8 month old. - egg totally no shell in coop

[Nicky S]

When I went to clean the coop this morning I found an egg, yolk in tact, with completely no shell, in the poop tray (girls are in an eglu). It literally looked like someone had cracked an egg in there. They only ever lay in the nesting box, so it feels like she didn’t even count this as an egg. They are laying well - many days I have 4 eggs and I have 5 girls. I don’t know who this egg came from though. I have an accidental rooster, so I feed them starter/grower crumbles with crushed oyster shells separately, but some of the girls totally ignore them. They free range for a most of the day most days, and they are very keen on kitchen scraps. A neighbor works in Whole Foods and comes with huge boxes of organic veggies for them too (kale, chard, bok choy etc). Should I be worried? Is their diet ok? They don’t really eat much of their crumbles, though I mix a bit of scratch in to encourage them. Many thanks!

 

[sixlittlechickens]

Having a few hiccups in the laying process (especially this young) is completely normal. If this becomes a regular occurrence then I would be concerned. Sounds like you are feeding them well!

 

[nuthatched]

Don't mix scratch into their actually food and cut back on the fruits and vegetables. It's not bad for them but it need to be only about 10% of their food a day and a chicken eats about a quarter cup of food a day.:]

 

[Nicky S]

Having a few hiccups in the laying process (especially this young) is completely normal. If this becomes a regular occurrence then I would be concerned. Sounds like you are feeding them well!

Perfect - thank you!

 

[Nicky S]

Don't mix scratch into their actually food and cut back on the fruits and vegetables. It's not bad for them but it need to be only about 10% of their food a day and a chicken eats about a quarter cup of food a day.:]

Ok, good to know, thanks! They spend most of the day foraging in the garden, so I'm never really quite sure what they are eating. I think I was overestimating what they should be eating in terms of their regular food.