How much liquid calcium supplement to fix soft shell issue?

[dweder]

I've done everything possible with my hens diet to fix her soft shell issue (which nearly kills her everytime she tries to lay them) and have had no success. I've just bought a liquid calcium supplememt (with magnesium citrate, human grade) to try fixing her issues with. Does anyone know how much to give her? Frequency? Dosage?

 

[gallusdomesticus]

I would be very careful about giving any magnesium supplement to your birds. Magnesium, in certain compounds, competes with calcium for absorbtion in the digestive track of chickens...too much magnesium can cause a calcium deficiency and aggrevate your soft shell egg problem. I got this from a Univ. of Florida publication.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/ps/ps02900.pdf

 

[lynnehd]

I've had one of my older girls that lays eggs without shells. I think hers is due to stress, weight and age. She is over 4 years old, a fatty and lays almost daily still. She's a bantam wynadotte, not sure if that means anything. She gets on and off prolapse issues in the last year. The ones without shells almost always happen when multiple things are happening-such as a prolapse issue and moved to a new coop, or prolapse and introduction of new chicks. Luckily with her since we give her epson salt baths whenever I start seeing any poopy issues or prolapse she hasn't had any infections, none of the other chickens have ever pecked at it and we seem to get her back together within a day or two. The eggs without shells usually get laid while in the bath or just c oming out of it.

I have a new girl however, who is laying thin shelled eggs. She was a stray that ended up staying at our neighbors house, who asked if we would take her. That hadn't been feeding her, just gave her water. So she had been only getting what she could scrouge herself. She appears to be a red sexlink, I'm going to guess about a year old. We've had her for about 3 months now. It took her forever to know what to do with layer pellets. She's now a complete food hog and got over weight fast. I swear she never stops eating. We treated her for worms, just in case as well before having her integrate with our others. I don't think she touches the oyster shell and she is constantly eating worms, which our yard has an abundance of. I'm guessing she is low in calcium. I'm glad someone else is trying tums. I was thinking about it myself, since that was what was suggested by our vet for both my 18 year old aussie when put on a restricted diet and then again on our starling when it was a baby. Yogurt wasn't a huge hit with her, though all my other girls were more than happy to eat it.

Does anyone know off hand what greens are high calcium? Our new girl loves any greens she can get and I'm sure she would eat those without issue. Kale maybe?

Yes. I have tortoises, so while newer to chickens, I've had to pay close attention to providing calcium rich greens w/o too many oxalates which bind calcium.
If a green or weed has a LOT of calcium, then the fact that they are also high in oxalates isn't as much of a worry.

The web site I listed is for tortoises, but if you scroll down to 'Nutritional Analysis of Foods Commonly Eaten by Captive Desert Tortoises', you can see greens/weeds listed that are higher in calcium.
This is still the best overall analysis that I have found; there may be others.
So focus on Beet greens, Dandelion, Chicory (my chickens LOVE this), Collards, Grape leaves (excellent source), Kale, Parsley, Turnip greens, to name the main ones.
Mix it up, variety is often the key.

(Don't necessarily look at the other advice, but the table is helpful)
http://www.tortoise.org/general/tntdiet.html

 

[MichelleT]

I've had to pay close attention to providing calcium rich greens w/o too many oxalates which bind calcium.
If a green or weed has a LOT of calcium, then the fact that they are also high in oxalates isn't as much of a worry.

I read recently that eating (humans) greens with something high in vitamin C (strawberries, citrus, tomatoes) helps the body absorb the calcium that is not available with the oxalates are too high. Now, if I give spinach, I always make sure it's with either strawberry tops or tomatoes...

 

[lynnehd]

Thanks for the thread! I am going to try it - I'm okay with her getting older and not laying anymore... she's just such a joy to have around the place! But I sure would love an egg I can eat every now and again. Plus, I'm not convinced that laying like she does is good for her. Stopping by Target on the way home today!

Just broke mine in half, then in about 8 more pieces with a pill splitter, so that's 8 raisins for her, lol.
But, she is petite, and if the raisins + pill pieces are too big, she tries to break them up to eat them, and out comes the pill fragment.

So far, so good, but if this doesn't work, I'll try grinding it up finer and mixing it with a tbsp of canned sardine, for example.

 

[redsix]

I am having similar situation. No eggs, only soft shelled eggs with 10 laying hens @ 30 weeks and up. Now a broken pelvis.


I found out that they were eating the grower feed instead of layer feed. They don't like the layer feed or oyster shells. I provide a choice.
I watched my hens attack the grower feed that is there for the younger pullets and totally ignore the layer pellets. It looks like I am going to have to keep them separated until the pullets are 16 weeks.
I was told to add tums to their feed. I am going to have to find a layer feed they like.

I think I may have solved my soft shelled egg problem or at least reduced it. I feed fermented feed and have started mixing the crushed oyster shells into their feed and they eat them. I don't think they have been eating very much of the straight oyster shells from the feeder. The tag on the layer feed that I'm using says that it contains 3 to 4% calcium, which is obviously not enough. Oyster shells are probably the cheapest solution to your problem. Maybe you can feed the grower feed wet and they won't notice the oyster shells are in there and eat them?.

 

[MichelleT]

One of my Ammerucanas has a shell so thin that I had to begin to research what to do. I tried those big rocks (oyster shell) she HATES them, but when I pulverized them with a hammer she will do the powder. Few days later we are right back to thin shell. I called local vet to ask - he said thin shell = not a problem. NO SHELL is a VET Problem!!!

Mine will not eat the white pellet oyster shell... won’t touch it. BUT I found an oyster shell that actually LOOKS like crushed oyster shells... gray, not white, and shell-like (not pebble-like). They eat this stuff up!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01C885W9K/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526612307&sr=1

 

[Fred's Hens]

If she has been fed calcium in her feed, as layer normally has high calcium and you've tried other calcium sources, such as feeding back egg shells or tossing a handful of calcium carbonate in the feed or on the litter, then at some point, she may actually have a processing or uptake of calcium or reproductive issue. What I"m trying to say is that she may have issues that just providing more calcium may not correct. I'm so sorry about this.

Also, sorry I cannot recommend a dosing on the liquid. Better to under dose than over due, I should think. Hope you get some guidance. Wishing you the very best.

 

[dweder]

Fred's Hens :

If she has been fed calcium in her feed, as layer normally has high calcium and you've tried other calcium sources, such as feeding back egg shells or tossing a handful of calcium carbonate in the feed or on the litter, then at some point, she may actually have a processing or uptake of calcium or reproductive issue. What I"m trying to say is that she may have issues that just providing more calcium may not correct. I'm so sorry about this.

Also, sorry I cannot recommend a dosing on the liquid. Better to under dose than over due, I should think. Hope you get some guidance. Wishing you the very best.

You refer to calcium carbonate. Would this be equivalent to oyster shell? She has free choice oyster shell, Nutrena layer feed, ACV in her water daily.​

 

[welasharon]

Mine won't eat oyster shell. I feed them back the crushed shells and occasionally give them cheese or cottage cheese as a supplemental treat.
sharon