Hi all
I have 2 pekins and 2 plymouth rock banties and 1 sussex bantie. I have had the pekins for 3 weeks and the others for 2. They get along fine.
So far only the lavender pekin (Janice) and Sheila the plymouth rock and Attila the Hen (the sussex) have been laying. Joyce the black pekin and Helen the other plymouth have not laid to date - or have they?
We got 4 eggs today for the first time. Judging by the size it was laid by one of the pekins. Half of it was covered in blood! It was weird - like a line had been drawn around the circumference of the egg - half normal, half bloody.
I grabbed each of them tonight and examined their vents - all looked ok to me - no blood - but Sheila's was a bit different looking to the others - how to put this without sounding gross
- hers was kind of MOVING - like I imagine your sphincter would if you were suddenly given a great fright!
It was WINKING at me I swear.
She was pretty freaked out so I had to let her go without further probing. I have heard chickens get prolapses - was this one or was she just terrified?! Also before I let her go I noticed a wee creamy white beastie scuttling across at the root of a feather - fast as a flea in a hurry. Is that what they call red mite or are they RED? (If not why call it red mite?) In any event what do I do about it?
I am now scrathcing like I do when my son gets nits. As he does - frequently.
Anyway, to get back to the mystery of the bloody egg ....
Janice the lavender pekin was not herself yesterday. She spent most of it going back and forwards to the nest box. I kept turfing her out. She didnt lay yesterday. Today she wants to sit there all the time. Is she broody or is she sore because she had an egg stuck and has laid two today? I turfed her out the nest 3 times tonight and the third time she set up an awful racket so I let her back in, largely for the sake of my next door neighbour who has a new born baby. (Born last night. Bet HER vent is sore.).
The others are wandering the garden happily enough.
SO .... what do you folks reckon about the bloody egg, the flea thing, the twitchy vent and the nesting!
Thank you.