Tiny egg - but they're sooo young..?

[DayKay]

We had two very, very odd things happen and I wondered if anyone else had anything similar!

Hubby gave me 6 baby chicks (Wyndottes) and 6 baby ducklings (mallards) for my birthday. We've been keeping them together, away from the 7 full grown hens, and all 12 babies were doing fine, I thought.

Yesterday morning, when I went out to let the big girls out and move the babies from their inside pen to their outside pen for the day, two strange things:

1. an itty bitty egg in their contained pen in the coop. No way a big girl got in there. These chicks/ducks are only 5 weeks old.
2. a dead Wyndotte.

Any ideas about either? There shouldn't be any way a 5 week old (chick or duck!) could lay an egg - should there??

Would a mouse/rat kill a chicken in the barn? Would the other chickens kill her? Could she have just up and died? Did laying the egg kill her in childbirth (my daughter's suggestion)?

Very curious!

 

[pennie1]

I know a rat, not a mouse will kill chicks and ducklings. About the egg thing - I haven't a clue. Sorry.

 

[growinupinfl]

Wow, that is weird. I have not a clue. I guess anything is possible for the egg laying question. But I know that we had one just die at about that age too. I'm sorry one died, but it is weird. Hopefully some of the more experienced chicken breeders on here will have an answer..

Christal