Coral sand a workable calcium supplement?

[triplepurpose]

I'm unable to find oystershell sold locally right now, and have a dozen hens laying heavily, so need extra calcium asap. we feed back the baked shells of their eggs (that we don't sell), but that by itself is not enough, one assumes. feed we're using has no added calcium because we have a mixed breeding flock so wholly reliant on free choice supplements for calcium. We have been limping along for some time already waiting for the feedstore(s) to restock but found out this morning it may be at least another month which won't cut it.

Some products I've found online advertized as "oystershell" actually contain large proportions of "coral" (crushed, ground?).

I live near a number of lovely golden/white beaches, most of which are mainly composed of a mixture of dead coral and marine mollusk and bivalves and other shells, and some grey or black lava rock (the latter proportion of which is discernible by the color of the sand). It would seem at first glance to be a reasonable source of calcium supplement at least in a pinch--and most importantly one that I could be offering them as early as this afternoon.

Yet I find little about it online. Does the ocean leach the calcium from the sand? I can't see how. Is there some other reason hens can't derive calcium from it? I would love some info to support the idea that naturally accumulated coral/seashell-based sand would actually supply some bioavailable calcium for hens, but regardless I will probably get some today anyway because I see literally no potential downside to experimenting with offering it (provided it doesn't have too much salt or any plastics/pollutants etc on it).

TIA for any clues you can point me toward!

 

[HKG]

@CHlCKEN

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

It may be worth a try, especially if oyster shell is hard to get. Does the beach have any larger shell or coral pieces you could harvest?

The one issue I could think of with the sand (assuming it has sufficient calcium in it) is that tiny pieces may pass through the digestive system before the chicken absorbs the calcium.

Larger pieces may help with that issue, although it means a little extra effort breaking up shells and coral.

If you try it, let us know how it goes. Good luck!

 

[triplepurpose]

It may be worth a try, especially if oyster shell is hard to get. Does the beach have any larger shell or coral pieces you could harvest?

The one issue I could think of with the sand (assuming it has sufficient calcium in it) is that tiny pieces may pass through the digestive system before the chicken absorbs the calcium.

Larger pieces may help with that issue, although it means a little extra effort breaking up shells and coral.

If you try it, let us know how it goes. Good luck!

Thanks for the reply! I'm going to give it a try today and see how they accept it. Some areas do have quite fine sand but other beaches near reef have larger particles and drifts of larger pieces washed up (coral and shells) so I have options. (And there are certainly acres of it lying around so ethically speaking I don't feel like I'd be hurting anything collecting a small bucket's worth occasionally to help out our little flock of calcium-starved hens during this mysterious pandemic oystershell shortage...)

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Thanks for the reply! I'm going to give it a try today and see how they accept it. Some areas do have quite fine sand but other beaches near reef have larger particles and drifts of larger pieces washed up (coral and shells) so I have options. (And there are certainly acres of it lying around so ethically speaking I don't feel like I'd be hurting anything collecting a small bucket's worth occasionally to help out our little flock of calcium-starved hens during this mysterious pandemic oystershell shortage...)

Keep us posted on how it goes. I agree harvesting a little bit probably isn't a problem - but check your local regulations. I think a tiny pail or a ziplock bag full would hold you a while...not like you're backing up a dump truck to load!

 

[triplepurpose]

Keep us posted on how it goes. I agree harvesting a little bit probably isn't a problem - but check your local regulations. I think a tiny pail or a ziplock bag full would hold you a while...not like you're backing up a dump truck to load!

Yes, point well taken. This unusual circumstance should easily fall under the umbrella of subsistence foraging (some people probably collect more coral, shells, or sand for little kids' art projects), but we do take our land and ocean stewardship seriously around here, which is why I felt moved to comment on that.