The 20 Egg Only Chicken

If she has a nice plump red comb and she looks healthy and she is spending time in the nest box daily then that suggests she is ovulating. The soiled butt feathers suggest she has abdominal swelling... it has nothing to do with having fluffy butt feathers.... there is likely some swelling below the vent causing the poop to catch instead of drop clear. When birds poop their vent muscles cause the feathers above and below the the vent to part and the lower ones to move into a more vertical position allowing the poop to drop clear. If there is swelling below the vent the feathers are not able to tip away far enough and the poop snaggs
The combination of her ovulating but no eggs being laid and that poopy butt indicates that she may be laying internally. This is where yolks are released from the ovary when they are ripe but fail to travel into the oviduct to become eggs and instead drop into the abdominal cavity. The bird can appear perfectly normal for months, sometimes more than a year before things come to a head and a health issue becomes obvious. Usually their abdomen will become very bloated and they may start to walk with a wider stance as the mass of yolks in their belly starts to push their legs apart. Unfortunately there is not a lot you can do to resolve the situation. Hormonal implants every 3-6 months will stop her ovulating and prevent things getting worse but it is expensive and will do nothing to deal with the eggs already in her abdominal cavity. If she is a pet, some people go this route and it buys the hen another year or two if they are lucky. Eventually the mass of yolks presses against other organs, often the gut constricting it and making it difficult to poop, or pressing on the abdominal air sacs causing respiratory distress or infection sets in which is known as Egg Yolk Peritonitis (EYP)
It would be a good idea to check her abdomen by cupping your hand between her legs and feeling for any fullness or swelling and comparing her to other hens. It is possible the swelling is higher up more directly below her vent. Swelling in that area may indicate Salpingitis which is an infection of the oviduct causing infected egg material (lash egg) to build up in the lower part of the oviduct. The infection is contained within the oviduct and the bird does not show obvious signs of being sick, but gradually as the bird continues to ovulate, the material builds up and puts pressure on other organs. Antibiotics can help in the very early stages but once the "lash egg" material becomes too large to pass and the oviduct is impacted, the only option is extremely expensive and very risky surgery or euthanasia once quality of life deteriorates.

Sorry to paint such a bleak picture but the symptoms you describe point to one of those reproductive disorders which are sadly rather too common in hens due to selective breeding for intensive production. You would expect there to be some swelling or bloat in the abdominal area if either of these ailments have been on going for a while as would be suggested by the lack of eggs since July, although it is likely that there has been a period where she has not been ovulating during that time if she has been through a moult and the body is able to recover a little during that down time, so any swelling may not be overly pronounced at this stage.
Well it finally happened unfortunately. She passed away last week. It did in fact seem like internal laying. Hubs didn't think about getting pictures. So all in all it took almost a year for her to be overcome by it. She was a good chicken.
 
OhBummer! :(
Had she ever laid again?

Nope

Did she get swollen and/or sick?

She started slowing down during the week (Wednesday or Thursday)...I took a picture and sent to a friend (they have had an eggless chicken) they said that the look matched their symptoms, and so I planned to check Saturday. Saturday morning (maybe Friday night) she sat down and eventually rolled over. I found her about 8am and she smelt terrible. Back end was busted open, but I didn't see any puss or anything extremely interesting, so its possible it dried up (or in my ignorance, maybe there is an animal that would go for that but leave the carcass alone?)

Did he open her up?

Unfortunately no. I lifted her legs, saw a bunch of innerds and some rancid stench, and decided that I didn't have the knowledge to make it a fast exploration.

Hard to get pics when your hands are all gunked up.
Sorry for your loss.

See above for answers. Typing on phone so sorry if colors aren't all the same. In short, she laid for two or so weeks and then stopped in July. We checked a few times for swelling and didn't see anything, so we watched for signs of being lethargic. We hoped she would reboot in spring (though her type is not known to slowdown) but didn't see anything... Have had a busy May so we've been watching a little more passively until last week (or the week before). Picture attached somewhere (hopefully below) shows her looking uncomfortable and in hindsight I should have caught her and scooped her up then. I'd say she made it 48-72 hours after the picture.
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Ryn.
 
I'm so sorry for your loss. Those little birds sure find their way into our hearts, don't they?
:hugs

I've got one I think might be headed down a similar path. She lays *maybe* once a week. She laid a shelless egg once and hasn't been the same since. I will watch closely for the behavior you noticed towards the end.

BTW - I grew up in the East Bay. Howdy, neighbor!
:frow
 
I'm so sorry for your loss. Those little birds sure find their way into our hearts, don't they?
:hugs

I've got one I think might be headed down a similar path. She lays *maybe* once a week. She laid a shelless egg once and hasn't been the same since. I will watch closely for the behavior you noticed towards the end.

BTW - I grew up in the East Bay. Howdy, neighbor!
:frow
They definitely do!

Once a week is interesting, that might give you a couple years until noticeable signs... I don't really know. I hope she bounces back!

I can say I enjoy the area, but completely understand why you left! Hello!
 
So sorry you lost her.
I had one go almost a year internal too, although it can easily be several weeks or months even before you notice they are not laying and something maybe amiss because it doesn't usually affect their general behaviour and through the winter after moult their bodies have a chance to recover a little but once they start ovulating heavily in the spring it begins to have an impact as the mass of yolks inside them becomes so great that it puts pressure on internal organs like heart and respiratory system.
 

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