Forget-me-Not
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Think I'm losing a henMy lovely Scarlett, a beautiful red hybrid, best friend of Betty. I think she's egg bound, low head and wings, puffed up not interested in food, straining and gluey mucus coming out, mainly cream. Have done the warm water bowl and given her peaceful seclusion but she looks like she'll be dead in hours.
She was fine yesterday, hanging out on the compost bins with Betty and Gracie.
Beth 
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Smooth Hound
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can you feel the egg, or wharever you would feel
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing HenNo, ...I think it's burst because the stuff coming out looks more broken eggish than anything else, glupey and constantlyjoined, not breaking, not like poo mixed with wee. She's now hanging her head too and eyes mostly closed.
I read that if it breaks, infection can set in and only matter of time.
Beth
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Smooth Hound
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mm, well youll just have to cross your fingers and put her somewhere peaceful
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Sassinak
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I'm afraid it's normally final if the egg has broken. It doesn't take long for infection to set in and is very difficult and expensive to try and treat. Sorry
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monkey nuts
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So sorry FMN. I lost one a few weeks ago, don't think it was egg bound though, just stayed inside after a nasty rain storm one late afternoon and was gone the next morning. The farmer has rat poison down and although they can't get to it directly I think she may have eaten something contaminated by it. She was up and about and eating properly the day before and only began to act strange after the rain.
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Forget-me-Not
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HenOhh MN how wful for you! I actually lost one the other week, she just went downhill and died within 24 hours but they've been fine ever since and still pretty sure it's egg related. She picked up a little earlier, wanted to get out, eat and drink, looked a little cheerful for five mins, then went down again. Haven't seen her in 2 hours, children stuff goig on, other problems 
Beth (when a whisky and chocolate don't quite hit the mark )
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Maria
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Sorry to hear about poorly one.
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JoH
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Oh sweetheart How sad. <hug>
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Forget-me-Not
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Poorly HenThis morning Scarlett is still alive. Looking....OKish, came out, had a drink and ate but still more goo being squeezed out. I imagine after some breakfast she'll go and stand still again. Will pop down as soon as I can but need to get myself and girls up first. The others are checking on her and no nastiness, kept her seperate over night.
Beth
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Smooth Hound
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fingers crossed
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing HenHopefully Fab News!!!
Just got back from Maria's and found Scarlett looking perky with the most ENORMOUS egg seen yet AND a normal size looks intact but very soft squidgey egg!!! She bounced out and shot off as I looked at egg, moments letter scratching merrily in a nest box in hen house!!!!
Crossed fingers (  SH) she'll be fine!!!!!
Beth
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wildgarlic
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Brilliant news!
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Townie
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YAY! fantastic news, glad she's fine FMN
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Sassinak
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Oh that's great. I'm so pleased for you - and her
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing HenScarlett is busy digging over the compost with her friends and looks like all leaking gunk has ceased!!!! 
Am SO pleased, she's such a lovely hen!!!
Beth
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Smooth Hound
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monkey nuts
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Really pleased for both of you..did you weigh the egg (just curious??)
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wildgarlic
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| monkey nuts wrote: | | Really pleased for both of you..did you weigh the egg (just curious??) |
You just want to know if it's heavier than the one you hen laid - I must admit, so do I!
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Forget-me-Not
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Chook eggSaw this post last night, then was offline all day and forgot to come back earlier. It weighed 130 grammes. We had a biggie a while back that I took a photo off but didn't weigh, wish I had now.
Beth
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Sassinak
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That has beaten mine - my record so far this year is 120gm.
Maybe we can keep this thread running.
In fact I'll start a seperate big egg thread so that people can documant their whoppers !!
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PurpleDragon
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Re: Losing Hen | Forget-me-Not wrote: | Just got back from Maria's and found Scarlett looking perky with the most ENORMOUS egg seen yet AND a normal size looks intact but very soft squidgey egg!!! She bounced out and shot off as I looked at egg, moments letter scratching merrily in a nest box in hen house!!!!
Beth |
I wonder if she is laying soft shelled eggs? Apparently that is really painful for them.
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing HenOooh well done Scarlett, there was also a soft shell one beside the whopper (which was a double yoker), not sure which egg was first but she's great now.
An egg thread would be fab, could we compare funny ones too? Morag lays a 'knobbler,' every day or so. Wrinkled, solid but triangular and sometimes curved, wouldn't roll of the table! 
Beth
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Maria
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So pleased Beth.....great news
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Julie
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Get them some oystershell grit to give them a bit more calcium. As the birds get older they tend towards soft shelled eggs anyway, you really need to give them all the help you can.
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing HenIt's strange, we've had a couple of softies recently but they get 2 - 3 handfuls of grit every day. (12 hens) and have grass, bugs etc to eat in their area, grit never finished.
They're on layers pellets with a few extras, fruit, veg, etc and the odd handful of corn. Eldest would be.... coming up to two (rescues from New Arc, youngest is pre POL. Most are about 18 months.
Beth
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mike and louise
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Egg laying hens, especially heavy layers need lots of calcium. In an intensive situation, and I guess large scale free range farming falls into this, they get calcium suppliments. Lots of even young battery hens show osteoporosis, so they need a lot. Our hens have oyster shell ab lib, and layers pellets and a bit of corn at lunch time, I'm sure I've read somewhere lots of titbits can cause these problems as they are not getting a balanced diet. I don't know if you give titbits, but this may be part of your problem.
You probably know, but there are 2 kinds of grit you can buy, the 'stone' grit they use in the gizzard to grind up food and the 'seashell' type they use to get calcium.
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Forget-me-Not
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Losing henOooh didn't know about the osteoporosis!
We use shell grit and the titbits are for after their pellets are finished. Also the corn. Would that make it alright?
Beth
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mike and louise
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It sounds like they have a balanced enough diet, as long as the bulk of it is pellets. I found this out when we had a lady come into the vet, she had ex battery hens, and they were poorly, it turned out they were struggling to lay soft shelled eggs. They vet gave them a course of antibiotics and told her to increase the oystershell. She was putting a handful into the food, but she was feeding mainly corn. Maybe its something they go through as they adapt to the new environment, they had just come back into lay. We are lucky as we have a vet who started with Lawrence Brain and is 'into' birds.
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Julie
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I had a feeling they might be rescue hens. This is for me, one of the main cruelty issues of the intensive system. They are kept in artificially lit sheds to maximise their egg production and worked to depletion, the idea being that they neck 'em and get new stock in after two years.
It is probably kinder in the long run to dispatch these birds than to keep them laying any longer. Let's be honest, if you had a very young daughter with rickets, you wouldn't encourage her to get pregnant any time soon would you? Every egg these birds lay comes at the expense of their bodies. If they can no longer absorb the calcium, they will carry on laying soft shelled eggs.
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Forget-me-Not
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LosingIf I was getting constant shells from a hen, I wouldn't ignore it but I've only had a couple of shells recently, of 12 hens, one pre POL and two broody, I'm getting 8 -9 eggs a day fromthe rest. I do have a hen that constantly lays knobbly eggs but the eggs are solid, I get one every second day, she's a rescue too.
Did Maria talk to you about dispatching? We were talking about her lesson about a fortnight ago. I really need a lesson. We dispatched one months ago having read about it in detail, it didn't go well. (Without dispatcher) Would it be OK to come and have a lesson some time?
Beth
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