Chronic weak egg problem (thin shells, or no shells). How to fix??

[kayri]

Hi All,
Glad to talk with you again Kerry and glad that Lucy is doing better and very glad that she is in the molt stage. I am also glad that I am not the only one spending hundreds of dollars on those pet chickens! I think the molt is the key. I am hoping that Ruby starts a molt soon, her sister Rosy has and she often follows suit. I continue to give them calcium glubionate, and free range crushed oyster shell and yogurt every day. I have to say that I should probably follow suit myself because I probably need more calcium myself, but aside from giving them crushed up tums, I don't think I can get more calcium in their diets. . .

I have found that even when they are sick and have no appetite, mine will always eat roast beef. I suppose they also might eat chicken or turkey but I just can't bring my self to feed them that.

Tegg I have to say that I haven't kept track of how much water they have been drinking. I know that when Ruby got sick a while ago, about 2 weeks after the fox attack, she drank a lot of water, but I think it was because she had a lot of diarrhea, and was replacing the water. How do you know she needed water at night? I have to admit that I'm not out there at night watching them. Also, I don't keep water in my coop overnight because I'm afraid they will knock it over.

Kay

 

[Malpower]

Quote:
Hi Kay!

Oh yes, I hope Ruby starts to molt like her sister Rosy. It looks like Lucy is slowly shedding those very old feathers and two of the other girls have started to follow suit -- one is holding on and she's nearly the only one laying -- another has an egg every few days. Since our summer has been feeling more like fall, maybe this explains it. OR the fact that Lucy got that Lupron and then started molting -- they tend to follow Lucy's lead!

I continue to give them calcium glubionate, and free range crushed oyster shell and yogurt every day. I have to say that I should probably follow suit myself because I probably need more calcium myself, but aside from giving them crushed up tums, I don't think I can get more calcium in their diets. . .

Well, you're probably doing it already, but in case not, some more suggestions for calcium -- chopped up kale, mustard greens, cheeses of all kinds from cottage to hard, a bit of buttermilk (very high calcium), and mine won't eat the crushed oyster shell, so I add oyster shell flour to their feed.

I have found that even when they are sick and have no appetite, mine will always eat roast beef. I suppose they also might eat chicken or turkey but I just can't bring my self to feed them that.

I haven't tried beef but I might for a bit of a change. I know what you mean about turkey/chicken, I wouldn't have tried it until I saw the vet do it specifically to get Lucy to start eating again -- I guess what they don't know won't hurt them and we just have to not think about it ourselves!!

I continue to put Lucy's meds on chopped up chicken and toss extra bits to the other girls once Lucy has disappeared around the corner, otherwise she'd chase them away and eat every bit herself!

Re water -- I actually have a hanging water dispenser inside the coop day and night -- altho normally I don't believe my girls ever budge from their roost during the night cuz when I get out there in the morning before they've come off the roost, they're exactly where they were the night before -- but, if they do need it they have the water there to drink whenever they come down -- sure they probably drink it first thing in morning before I get out to free them from "jail." And about the last thing they do at night, all of them, is have water before heading in to roost. Also, I know Lucy drank a lot of water throughout the day, a lot, when she wasn't feeling well (it was one of her "symptoms" when I talked to vet).

Kerry​

 

[kayri]

My coop is really small as the girls are outside in their large fenced in area from when I let them out in the morning between 7:30 and 8:30 and dusk. I'm afraid the would spill it or it would drip. I should look into one of those drip waterer's.

I am looking as to where I can buy winter kale to plant some in my garden for them. They really love it and it is not particularly cheap in the winter. . .

Thanks for your input.

Kay

 

[Malpower]

Yeah, my coop is pretty small too, just enough room for the four girls to line up on the roost, and three nesting boxes, but there's a small cage (foyer?

with the little entry door) attached and that's where I have the hanging feeder and waterer -- gosh, I should send you my drip water container -- sort of an upside down bottle with a drip thing the hens are supposed to drink from -- ha! They never even tried, they were afraid of it!

I don't know if the kale here is expensive or not -- about $1 for a big bunch which lasts about a week -- I use the scissors to cut it and then chop a bit and give them about a 1/2 to 1 cup each night -- I get all their other greens (spring mix and spinach) for free in big bags each week, so they get mostly that but I've found that the kale and greens like it have a longer "shelf life" than the other greens which get sorta slimy after some days. I've thought of adding in more kale or mustard greens and then it might start getting expensive. Planting your own is a good idea, but unfortunately for me my veggie boxes have been taken over by the hens, they like to dust bath in them and when there were veggies last year, even with net over, they managed to get in and eat everything. Didn't try to plant anything this year, might next year or even this winter, but have to admit I don't have the heart to take away a favorite spot from the girls! I'm a real sap!

Has your Ruby decided to molt yet? Good luck!

Kerry

 

[kayri]

I think ours is about $2/bunch and I only really give it to them in the winter when they can't get any other greens. Now they have the run of my yard, getting the peach, apple and pear drops, blackberries and all the weeds/grass they can eat. In the winter I would tie a bunch to the top of a covered run for them and they would demolish it within hours.

No molting in sight for poor Ruby. I haven't seen any shelless eggs for about a week now though, who knows what is going on with her. She is very perky and chatty and appears to be well, so that is fine with me. . .

 

[Malpower]

Mine have more or less decimated everything edible in the yard with their free ranging -- at least there are no nasty bugs to speak of either!

It's great you can hang up your greens bunches -- with the darned squirrels and crows eating everything I leave out for the girls, I can't do that -- can't tell you how many times a day I run out waving my arms at the crows and then go almost nose to nose with the squirrels to convince them to leave -- they're not real scared of me anymore.

I'm glad Ruby is better, even if she's not molting! Hopefully she'll not lay for a bit and gather up her calcium reserves to produce some lovely SHELLED eggs soon!

Good luck!
Kerry

 

[Malpower]

Just to add what I hope is the end of the saga for Lucy....it's taken six months or more, two shots of Lupron back last June, a very mini-molt and continued calcium rich foods with additional calcium dribbled on greens, yogurt, cheese and so forth -- and Lucy has finally begun to lay again -- great bigger than ever brown eggs. She had been looking good and really healthy again in recent months, and she and her three sisters (including the one who had been torn up by a hawk, got surgery and stitches and had only been home a week from the vet) started laying a couple of weeks ago. I guess due to all the extra calcium they get, Lucy's eggs are mostly Jumbos, and the other girls who laid from small to large are now giving me large to xlarge eggs. I really am glad we did that lupron treatment cuz it had to help by shutting Lucy down for enough months to recover. I hope this is the happy end to the story.....but you just never know, do you, with hens!!!

I hope everyone else's problems with their hens have resolved themselves in the past 6 months, too, and you all aren't getting those horrid soft shelled, no shell eggs any longer!

Kerry AND Lucy

 

[Billy Beautiful]

Ow you gave me tears when you said that you do not want your girl to be an egg laying machine and just want her to feel better. I too have chickens and I have had them now for almost three years. I consider them as part of my family. I too give them oyster shell and the good greens of which I grow in my garden. Just the same as your girls, both my girls, mine would lay perfect eggs and then lately they have thinned out and creating discomfort too her. My one girl has stopped laying eggs altogether now but Billy she is now going through this. I know the eggs are not sticking in side of her as the shells are much too soft. Once in a while she will lay a dinosaur egg. So with doing and giving all that is needed for a healthy chicken to flourish, I have learn t that with hen's their best laying years are that of three... So I am suspecting that her body is winding down with producing her eggs and like my other girl will not produce anymore one day and just go on living a happy life with me. I think it is the hens body s way and slowly stopping the egg process. Thank you for your love of chickens.