in a separate water dish in the run. (The girls do not ever seem to touch their bowl of oyster shell.) Fennec drinks regularly from this calcium water, in addition to the regular water kept in run.

Do you think this is an egg problem or could it be something else? Should I soak her lower half in a warm bath?

It seems worrisome that this has happened 3x in a month. What can I do to help her now & also going forward as she continues her egg laying?

Thank you in advance for your help. I really value all the experienced wisdom of BYC!

Did the egg match any of the ones in this article? https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/

@Wyorp Rock

 

[FennecMom]

Thank you, @cherrynberry for the egg article!

Yes - first time it happened she laid egg #8 - calcium coated.
2nd time - I don't know/not sure which egg in the box was hers
3rd time (today) - this afternoon she laid a #15 - it was a very soft shell. The egg looked like a limp, leaky water balloon.

The hens have a good diet from their feed. I'm hoping her problems are from being a new layer & it will resolve with time!

Thank you

 

[cherrynberry]

Thank you, @cherrynberry for the egg article!

Yes - first time it happened she laid egg #8 - calcium coated.
2nd time - I don't know/not sure which egg in the box was hers
3rd time (today) - this afternoon she laid a #15 - it was a very soft shell. The egg looked like a limp, leaky water balloon.

The hens have a good diet from their feed. I'm hoping her problems are from being a new layer & it will resolve with time!

Thank you

Yep, I got those with new layers as well. Its quite normal for new layers to have egg laying glitches. I was worried that your hen's egg has a corrugated shell. Soft eggs happen with new layers. Just make sure you have oyster shells on the side at all times. I keep it in a seperate container (do not mix with feed) and make sure it cannot get wet.

She sounds like she will be fine.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

5mo Maran hen

She started laying within the last month. Since yesterday (and for the 3rd time since going into lay), she has gotten puffed up, stopped eating, and removed herself away from the other girls.

Question - What is this small round bulge?
I feel a jelly-like bulge on her lower right. I think it is below her crop

This morning when I pulled her off the roost to check her, there was a broken egg below her in the sand litter.

Since first time this happened, I have been crushing up Tums and putting in a separate water dish in the run.

What do you feed your pullets including treats?

You must know how to work magic, I've never been able to get Tums to mix with water LOL

I would just give her Calcium orally once a day for 3-5 days (No more than 5!) to see if that help. Caltrate With D3 - 1 pill a day, pop it in her beak and let her swallow it.

If she's just come into lay, then this may just be a few glitches that she's having to work through.

I would cut out the calcium water. Fresh feed and fresh plain water is what they need. Oyster shell free choice. Limit treats.

 

[Lizzy733]

Definitely give her calcium in a direct dose (preferably with vitamin d to aid absorption)for now and make sure the whole flock has access to oyster shell or egg shell grit at all times.

Calcium aids muscle contractions, so if she is not getting enough or having trouble metabolizing it, it can lead to egg binding aside from fluctuations in shell quality.

It may only now be showing as she's run through her stores from childhood. If she continues to have trouble, even with a few days of direct dosing, she may have a defective shell gland or underlying metabolic issue.

If you do offer calcium and she doesn't really take to it, it may be time to review your feed - especially if it is mixed grain. Hens can and will be selective in what they eat and this can keep them from getting a balanced diet. The head hen may eat all their favorites and those lower in the pecking order miss out. Pellet and crumble feeds with calcium mixed in will ensure a rounded diet, even if it is less appealing to them.