Half shells and bloody quills!!!

[Poddington Pea]

Hi all,
may I start by saying thank you for all the lovely posts on my previous thread! The eggs tasted delicious, like eating a ball of mozzerella!

On with the new post!
Note to self; count hens before checking nesting boxes!!!
I had a peep in and startled a hen mid-lay. She jumped up and left an egg with only half a shell! I'm not sure whether she had finished or not!? Nothing else has come out in the half hour since!
has this ever happened to you?

Also- another hen has bloody quills on her tail, pecking perhaps? I didn't notice her getting attacked! Blimming hens! Will they settle down do you think or will they always be having a go at each other? They have enough food, water and space! What more do they need?!!!

[motherhen]

I would keep a real close eye on her incase there is something left inside, it is very unusual for that to happen, if fact I've never known it!
You will have to watch the bloody quills as well, why are they doing it, there is usually a reason and the pecking must be quite bad for them to be bloody, I would get some gentian violet this covers the blood colour and is anticeptic, so stops infection.

[Poddington Pea]

Thanks motherhen, I watch them alot (probably more than is sane) and they all have a little dig at eachother every now and then. I have had 10 for 2 1/2 weeks now, they're from a commercial flock of free-rangers so to begin with I thought they were just sorting out the pecking order. Often 1 will be minding it's own business, scratching around and another will dash over and peck her!
With regards to the egg, I'm wondering whether she'd started eating it? It's clean in half and very thin shelled compared to the others we've had.