weird egg

[HayHays97]

we have a 4 year old white leghorn who hasn't laid an egg for over 6 months. This week she laid this, she wasn't herself at first but seems fine now. what is it? should we be worried?

 

[KayTee]

Did you cut it open, and is it rubbery all the way through? I hate to say it, but that looks an awful lot like the stuff that two of my girls started to pass before I lost them to internal laying problems. If it is the start of internal laying (and four years old is about the average age that it happens) then your options are very limited.

The standard option is to do what most of us do - keep a very close eye on your girl, check her over every couple of days, including picking her up and feeling her belly. If she starts to get a swollen belly then she may have an internal infection or fluid build up, which will need medicating (infection) or draining (fluid). If you notice that she is sitting down a lot more than usual during the day then that is also a sign that something is wrong. Keep an eye on how much she is eating and drinking, and how she is pooping - all very good indicators of her state of health. You will not be able to stop the internal laying, but you will at least be able to spot if it is causing her a problem.

The other option is both expensive and difficult to find (depending on where you live), and that is to get an avian vet to give her an implant which stops her laying. It costs megabucks, and not many vets do it, so for most people it is simply not an option.

Having said all that, internal laying is not necessarily an immediate threat to your girl's life. The first hen I had with it got a bit swollen in the rear end, but was eating, drinking and running around with the flock quite happily, holding her position in the pecking order for a long while. Then after about 8 months she stopped eating, drinking and wanting to leave the coop. I nursed her for a week before accepting the futility of what I was doing, and ending her suffering.
My second girl succumbed much more quickly - in less than two months - it all depends upon the individual bird.

I am crossing my fingers for you that this is a slow progression, and that your girl continues thriving for as long as possible.

 

[gifters]

Option 3: chicken noodle soup

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

 

[HayHays97]

That is how we found the egg,in the coop. She wasn't eating for a day or two after she laid that but has recovered and gone back to eating and drinking, she is at the bottom of the pecking order and so she doesn't stay with the rest of the flock. Thank you for your help, we will keep a close eye on her and get a vets advice if anything changes.