Suddenly sick chicken... egg bound?

[Lake Desire]

My 2-year-old americauna came down with a sudden illness tonight. My partner found her laying outside the coop with her head down when he went out to lock the hens up. He picked her up and put her in a nestbox.

He saw her two hours earlier when he got home from work and said she was acting normal.

I went out to see, and she is breathing slowly and keeping her head down and eyes closed. She isn't moving except for her breath. She isn't "pumping" like she is trying to lay an egg.

I noticed she was off by herself today when the other hens were dust-bathing together.

She hasn't laid in two days, but doesn't lay everyday. Her eggs have been pale yellow lately (rather than the usual bright orange).

Is it possible she is egg bound? Would it come on quickly? I can try putting her in a cage in the garage with a heatlamp and steamy water, but I wasn't sure if that would make things worse if she isn't egg bound and has some other suddenly onset illness. I don't know if she would try to lay at night anyhow...

 

[TwoTexans]

Had this same issue with my one year old Americana last week. Brought her in the house and sat her down on a towel in my lap to relax. Maybe 30 minutes go by and she plopped out egg without the hard shell. Still had the softer membrane shell that contained the yolk/white. Thought we were good to go but she still acted under the weather, so I put her in a towel lined cage with food and water. Not an hour goes by, when I'm checking on her, and she stands up and lays ANOTHER egg right in front of me! This time completely no shell at all but yolk still intact. Dreading I am now dealing with another poor girl with EYP, I left her in the cage for the night. The next morning I go to check on her and she wants out NOW! She immediately ran to the coop and laid another egg, this one perfect. Has been laying perfect eggs since. Check her vent. If you see any clear or yellowish sticky stuck to her feathers, you might have the same problem. Soaking in warm water helps them relax too if egg bound or an egg broke inside her. I am keeping a close eye on the Americana as I am losing a battle with EYP on my favorite RIR to this horrible genetic defect. EYP=egg yolk peritonitis.

 

[Lake Desire]

Thanks for replying. My hen didn't make it through the night, unfortunately. I wasn't sure if she was egg-bound since she'd been walking around and acting normal just two hours before she got sick.