2 Soft Shell Eggs in a Row?!

[FreedomFarmer]

I didn’t know 1 chicken could lay more than one egg a day, soft or hard! This is all new to me. Our situation seems to have resolved and I have the oyster shell flakes arriving tomorrow. The crumbles are going in the garden next year. By any chance are you giving them kale for a treat? I read somewhere it could cause a problem with calcium absorption in chickens. No idea where that was but we have stopped giving them so much of it. Which is unfortunate because they love it and it’s still growing like crazy here in our MN garden.

Thanks for the reply @cktap62 . I have not given them kale. I treat them with cucumbers and some scratch grain and meal worms just for a couple of hours before roosting time. None of the others have the issue. And I agree that two eggs in less than 24 hours is weird and might be hard on her health. She is perfectly fine all the time except when she is trying to pass the softshell egg and is fine after it passes.

I am going to order the oyster shell flakes right now. I have been looking for finer oyster shell grit because a lot of it goes to waste. I think a lot of it are bigger pieces than they will eat. I didn't know there was such a thing as oyster shell flakes.

 

[SJsChickies]

So I had to switch the group back to all flock because I integrated 10 week old and she obviously cannot have layer feed. A day and a half later, Agnes dropped a soft shelled egg off the roost overnight again! Could it be that she really just cannot regulate her own calcium supply? Should I be pulling her out every day and giving her layer feed by herself or giving her a 1/2 tablet of calcium citrate every night? I'm so confused by her!

 

[FreedomFarmer]

Here's an update from my September 10, 2025, post about my pullet with the softshell egg problem.

About a week or so after the post it seemed like the softshell issue was improving. I did get oyster shell flakes and started putting it out during that week and continued the oyster shell grit too. But I think she was maturing out of the problem. However, she is still having the problem but appears to be way less often and the softshell eggs are now more like thin shell eggs under the roost, in the nest and sometimes in the yard. Mostly under the roost dropped during the night. It only happens once every week or two unless she is doing it when out free ranging during the day and I don't see or find it.

I'm thinking she has a birth defect with her reproduction system because there are a couple of other things going on.

For one, a few times she has dropped a thin shelled egg in the evening or at night and lays in a nest a hard-shelled egg either the morning of that day or the next morning. That's like laying 2 eggs within 24 hours.

The other thing is the eggs she lays in the nest. Twice in the past month and a half she has layed what I think is called fairy eggs or something like that. Tiny eggs with no yolk. Half of the time she lays huge eggs and the other half normal size eggs except both are more round than typical oblong egg shape. The huge eggs are like half to two thirds the size of a duck egg if my memory is correct about the size of a duck egg when I had a few ducks years ago. See attached photo.

- The top egg is one of her huge eggs. Can't close the lid of an egg carton made for large or jumbo eggs with one of these in it.
- The second egg from the top is one of her normal size eggs.
- The third is one of her tiny/fairy eggs.
- The last one on the bottom is an egg from my blue laced silver Wyandotte for comparison. I put a quarter next to each for size comparison too.

 

[SJsChickies]

Here's an update from my September 10, 2025, post about my pullet with the softshell egg problem.

About a week or so after the post it seemed like the softshell issue was improving. I did get oyster shell flakes and started putting it out during that week and continued the oyster shell grit too. But I think she was maturing out of the problem. However, she is still having the problem but appears to be way less often and the softshell eggs are now more like thin shell eggs under the roost, in the nest and sometimes in the yard. Mostly under the roost dropped during the night. It only happens once every week or two unless she is doing it when out free ranging during the day and I don't see or find it.

I'm thinking she has a birth defect with her reproduction system because there are a couple of other things going on.

For one, a few times she has dropped a thin shelled egg in the evening or at night and lays in a nest a hard-shelled egg either the morning of that day or the next morning. That's like laying 2 eggs within 24 hours.

The other thing is the eggs she lays in the nest. Twice in the past month and a half she has layed what I think is called fairy eggs or something like that. Tiny eggs with no yolk. Half of the time she lays huge eggs and the other half normal size eggs except both are more round than typical oblong egg shape. The huge eggs are like half to two thirds the size of a duck egg if my memory is correct about the size of a duck egg when I had a few ducks years ago. See attached photo.

- The top egg is one of her huge eggs. Can't close the lid of an egg carton made for large or jumbo eggs with one of these in it.
- The second egg from the top is one of her normal size eggs.
- The third is one of her tiny/fairy eggs.
- The last one on the bottom is an egg from my blue laced silver Wyandotte for comparison. I put a quarter next to each for size comparison too.

Aw poor little girl! I’m glad it’s improving. I’ve been having to give mine extra calcium every single day. If I miss one day, she drops 2 softshelled eggs from the roost over night or early morning, without fail. It’s the most bizarre thing. I think mine has a reproductive issue also. As long as she gets the extra calcium, her eggs are huge and perfect and lays almost daily. I know I can’t give her extra calcium for her whole life so it makes me wonder if she’ll make it long once I stop giving it to her