Strange behavior!

tball

Chirping
8 Years
May 17, 2011
106
2
91
hemphill,tx
OK first complete year with chickens, i have 5 production reds. Approx 4-5 weeks ago one of my hens started molting, very strange if you have never been threw, very ski-dish and standoff , i did worry but started to see her come around. Four days ago a different hen started acting funny, this started by her laying an egg in the woods , it had no shell. Well i am thinking she is going to molt, and how lucky that the other hen started laying again.OK so this hen just lays around, well i let them free range every day, so she leaves pen just to go lay somewhere else i notice her pecking at her leg band, and toenails! I picked her up and ants were on her bottom. I hosed her off and put her in a dog kennel. She stays on perch at night so i put her back , she started to peck another hens leg band and toes.!! I am bringing her inside in kennel during the day and feeding her so extra yogurt and electrolytes. She is also very pale. The toe thing is weird , like she kinda went crazy, any suggestions!
 
Check her over for wounds/lumps/bumps/abnormalities. Assume the soft shelled egg is just a fluke. Increase her protein intake- molt requires a lot of extra protein. The foot picking may be related. Protein deficient birds will start to pick feathers and foot scales because each bite is pure protein.
 

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