Egg laying problems!!

DuckNoobie

Songster
5 Years
Jan 7, 2015
122
56
116
Toronto
Hi everyone,
I thought my duck problem would go away but it hasn't and now I'm concerned. My Appleyard had been great at laying eggs, she laid 50 eggs in a row and then took a break. Coming out of her break she started laying these really weird eggs- one day it'll be a monster sized and the next it'll be a quail sized. I had them this weekend and the monster egg has a really large yolk and the quial sized got NO yolk!! Both eggs have strange dark floaties inside the whites. She's already laid a few of these each and it's not normalizing. I've not changed anything, her diet is the same as always. She looks healthy. What's going on? I'm posting a photo of eggs below.
 
What feed do you use?
Any artificial lighting?
Have you added extra calcium to her diet at all?
 
I've gotten those yolk less quail size eggs before, too. Not sure why that happens. I don't want to hijack this thread but I'm also having laying problems. I've got ten hens and one drake. I feed them Purina Layena Crumble, no added oyster shell. I was feeding them cracked corn, which apparently lowers their protein which is needed for laying, so I stopped the corn. I have a 40w bulb that's on from 8 to 1030pm. They have fresh water every day. Not sure what else to do...
 
Hi Kevin565,
I feed them all the normal food that they grew up with: Purina Golden Light (duck grower), Spectrum 17% Omega Layer (egg laying) and Spectrum Scratch grain. I mix a third of each. My ducks are free range so they don't only eat duck food. All this food, besides the egg layer, the ducks grew up on.
I don't have any artificial light, we now have 12 hours of daylight. I have not officially added any extra calcium because the Spectrum Omega Layer is high in calcium, however sometimes I add crushed egg shells sprinkled on her food.
Any thoughts?
 
Oh my gosh, I just went outside and found this!! This looks like the insides of an egg! No shell!!
400
 
Sounds like she is not getting enough calcium. I have seen, with my flock, that even if I think I am giving them enough, there are a few who still need more.

A quick way to get some into her is to dissolve a calcium citrate tablet in hot water. Then add a little cold water to cool it, and mix it in with the layer feed, or with her favorite treat and give that to her. (For example, a quarter cup of hot water, quarter cup of cold)

I would actually try to get 200 mg of calcium into her right away, then back off to giving her an extra 100 mg per day for several days, then see if backing off to an extra 50 mg works. I am giving our flock an extra 50 to 80 extra mg calcium per duck per day right now.
 
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Sounds like she is not getting enough calcium.  I have seen, with my flock, that even if I think I am giving them enough, there are a few who still need more.

A quick way to get some into her is to dissolve a calcium citrate tablet in hot water.  Then add a little cold water to cool it, and mix it in with the layer feed, or with her favorite treat and give that to her.  (For example, a quarter cup of hot water, quarter cup of cold)

I would actually try to get 200 mg of calcium into her right away, then back off to giving her an extra 100 mg per day for several days, then see if backing off to an extra 50 mg works.  I am giving our flock an extra 50 to 80 extra mg calcium per duck per day right now.

Hi Amiga,
I agree with you, i did run out this morning to buy calcium citrate and gave her 150mg just to be safe. I don't know if too much calcium will kill the duck??
 
Short answer is yes. Now, there are so many factors here.

A reminder - I am not a vet, I am a duck steward.

A good duck vet is always best and not always possible.

I have read of people giving a Tums to an eggbound duck with no apparent harm. If I recall, Tums has 400 mg per lozenge.

It is not a maintenance dosage. But if a duck is so calcium deficient she is laying soft eggs or is eggbound, then a brief higher dosage is often used.

Note - I am beginning to think in some cases it's not calcium, or not just calcium. It is known that phosphorus and vitamin D are involved also.

I base the amount of calcium I add to my ducks' food on a recommendation from a vet a while back.
 

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