After two months of malting, my hen finally laid one egg, I was very happy that she started laying again. Then she stopped laying again for about two weeks now. I'm very concerned because her crown looks weired to me. It seems shrinking and pale, not like the other hen has red and fuller crown. The crown isn't very soft either. She's eating well, seems doing fine other wise. Can anyone tell me what's wrong with her? is she sick or just stressed? Thanks.
What is her age? If she is over three, chicken menopause could be setting in. If she is younger, she could be just sputtering back to normal egg production.
My two year olds did the same thing this winter. I think the past summer was just so hot that it stressed their bodies a lot. My biggest barely laid at all during the 110 degree weather. Then she molted and started laying again. For about two weeks. Then stopped laying completely from October through February, as did the rest for the most part. Now she's laying regularly again and so are the others. I understand that winter makes most breeds stop laying but Orpingtons do normally lay during the winter. I think it's the horrible summer we had stressing their bodies.
Other than you meaning 'comb', not crown, there's a 99.9% chance it's fine and just some chicken thing. There isn't always an answer for many of the things chickens (and birds in general) do, so unless it's an obvious sickness or injury, don't sweat over it and hope it starts laying again for those fresh eggs so you can stop getting store-bought masty tasteless eggs.
The condition of her 'comb' is indicative of her hormonal levels. As the daylength increases her 'comb' will enlarge, brighten, and she will resume laying.
