Chronic shell-less eggs

[HeyHo]

My Golden Comet, Rosie, has been laying shell-less eggs fairly regularly over the past month or two. I have 5 hens (1.5 years) and 4 pullets (4 months). Rosie is one of the hens and I'm pretty sure it is her, but I'm not 100%. I didn't have a problem when the older girls were on layer feed, but when I switched to grower feed for the mixed-aged flock, I started having these problems. I feed oyster shell on the side and have tried giving Rosie straight Tums, but she wasn't interested and wouldn't take them.

Question: do I have to wait for the littles to be officially laying before switching to layer feed? Or is it close enough? i'm almost out of my current bag of feed and need to get another soon, so I could go either way.

 

[Compost King]

I have issues getting certain hens to eat the oyster shell on the side and I broke the rules and fed Layer feed to an entire flock even though there were young'ns not laying yet and I didn't notice any problems from doing that but who knows if it did organ damage that shortened their lives... I personally do not sweat such things, if oyster shell on the side works I do it, if hens do not eat it and they lay eggs with out a shell then I do what I have to do. Others will tell you different but you just gotta do what you gotta do. Its not my place to tell you what you have to do I just want to say I will feed high calcium feed to the entire flock over one hen refusing oyster shells.

 

[GRB73]

My Wyandotte had a similar problem. I ground up half of a calcium vitamin tablet, mixed the powder into an egg and scrambled it all up. My hen gobbled it down. I did this for three days and she started laying hard shelled eggs again.

 

[Compost King]

My Wyandotte had a similar problem. I ground up half of a calcium vitamin tablet, mixed the powder into an egg and scrambled it all up. My hen gobbled it down. I did this for three days and she started laying hard shelled eggs again.

I grind up egg shells and mix it in yolk and feed it to chickens sometimes. I might add a ground up tablet when I have soft eggs again.

 

[GossChicks]

I had that oroblem and someone from SABYC suggested scrambled eggs mixed with finely ground egg shell, oregano and cinnamon. To make the shells easy to grind with rolling pin nuke them 55 seconds. Feed this just to the hens. Worked for me.

 

[HeyHo]

Thanks everyone! I will try these suggestions!

 

[Helloworld]

We use bird cuttle bones. Easier to crush and mine go after it. It also helps with egg binding because it is fine and will actually break down a stuck egg as well. We just put in a bag, smash and free feed. I keep mine on crumbles for 6 weeks than half crumble, half adult pellets so they can get used to bigger pieces and never have had an issue.

 

[casportpony]

also helps with egg binding because it is fine and will actually break down a stuck egg as well.

I don't think this is true.

 

[casportpony]

tried giving Rosie straight Tums, but she wasn't interested and wouldn't take them.

Get some calcium citrate tablets and give them orally. Maybe give 250 mg three days in a row and see if that helps.

 

[dawg53]

We use bird cuttle bones. Easier to crush and mine go after it. It also helps with egg binding because it is fine and will actually break down a stuck egg as well. We just put in a bag, smash and free feed. I keep mine on crumbles for 6 weeks than half crumble, half adult pellets so they can get used to bigger pieces and never have had an issue.

Cuttle bone is another source of calcium to prevent calcium deficiency in birds. That's all.