[Carshay]

My 21wk old hybrid laid her first egg 4 days ago but has been miserable since, spending most of her time squatting down and not eating or drinking very much. She is not egg bound and was put on antibiotics by the vet today but he said he was not an expert so I would like to know if anyone has any idea what could be wrong as I am very new to chicken keeping.
Thanks

[joyfull]

for the vet to put her on antibiotics they must have some reason - what did they say?

[Carshay]

Not a lot just that she seemed tender high up when he was examining her internally and maybe an egg had burst in oviduct

[joyfull]

in which case the A/B's are to prevent infection setting in, keep a close eye on her xx

[bantam novice]

Good luck Carshay and keep us posted. 

[Carshay]

Pleased to report that she's completely perked up and very pleased to be back in with the others this afternoon! No more eggs from her yet tho. I had another egg from a different girl today and that was very small too. Do the eggs get bigger as the chicken matures? they are only just 22wks.

[orchardlady]

Absolutely they do get bigger . They are dear little things aren't they? You will soon have so many eggs you'll not know what to do with them all. So glad to hear your hen is more perky, but make sure she finishes her course of antibiotics.

[bantam novice]

Good news Carshay    I hope she continues to improve.

[CluckyChicken]

yes, good luck. She may not have felt too well after laying her first egg- it must feel very wierd for them!  She should start again soon and keep constant.  My first chicken lay and egg, then didn't lay another one for 2 days.  She was regular after that-one a day- so it may just take time for her to settle down to laying
Keep us posted,

CC xx

[Carshay]

The chicken seems fine now but I'm not sure if she's laying. I think probably three out of five are but why aren't they clever enough to write their names on the eggs as they all seem to be laying the same colour!

[bantam novice]

You think they would develop their own colour coded filing system at least