Shell-less egg white only egg

[Sarah White]

Hello! I am relatively new to chickens. I have 3 hens (Rhode island reds, I believe) and 1 bantam rooster. We have had them since about June and they have been great layers for us. They started not laying as much and we added whole corn to their feed, and started offering oyster shell a few weeks ago. Production is down to about 1 egg per day and I'm thinking it is because it's starting to be cold. Anyway, I found this in my chicken run and got a picture right before another hen ate it. Shell-less, yolk-less, and not in the nesting boxes where they have always laid eggs. Does anybody know if this is ok? Do I need to do something differently?

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

I used to have a hen that did that. But she endedp getting sick and died. I never knew what it was. i hope somebody else can help you!

 

[Sarah White]

I used to have a hen that did that. But she endedp getting sick and died. I never knew what it was. i hope somebody else can help you!

Oh, I'm sorry about your hen! Thank you for replying to me!

 

[Newchickenwoman]

I'm new to this too and I've had a couple of 'fairy eggs'. One was laid outside the hen house and one inside; both were teeny-tiny and had a shell but a completely white yolk. I cooked one of them and tasted it - it was ok but very bland. I didn't fancy eating the rest because the (lack of) colour gave me the heebie-jeebies. I did ask about it on here and it seems it's quite rare but not necessarily indicative of a problem. My girls seem very healthy and are otherwise laying very well. It's apparently something which just happens sometimes in hens who are inexperienced layers!

 

[Sarah White]

Oooh, a white yolk would give me the heebis too! I read about the fairy eggs, but I'm not sure that's what this is. Thank you for replying to me! It's nice to have such a responsive chicken loving community!

 

[Newchickenwoman]

Oooh, a white yolk would give me the heebis too! I read about the fairy eggs, but I'm not sure that's what this is. Thank you for replying to me! It's nice to have such a responsive chicken loving community!

Apparently, it's not uncommon to have shell-less eggs either. Maybe you just got a double whammy of white yolk AND shell-less!

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

Oh, I'm sorry about your hen! Thank you for replying to me!

Your welcome. Although, it was probably not the most encouraging one!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

They started not laying as much and we added whole corn to their feed, and started offering oyster shell a few weeks ago.

Hi @Sarah White

How old are the hens?
What type of feed do you normally feed?

Molting, illness, nutritional imbalance, age, breed, environment, etc. can all be factors in a decline in production.
Ensuring they have a balanced poultry feed like layer feed or a flock raiser formula is best. Treats like corn should be given sparingly - aim for treats to be no more than 5-10% of their daily intake.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/common-egg-quality-problems

 

[kgb6days]

I have one girl that lays a shell - less yolk - less egg a couple times a week. the other days she lays one with a very thin fragile shell. There is oyster shell readily available. She gets good food. Her egg laying parts just don't work that great right now. I'm not intervening cause she seems fine otherwise.