3 eggs/day soft shelled

[Batacaza]

Hello

I have Isadora - a 6 month old blue Ameraucana hen who started laying around 17 weeks of age. She’s been giving us 5-6 beautiful blue eggs/week that have been increasing nicely in size.

On a few occasions now she has laid 3 eggs in one day - the first one is normal and in the nest box, but the next two are often rubber eggs or sometimes shell-less and usually laid on the poop board or out in the yard. She usually has some mucus passing or straining leading up to them. She understandably takes the day off laying for a day or two after.

Shell quality overall has been excellent - nice hard shells and she is on layer pellets with free choice grit and oyster shell on the side. Some scraps as well from the house and free ranges most evenings. Currently her eggs are in the 50-55g range.

Anything I should be doing for her in terms of nutrition, light supplementation, etc? Any thoughts on whether this is the sign of a problem?

Thanks!!

 

[Silviaschicks]

If she is laying lots of softies, make sure to give her layer feed so she gets enough calcium

 

[aart]

Some scraps as well from the house

Might want to cut out the scraps.
Is she eating the oyster shells?

make sure to give her layer feed so she gets enough calcium

Did you miss this part?......

she is on layer pellets

 

[Batacaza]

Might want to cut out the scraps.
Is she eating the oyster shells?

Yes she is eating the oyster shells. Her eggs are typically excellent quality and have really nice thick shells. This seems to be more of an issue with overproduction or hypermotility/decreased transit time of the eggs.

She lays almost daily but has occasional days where she lays 3 (!) eggs. The first one is normal but second and third are rubber shells.

Not sure if it’s just a “blip” in the matrix??? Lol

 

[Batacaza]

If she is laying lots of softies, make sure to give her layer feed so she gets enough calcium

Per original post, she is on layer pellets plus free choice oyster shell. The issue does not seem to be related to calcium deficiency.

 

[aart]

She lays almost daily but has occasional days where she lays 3 (!) eggs. The first one is normal but second and third are rubber shells.

Not sure if it’s just a “blip” in the matrix???

Probably....how long has she been laying?

 

[Batacaza]

W

Probably....how long has she been laying?

Just over 2 months.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

"Hiccups" in the process are about (according to sources I've read) 10x more prevalent in new layers than in older (over 1 year) hens, and of course tend to be more frequent in early, high frequency layers. I've seen mention here on BYC of birds laying two eggs in a day - the second egg is always soft, frequently essentially shell-less. You, however, are the first to report three eggs in a day out of a single bird in my recollection.

I have no cures to offer. Hopefully, as she matures, frequency of this will drop dramatically - but if you are a breeder, I'd not use her for that purpose, and based solely on the normal expectations for early, high frequency layers, I'd expect reproductive problems and a relatively short life for your lady, even if this condition does largely resolve on its own in the coming months. and if she defies expectations??? So much the better!

You are doing all you can with diet, unless you can get hold of some dicalcium phosphate as an alternative to, or addition to, the oyster shell. Its widely used in countries that don't have ready supply of either oysters or limestone as a calcium suppliment source. Perfectly safe, used on commercial scale. Its not superior to oyster shell in most respects (though its not as hard on the internal organs of roosters and adolescents), but it is different enough that its worth trying if you are exploring all options. Will it work??? Honestly, I haven't a clue.

 

[Batacaza]

You, however, are the first to report three eggs in a day out of a single bird in my recollection.

Hopefully, as she matures, frequency of this will drop dramatically - but if you are a breeder, I'd not use her for that purpose, and based solely on the normal expectations for early, high frequency layers, I'd expect reproductive problems and a relatively short life for your lady, even if this condition does largely resolve on its own in the coming months. and if she defies expectations??? So much the better!

You are doing all you can with diet, unless you can get hold of some dicalcium phosphate as an alternative to, or addition to, the oyster shell.

Yes, 3 eggs per day seems really unusual! She’s done it about 5 times in the past 2 months.

I'm not a breeder - just a small urban flock with no roo. I was worried about the possibility of shortened life and repro disease as well. Just wanted to make sure it wasn’t a problem of an external al source that I was causing somehow.

We are having issues with oyster shell shortage here in Alberta currently so I may look into your suggestion re: alternative calcium supplementation.

Many thanks for your reply!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Yes, 3 eggs per day seems really unusual! She’s done it about 5 times in the past 2 months.

I'm not a breeder - just a small urban flock with no roo. I was worried about the possibility of shortened life and repro disease as well. Just wanted to make sure it wasn’t a problem of an external al source that I was causing somehow.

We are having issues with oyster shell shortage here in Alberta currently so I may look into your suggestion re: alternative calcium supplementation.

Many thanks for your reply!

Amazon carries it in bulk - some people use it for their dogs - about $10/lb, more if you buy smaller portions. Thankfully, you don't need a lot, if you use it to suppliment the oyster/limestone. Dose not higher that the study I linked. Or start dosage at half the amount the study recommends, and adjust based on your bird's response.