4 soft shell eggs today ☹️

[cktap62]

We have 7 hens just over 20 weeks old. We started getting a couple eggs 3 weeks ago. We’ve been getting 1 or 2 soft shell eggs on the poop shelf for 10 days. Now today 4 soft shell on shelf. I am so discouraged! They have oyster shell in the run, they have a nice woodsy area to free range and dig around in, I dry egg shells and crush them up, I ferment their mash. I bought some Tums but unsure if I should give it to all of them, since I don’t know which chicks are doing it. Or am I being impatient and should just wait it out?

 

[RubelliteRose]

New pullets often take a couple of weeks before laying normal shelled eggs consistently. It sounds like they have more than enough access to calcium, so if I had to guess, your 4 soft shell eggs are from girls who were not laying before. Are you getting any normal eggs or are they all soft shelled?

 

[cktap62]

We are getting one or two hard shelled each day. I’m pretty sure 2 are not laying yet—combs not super red, not squatting. They are smaller/skinnier type. I know one is a cream legbar, not sure about the other.