Our 3rd egg-bound hen

[Bird Worrier]

Does anyone have any ideas for preventing hens from becoming egg-bound? It's been a while since we've had to deal with this but another one of our birds is sadly egg-bound. Thank you.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Are these young hens? What breed? Was there anything wrong with the egg itself? And what and how are you feeding them?

Fragile eggshells can be harder for a hen to pass than good, hard ones. If that's the case, you might only have to supplement calcium and vitamin D.

Overeating can lead to obesity, which makes eggs harder to pass. Overeating can also give the hen a lot of nutrients she doesn't need. Giving those nutrients to the egg would make it more likely to ensure a healthy chick, so her system might just do that, without any consideration of how hard it might be to pass that egg. In this case, limiting feed might be the solution.

Young hens can just have problems as their bodies adjust, and some of the more productive cross-bred brown egg-layers (Read: Red Sexlinks) can jump into laying a little earlier than their bodies are prepared for. I try to avoid those birds.

And a common statement (can't find any scientific studies to back it up, but it makes a great deal of sense) is that a light schedule that isn't constant can mess with their systems too. So if you're providing supplemental lighting for egg production during winter, try and make sure it's as regular as possible.

 

[SimplyLivinthatFarmLife]

Oh no...sorry to hear this. Hope you can figure out what is causing this. I had a girl that was like that about a week ago. I brought her in and gave her a warm epsom salt bath and she was able to lay her egg. Kept her in for a few days before returning her to the coop. She's been fine since that time. Good luck!

 

[Bird Worrier]

Information --this is a 4 year old hen who eats organic grains and free-ranges. She is one of those Sussex-looking Easter-eggers. Another of her breed became egg-bound and died. They have plenty of water available but we don't give them calcium supplements during the winter. Would any other information be helpful?

 

[micstrachan]

They need free choice access to oyster shell all the time.

I would give this girl a calcium citrate plus D3 tablet and provide some moist heat, like a dampened towel over a heating pad for her to sit on. With the calcium to help with muscle contractions, warmth for comfort & relaxation, and a calm environment, she might pass the egg on her own.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

I gave mine calcium year round. Sure dont hurt anything. I would crush a tums in some scrambled eggs for her and lube her vent with some Vaseline and If she feels ok the warm epsom salt soak is a good idea .

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Hello @Bird Worrier - when you say you don't provide calcium supplements, do you mean you don't offer oyster shell in a separate side dish? When you had this problem in the past, was it also during the winter?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

If they have free access to oyster shell all the time, they will take what they need when they need it. This will probably solve your problem. You won't think they are eating it - it takes very little! - but most likely they will get what they need.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I've only had pullets become egg bound so I may not be of any help.

 

[Bird Worrier]

Does anyone have any ideas for preventing hens from becoming egg-bound? It's been a while since we've had to deal with this but another one of our birds is sadly egg-bound. Thank you.