Hi, I have a RIR who has been acting a little off lately. She is just coming up on a year old next week. I don't know if she has ever laid an egg or not. She was not laying before winter, never over winter and since she has been back out we have suspected possibly a couple eggs from her. We have had a couple small eggs of a darker brown which are a little different than what we have seen from our other hens. So her behavior though has become rather lethargic? She will stand and close her eyes like she is going to sleep. We have found her in the yard, laying in the yard (not sprawled out at all) but looks like she's sleeping. SHe doesn't always stay with the other hens as she used to do. She was like this, then we found we had a case of mites in the coop and took care of that this past weekend. I have put apple cider vinegar in the water as I have heard that helps many things. She just seems sluggish and sleepy. Then she will be fine for a while. Than sluggish again. She does not run away when you approach, willingly picked up and no fighting. She does have a lot of poop off her back feathers, but her vent is clean. Her eyes look clear, nothing stands out, but her sleeping looking. Poop has not been followed well. We have found some that looks a little runny, but not much unlike we have seen over the year. No signs at all from the other girls... They run around and squawk, eyes open, etc. Any thoughts or suggestions of what to consider is appreciated. thanks
I had 2 of my reds do this lately, one in Feb. The first thing I did was to check if she was egg bound, which she wasn't. I isolated mine, in case she was infectious, kept her in the garage with a heat bulb to keep her warm, put vitamins in her water (she seemed to be drinking a lot), and fed her a lot of foods high in protein and vitamins A & K (mostly A), in addition to her layer ration. Thankfully, she was back to her old self in 3 days. I hope she recovers as quickly as mine if not sooner. Take care.
