Put two down today

[Member 671655]

We put two chickens in freezer camp today that were non laying troublemakers and today our yard is at peace. The question is, one had 4 yolks in her no egg just yolks? And the other one had two yolks and an egg whole in her. Does that mean they were egg bound or just old and their egg makers were pretty much broken? Maybe that’s what made them hormonal and mean? They didn’t respond to correction and were trying to kill the other hens and eating their eggs .

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Depends where the yolks were. In the reproductive tract where they belong or in the abdomen where they don't. Generally if they had yolks in the reproductive tract they were laying. In the abdomen, they were internally laying which is often deadly due to the infection they cause.

Aggression can be from many things. If they were also eating eggs they may have had nutritional deficiencies. Not sure what you are feeding or what type of hens, but they might have needed more protein or calcium.

 

[NatJ]

We put two chickens in freezer camp today that were non laying troublemakers and today our yard is at peace. The question is, one had 4 yolks in her no egg just yolks? And the other one had two yolks and an egg whole in her. Does that mean they were egg bound or just old and their egg makers were pretty much broken? Maybe that’s what made them hormonal and mean? They didn’t respond to correction and were trying to kill the other hens and eating their eggs .

Have you butchered laying hens before? If you butcher a laying hen a few hours before she would lay her egg, you find a whole egg inside her, almost ready to come out. You also find a cluster of egg yolks inside, up near the middle of her backbone. The yolks are typically a variety of sizes: a full-sized one (for tomorrow's egg), one that's almost full size (for the next day's egg), one that's a little smaller yet (for the day after that), and so forth. There are also lots of tiny ones (pinhead size) that will not be ready anytime soon.

Since you mention a specific number of yolks, rather than the whole set of graduated sizes, I am guessing there was something odd happening. Maybe there were going to lay just a few eggs and then stop again?

I don't know if hormones were related to their behavior or not, but I'm glad your yard is at peace now

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I don't know if hormones were related to their behavior or not, but I'm glad your yard is at peace now

Agree 100%

 

[Member 671655]

Depends where the yolks were. In the reproductive tract where they belong or in the abdomen where they don't. Generally if they had yolks in the reproductive tract they were laying. In the abdomen, they were internally laying which is often deadly due to the infection they cause.

Aggression can be from many things. If they were also eating eggs they may have had nutritional deficiencies. Not sure what you are feeding or what type of hens, but they might have needed more protein or calcium.

No they were not even eating the feed they were almost exclusively eating each others feathers. Layer feed unmedicated and always no. Gmo stuff either and I give my girls calcium and fish oil too

 

[Member 671655]

Depends where the yolks were. In the reproductive tract where they belong or in the abdomen where they don't. Generally if they had yolks in the reproductive tract they were laying. In the abdomen, they were internally laying which is often deadly due to the infection they cause.

Aggression can be from many things. If they were also eating eggs they may have had nutritional deficiencies. Not sure what you are feeding or what type of hens, but they might have needed more protein or calcium.

Awful amberlinks all of them were. I will never get amberlinks. Keeping with austrolorps from here on out

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I had problems when I kept sex linked hens too. They do seem to need extra protein, more than a layer provides because of their higher production. They also seem to be a bit mean to me, but others keep them without problems. Thankfully there's all kinds of breeds to choose from.