Calcium for pastured laying hens

[centrarchid]

My concern is that the particles of egg shell may be too sharp and could damage the mucous membranes of the upper digestive tract. I don't have a way of pulverising the shells, and I think the particle size my blender or food processor produces is still too large to be entirely safe. Perhaps I'm wrong; I'm just not willing to take the risk, as it's really my chickens who are unwittingly assuming the risk.

Gizzard triturates the eggshell fragments so they do not damage GIT lining.

Calcium source alternative could be bone meal or even ground limestone.

 

[Chris King]

"Gizzard triturates the eggshell fragments so they do not damage GIT lining."

Before reaching the gizzard, the eggshell fragments must first pass through the mouth, pharynx, oesophagus (including crop), and proventriculus. Those sites are my concern with crushed or otherwise coarsely ground egg shells.


"Calcium source alternative could be bone meal or even ground limestone."

Bone meal contains a good deal of phosphorus as well as calcium; in fact, it's recommended as a soil amendment for phosphorus-deficient soils.

Ground limestone is not very palatable, so I'd be having to mix it with something the chickens willingly eat. I'd sooner offer them something calcium-rich that is palatable to them.

Signing off from this thread now.

 

[centrarchid]

"Gizzard triturates the eggshell fragments so they do not damage GIT lining."

Before reaching the gizzard, the eggshell fragments must first pass through the mouth, pharynx, oesophagus (including crop), and proventriculus. Those sites are my concern with crushed or otherwise coarsely ground egg shells.


"Calcium source alternative could be bone meal or even ground limestone."

Bone meal contains a good deal of phosphorus as well as calcium; in fact, it's recommended as a soil amendment for phosphorus-deficient soils.

Ground limestone is not very palatable, so I'd be having to mix it with something the chickens willingly eat. I'd sooner offer them something calcium-rich that is palatable to them.

Signing off from this thread now.

What you will find if observant with an open mind (latter might be an issue here) is that the birds routinely consume relatively large and abrasive food items.

Mine also consume whole acorns that at least the size of black olives you buy at store.Think about the tecture of a large beetle or even teeth of a mouth as they go down the oesophagus. When sticking to simply egg shells, the chickens themselves are almost the exclusive consumers of broken eggs and remnants after the chicks hatch and leave the nest.

Not all items consumed are done so based on what a human considers palatable, especially when the human is accustomed to a complete and processed diet. They rocks for grit and consume nettles, nightshade and other prickly and sometimes toxic fare. They also engage in what appears to us as pica when consuming rocks. Some of the gravel serves as grit while some almost certainly is consumed because of it mineral content. Taste certainly plays a role in the latter situation where the hens in lay with higher calcium needs consume more than the males and others not in lay.

 

[DuckLady]

This problem is surely one that other producers of pastured laying hens have come across, so I'm wondering what other palatable sources of calcium I can supply that prevents the decline in shell quality without overburdening the body with excess calcium. (Buying yoghurt each week for 18 hens is becoming a bit of a financial burden…)

Thanks!

The eggshell suggestion is an excellent one, though it's clear you aren't interested in that.
Another suggestion, since yogurt seems to be what you want to give them, is have you ever considered making your own? It's easy and inexpensive to make yogurt at home.

 

[centrarchid]

Whey might be more economical. We used to use it for hogs and commercial laying hens.