Egg pigment disappearing and broken egg

[Rockergirl]

Hi. My same little hen that seems to have all the problems is still having egg problems. Originally it was a bunch of calcium deposits, now, the past few days her eggs have been basically white (normally they are tan) and today I walked into the coop and her egg was broken, sitting next to another egg (luckily no one discovered it and I was able to clean it up). Also, when I crack her eggs to eat, they are pretty thin. My other hens eggs are very strong shells when I crack them. I feed scratch and peck layer feed and also keep oyster shells out at all time and feed a scrambled egg once a week. She is the only one that ever has calcium deposits (about 60% of her eggs). She is my smallest hen. No one really bullies but she is def at the bottom of the pecking order. I did learn recently that the top hen pecks at her when they eat at the same time. I started giving multiple bowls, which has helped. Any suggestions on her egg problems? I thought calcium deposits meant she has too much calcium but then if that was the case, then her eggs would be strong. Really worried about tomorrow and the next dayd when she has another broken egg and the other chicks find it....

 

[CKfarm22]

Hi. My same little hen that seems to have all the problems is still having egg problems. Originally it was a bunch of calcium deposits, now, the past few days her eggs have been basically white (normally they are tan) and today I walked into the coop and her egg was broken, sitting next to another egg (luckily no one discovered it and I was able to clean it up). Also, when I crack her eggs to eat, they are pretty thin. My other hens eggs are very strong shells when I crack them. I feed scratch and peck layer feed and also keep oyster shells out at all time and feed a scrambled egg once a week. She is the only one that ever has calcium deposits (about 60% of her eggs). She is my smallest hen. No one really bullies but she is def at the bottom of the pecking order. I did learn recently that the top hen pecks at her when they eat at the same time. I started giving multiple bowls, which has helped. Any suggestions on her egg problems? I thought calcium deposits meant she has too much calcium but then if that was the case, then her eggs would be strong. Really worried about tomorrow and the next dayd when she has another broken egg and the other chicks find it....

What breed is she? How old?

 

[Rockergirl]

What breed is she? How old?

She is an Easter Egger and is about 10 months old

 

[CKfarm22]

She is an Easter Egger and is about 10 months old

One thing i’m going to say is get rid of the scratch and peck food, assuming based on pictures on line it has grains and other stuff “treats” in it. They’re going to pick out what they like and leave the rest.

What oyster shells are you using? is it crushed oyster shells?

Do you give them any other treats besides the scrambled egg?

 

[Rockergirl]

One thing i’m going to say is get rid of the scratch and peck food, assuming based on pictures on line it has grains and other stuff “treats” in it. They’re going to pick out what they like and leave the rest.

What oyster shells are you using? is it crushed oyster shells?

Do you give them any other treats besides the scrambled egg?

With the food, I ferment it and wet it to help make sure they get the nutrients. Also leave it out freely (not wet). I did recently move from the pellets to the seed (but I do still wet it and ferment so it will clump). With the oyster shells, it's azure standard brand, not really sure where it comes from but it's crushed between 1/8 to 3/8 inch size. For treats, I give them mostly greens (lettuce, kale, microgreens), not too much and also I give them grub worms. every couple of days.

I wonder if I should change back to the pellet feed? I just didn't like the process of making the pellets...I was looking for more natural form

 

[CKfarm22]

With the food, I ferment it and wet it to help make sure they get the nutrients. Also leave it out freely (not wet). I did recently move from the pellets to the seed (but I do still wet it and ferment so it will clump). With the oyster shells, it's azure standard brand, not really sure where it comes from but it's crushed between 1/8 to 3/8 inch size. For treats, I give them mostly greens (lettuce, kale, microgreens), not too much and also I give them grub worms. every couple of days.

I wonder if I should change back to the pellet feed? I just didn't like the process of making the pellets...I was looking for more natural form

Probably would be a good idea to switch the feed. Because like i said, they’re going to pick out the grains they like, whether you ferment it or not.

How were her eggs on the other feed?

 

[Rockergirl]

Probably would be a good idea to switch the feed. Because like i said, they’re going to pick out the grains they like, whether you ferment it or not.

How were her eggs on the other feed?

On the other feed, they had all the calcium deposits, a lot of them. They were thinner as well, when I cracked them. Really easy to crack compare to the other ladies shells - but never a broken one in the nest. They were her "normal" color on the pellet feed

 

[CKfarm22]

On the other feed, they had all the calcium deposits, a lot of them. They were thinner as well, when I cracked them. Really easy to crack compare to the other ladies shells - but never a broken one in the nest. They were her "normal" color on the pellet feed

What brand of feed was it?

 

[Rockergirl]

What brand of feed was it?

It's also scratch and peck, but it's their layer pellet formula instead of the seed

 

[rosemarythyme]

This might be a shelling gland issue, but to know for sure you could try directly supplementing her with calcium to see if that at least helps with shell strength.

Since you know exactly which bird is the problem bird, isolate her for a private breakfast. 2-3x a week serve a small bowl (like 1 Tbsp is fine) of wet or fermented feed with oyster shell mixed in. If she does not like chunks of oyster shell, crush it up or use the powdery remnants from bottom of the bag. Should only take her minutes to eat and after that she's free to go.

Assuming her issue is simply insufficient calcium intake, you should see results in a week or two, and you can try reducing it to 1-2x a week and should hopefully continue getting good results. If you still have the same issue, then you might need to try pills of calcium citrate instead for a faster, bigger calcium boost.