• Shell-less Egg and Droopy Hen, Please Help!

[onesweetflock]

Continue the moist heat and give her another calcium tablet today. The calcium is extremely important in this type of crisis. It may mean the difference between a stuck soft shell egg and a hard shell egg that can be pushed out. The moist heat lubricates and relaxes tissues.

Then provide plenty of water to drink to keep her tissues as hydrated as possible. Smoothing some coconut oil on her vent, getting some just inside the vent, can also help with that final "push".

Thanks so much, I'll continue doing that and continue hoping for the best then! I haven't tried putting any oil on her vent yet, so that's probably a good idea too. I'll keep y'all posted!!

 

[rebrascora]

Out of curiosity, what do you feed them? A layer pellet/crumbles or a mixed grain feed or mash? Do they get fed scratch or any other treat/ I appreciate that you mention that they get a balanced diet but some grain mixes/mashes allow the birds to pick and chose which components of it they eat and the fines which contain the essential minerals are often left behind, so whilst you provide a good balanced diet, the hens don't always eat a balanced diet. Similarly feeding too much scratch or other carbs like bread, pasta and rice etc can cause a nutrient imbalance. I believe there is more to shell quality than just calcium although I am no expert and whilst a calcium supplement is a good idea in these circumstances, checking that they are eating a balanced ration as their main source of food is very important.

 

[onesweetflock]

Out of curiosity, what do you feed them? A layer pellet/crumbles or a mixed grain feed or mash? Do they get fed scratch or any other treat/ I appreciate that you mention that they get a balanced diet but some grain mixes/mashes allow the birds to pick and chose which components of it they eat and the fines which contain the essential minerals are often left behind, so whilst you provide a good balanced diet, the hens don't always eat a balanced diet. Similarly feeding too much scratch or other carbs like bread, pasta and rice etc can cause a nutrient imbalance. I believe there is more to shell quality than just calcium although I am no expert and whilst a calcium supplement is a good idea in these circumstances, checking that they are eating a balanced ration as their main source of food is very important.

I have been feeding them layer crumbles mixed with oyster shells, cracked corn, and ocassionally omega-3 supplement when they don't get greens. Recently I'd switched to layer pellets with added omega 3 support. I give them bread fairly sparingly, but do give them lots of seeds (usually millet) and oats as treats. Sometimes I'll give them scraps, but that's generally limited to vegetables / fruits only. You make a good point that they might be being naughty and picking around the oyster shells though!! They're spoiled and this is very possible haha. I'm thinking of crushing calcium supplements into their feed so that they can't help but to eat it. That, or adding some dairy since they seem to really like eating that too. Thanks so much for the input!! ;v; I'm no expert on egg production either, but haven't had any trouble in the past 4 years of raising chickens til now at least! Hopefully I can straighten this out.

 

[rebrascora]

I would not add oyster shell to their layer crumbles nor anything else, it just encourages them to bill the feed out to get to the bits they like and selectively eat those in preference. Layer feed already contains the calcium they need and is a complete feed. Once you start diluting it by giving them other things like cracked corn, which is mostly just carbohydrates, you reduce their protein and calcium intake. How would you know how much calcium to add, to give them enough but not too much to make up the deficit? Excess calcium can cause kidney problems so it is a fine balance. Providing oyster shell in a separate dish for the hens to take as and when they need it is better, but there is more to shell quality than just calcium and the balance with other minerals and nutrients is very important, so you are better sticking to a layer crumble/pellet and giving them very little else. Whilst birds do often enjoy dairy produce, it is not always good for them (they have not evolved to process dairy) and an occasional treat of a bit of yoghurt is very different from giving them milk on a near daily basis. I do not believe the latter is healthy for them and again, will upset the balance or their nutrition and possibly lead to obesity or digestive problems.
Chickens are like top level athletes. Their bodies are working at an optimum efficiency level (nature never intended for them to lay so many eggs) and as such, their diet is very important. Feed manufacturers have done a lot of research to provide all the essential nutrients they need to keep them healthy and laying eggs and then we start giving them extras, which means they eat less of the formulated ration and the balance is lost. A few scraps every now and then is OK but the vast majority of their food should be from that formulated layer feed.

 

[onesweetflock]

Well, fair nuff! When I had been offering them oyster shells separately before, they seemed to eat them extremely hard when returning to the coop after being outside, but then I noticed they had stopped doing that so much and then started mixing it into the feed instead because I worried. They do have access to that feed 24/7 though and I certainly don't give them enough goodies for them to not want that! None of my other 21 hens seem to have any sort of issue with egg production, so I'm kinda extra worried for Butter ahah.... I hope it's just that she had been avoiding the proper feed or something that simple.

 

[onesweetflock]

Just a quick update for those following, I administered some penicillin to her, as well as more calcium + egg yolk mixture. I've been reheating the heating pad as often as I can, too. She doesn't seem to want to eat on her own, but does poop every now and then, and hasn't laid anything so far. I'll likely give her another epsom salt bath later tonight and try to see if I felt everything I should have in her vent. Will promptly clean the vent with vinegar solution and put oil back there as well. She has a little more personality today and has been sassy about this whole process, so I'm a bit more hopeful now, with caution lol.

 

[onesweetflock]

Update for today: She's doing so much better! Her normal appetite is mostly back, though she still won't eat everything that's put in front of her like usual. I think the epsom salt baths and the penicillin were the most helpful from what I could tell! Thanks everyone so much again for their help, I really do appreciate it!! I will continue to keep a close eye and continue posting updates until she's 100% again.

 

[rebrascora]

 

[micstrachan]

Thanks for the update! I’m glad to hear she’s feeling better.