I have a polish crested hen who is about 7 months old and just started laying. I have 5 eggs from her, one a day, until yesterday. She was acting very off when I got home from work and was just resting in her nesting box. I thought that she may be about to lay so I just left her in peace. Several hours later she emerged from the coop actung extra odd. She was walking low to the ground, head low, tail feathers pointed down, not really moving. She is still acting like this. I checked her vent and pulled what looked like a shell less egg mostly laid out the rest of the way and gave her a hot bath, some ground up tums and some meal worms. I checked to see if I could feel a soft egg which I couldn't. I held her until she dried and then moved her back to the coop. Our other two chickens are extremely worried about her and seem to be hovering around her. One even went into the nesting box and laid down next to her. My fiancé went to our local feed store and picked up some layer pellet, oyster shell, electrolytes and antibiotics. They said to just put it in her water but I'm not sure she is drinking. I also gave her another hot bath and she did poop really watery poop. Is there anything else I need to do?!?! Is there something I did to cause this? I don't think she has mites or lice, I treat their coop and her feathers look great. I could really use some advice! She's my favorite
There are several things that could be going on. Since she did lay a shelless egg, hopefully this is just a fluke and she will recover. Many pullets will lay an occasional one, especially when they just started laying. I'd put a Tums in her very own water, once, for a calcium boost. I might move her to a quiet, darkened place (your bathroom) for a day or two to let her recuperate -- though they don't like being removed from the flock. With luck, this was just an isolated incident and she will develop a regular laying pattern after a few weeks of laying. It does seem to take time, maybe a month or so, for them to adjust to the onset of egg laying.
