Too many eggs?!?

[Couture Family]

The other chickens could be laying. Has she been dewormed recently? Internal parasites can cause runny poop.

It's defiantly Greta. I see her in the box and go get the egg as soon as she comes out. The other babies have never been in the nesting box. They are still out in the chicken tractor all day because of hawks. So the only time they are even near the box is at night when they are all in the coop (the box is inside the coop, inside the run). They have about another week in the tractor until I feel safe enough that they are big enough not to get snatched. We are in the city so the hawks aren't too big but right now they could try it if they were all out. I do let them out to free range about 30 minutes to an hour before they go into the run for the night while I sit and watch over them.

As far as dewormed, no. I've never given my girls any medications at all it's how I keep the eggs organic. They get DE in their food which I'm sure should take care of any intestinal parasites??? But I will give her some oregano oil today for just in case she has something weird.

Thanks for mentioning that though, I didn't think of it. How do they effect birds? Like should I be looking for any other signs to see if that's it? And if that is it, is it catching? None of my other birds have any issues.

Also why doesn't she squat to go poop anymore? She just stands still and shoots.

 

[Couture Family]

had our first egg today..

feel like a proud mamma

There is nothing like the first egg! It's so exciting!

 

[aart]

Quote: DE will not kill internal parasites...get a fecal float test done to know what kind of worms she might have.
Not sure oregano oil would do the trick either.

I'd go back to nothing but her regular plain chicken ration and plain water for a couple weeks,
cut out any and all additives, supplements, herbs and spices, treats, etc......
......and see if her stools don't 'shape up'.

I'm all for holistic remedies, but they also can cause problems.

 

[Couture Family]

DE will not kill internal parasites...get a fecal float test done to know what kind of worms she might have.
Not sure oregano oil would do the trick either.

I'd go back to nothing but her regular plain chicken ration and plain water for a couple weeks,
cut out any and all additives, supplements, herbs and spices, treats, etc......
......and see if her stools don't 'shape up'.

I'm all for holistic remedies, but they also can cause problems.

Oh, ok I will give that a try. We also put apple cider vinegar in her water, that should still be alright a? Could the fact that her poop having visible (undigested) grains still in it be a sign of the worms also?

Thanks for all the help

Oh, another question is how soon after the girls get their combs and wattles do they begin to lay? I don't remember how it was with the other girls. The babies don't yet have wattles and their combs are still just little pale spikes. They seem be be growing slower than the other girls or I'm just more impatient this time.

 

[aart]

Quote: Just plain water.....and a decent balanced chicken ration feed....no other foods or supplements,
just to get her system balanced out and rule out any other foods causing problems.

Does she have access to good grit? Undigested grains leads me to believe that maybe her gizzard is not functioning properly.
Or something else may be just making everything go right thru her.
What is your climate.....is it very hot out? Putting your location in your profile can help folks give better answers/suggestions.


Typical age range of onset of lay is 18-26 weeks.
Signs of onset of lay---I've found the pelvic points to be the most accurate.
Squatting:
If you touch their back they will hunker down on the ground, then shake their tail feathers when they get back up.
This shows they are sexually mature and egg laying is close at hand.

Combs and Wattles:
Plump, shiny red - usually means laying.
Shriveled, dryish looking and pale - usually means not laying.
Tho I have found that the combs and wattles can look full and red one minute then pale back out the next due to exertion or excitement, can drive ya nuts when waiting for a pullet to lay!

Vent:
Dry, tight, and smaller - usually not laying.
Moist, wide, and larger - usually laying

Pelvic Points 2 bony points(pelvic bones) on either side of vent:
Less than 2 fingertip widths apart usually means not laying.
More than 2 fingertip widths apart usually means laying.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Hens don't lay eggs for us, but rather for herself, or when the hen deems that the time is right for the hens' eggs to hatch and mature. This is controlled by the hens' hormones.

Also hens don't lay when their health is bad but at the time of year in the hens' view when newly hatched chicks will thrive.

Everyone should realize that human involvement with breeding chickens for various purposes like laying has short-circuited this feature of a hens' anatomy.

American pit game hens are as close as it gets to being a real heritage chicken.

Out of say 250 game hens that I at one time had running on my place there was usually 30 days or longer during the molt that I did not get the first egg. It was also from October to the end of January before there were enough surplus eggs on hand to bake a Pound Cake or make egg noodles.

This was without force molting my hens to get them past this yearly egg laying bottle neck sooner, faster, or quicker.

A hen who has returned to production after a one year vacation is unusual. Keep us informed on her progress.

The advise that aart offered is some of the best that I have ever read.

 

[Couture Family]

Just plain water.....and a decent balanced chicken ration feed....no other foods or supplements,
just to get her system balanced out and rule out any other foods causing problems.

Does she have access to good grit? Undigested grains leads me to believe that maybe her gizzard is not functioning properly.
Or something else may be just making everything go right thru her.
What is your climate.....is it very hot out? Putting your location in your profile can help folks give better answers/suggestions.


Typical age range of onset of lay is 18-26 weeks.
Signs of onset of lay---I've found the pelvic points to be the most accurate.
Squatting:
If you touch their back they will hunker down on the ground, then shake their tail feathers when they get back up.
This shows they are sexually mature and egg laying is close at hand.

Combs and Wattles:
Plump, shiny red - usually means laying.
Shriveled, dryish looking and pale - usually means not laying.
Tho I have found that the combs and wattles can look full and red one minute then pale back out the next due to exertion or excitement, can drive ya nuts when waiting for a pullet to lay!

Vent:
Dry, tight, and smaller - usually not laying.
Moist, wide, and larger - usually laying

Pelvic Points 2 bony points(pelvic bones) on either side of vent:
Less than 2 fingertip widths apart usually means not laying.
More than 2 fingertip widths apart usually means laying.

She does have the oyster shell in there at her disposal but they never touch it. My girls free range so I don't think they need it that much or they just don't like it?
It is very hot here still. We are about to get a big storm that may cool it down a bit for a day or so but it's still very high 80's with lots of humidity so it feels more like mid 90's.
She does stand in the water dish a lot. So she is probably pretty hot.

The babies don't even have wattles yet so they are quite ready but I was wondering like how soon after seeing the little spikes should they get their wattles. I just remember my other girls started laying soon after they got them.

 

[aart]

She does have the oyster shell in there at her disposal but they never touch it. My girls free range so I don't think they need it that much or they just don't like it?
It is very hot here still. We are about to get a big storm that may cool it down a bit for a day or so but it's still very high 80's with lots of humidity so it feels more like mid 90's.
She does stand in the water dish a lot. So she is probably pretty hot.

The babies don't even have wattles yet so they are quite ready but I was wondering like how soon after seeing the little spikes should they get their wattles. I just remember my other girls started laying soon after they got them.

Oyster shell and grit are different....tho oyster shell can function somewhat as grit.
If you feed layer formulation feed they may not need to eat oyster shell for added calcium.
Considering your girl is laying hard shelled egg she probably is fulfilling her need for calcium.

Grit is granite(very hard, flat sided with sharp edges) and is necessary for the gizzard grind up food......
....most free rangers get all the grit they need, and it's often added to scratch mixtures(you'd have to check your label).
http://www.jupefeeds-sa.com/documents/GraniteGrit.pdf