Egg quality.

[Chickenbob]

I have noticed lately that when you break the eggs in the pan, the whites spread out and the yoke is fragile. Also the shells are thin. I give oyster shell but they don't eat it. Is something else lacking in their diet?

 

[JaeG]

It can be caused by hot weather. High temperatures and low humidity can affect the egg white, causing it to become runnier. Chickens also eat less when the weather is hot so this could be why the egg shells are a little weaker - they just aren't eating enough to get enough calcium from their food. You could look into a calcium supplement that you can add to their water.

This site is geared towards commercial egg productions but it might be helpful:
https://thepoultrysite.com/publications/egg-quality-handbook/30/watery-whites

 

[rosemarythyme]

If this is a problem through the whole flock, you can mix some oyster shell into their feed a couple times a week, and see if that helps. If it does, you can reduce it to once a week and see if you still get a good result from that.

If this is an issue with a few individuals that won't eat oyster shell, you can do the same as above, however ideally you'd want to isolate the birds in need of supplementing and give them private breakfasts with a little oyster shell mixed into a Tbsp or so of wet or fermented feed (to make sure the oyster gets eaten).