Anyone around - I think Marjorie's poorly

[Grockle]

She's trying to lay - at almost 9pm

And she's all floppy - they usually sit up when they lay but she's got her head on the floor of the nest. She was fine earlier - running around like she usually does. What could be wrong? Could she be eggbound? 2 weeks ago, she laid 3 eggs in one day - the 1st was normal, the second had a soft shell and the 3rd had a shell like tissue paper but she's been ok ever since. I'm worried

How old is she? She could be coming to the end of her egg-laying - they get a bit worn out and their systems go bonkers. Or she could be about to moult? Or have worms? It is impossible to diagnose. But it does sound like a soft-shelled egg is on the way. Has she got grit and good quality feed? You may well have to consult a vet. Floppy does not sound very good.

Thanks for responding.

She laid a soft-egg and seemed a little less floppy afterwards so I've let her to recover and hopefully she'll be ok in the morning.

She's about a year old - the same as my other 2, who are both fine. They free range but have layers pellets every day, with oyster shell/ grit mixed in. They've all been wormed. I', just a bit worried because it seems to be a regular thing with her now. She seems absolutely fine the rest of the time but has these periods of weird laying & it's exhausting for her. Poor Marj.

I'll see how she is in the morning then ask a vet. I suppose I should investigate a chicken forum really!

Thanks, Punk.

Sadly sometimes their internal engineering just isn't great. We had a Miss Pepperpot who laid the weirdest eggs - huge ones, eggs inside eggs etc. She was an artist! Sadly she died after a couple of years from complications following a prolapse.

If you want a good forum, I always recommend the Omlet one. Very friendly and really knowledgable people. I even had a member of the forum rush over to me with some purple gentian spray - when I was in desperate need. Really genuine people, chicken people!

Oh, thanks... I will look at the omlet one.

Hope she is Ok this morning. Poor love.

Hope she is brighter today. She would probably benefit from a calcium & vit d supplement, something like shell max, davinova c or calcivet. Does she have access to mixed grit or oystershell grit? Sometimes they are lacking in vit d and they need this to absort calcium. If they lack in calcium they are unable to form a shell for the egg. Shell-less eggs are no problem in themselves, but they can be hard for the chicken to pass, and if they break in-situ then can cause infection.

I find Nutrobal is excellent.

She's been fine today, other than a soft-shell egg this morning. They have oyster shell/ grit mixed in with their layers pellets every day hut I'll have a look for some of the supplements mentioned on here. This has happened since I've stopped feeding them organic food. They're not keen on the new stuff.

Thank you for the help