egg shells

[Riocotesei]

Hi I just joined the group I love how useful this forum is and people seem friendly!

Anyways my one of my Leghorn girls started laying Wednesday, MY FIRST EGG!

and I wasn't expecting another egg for a day or two, but I went out side and I'm guessing the same female (not for sure) layed another egg. This one however seemed misdeveloped. There were soft thin areas on it along with hard shell like it should be. I wonder if it's just because she started laying and laying two days in a row the egg might not come out right. Or they need special nutrition for the shells. Should I get some oyster shell chips for them? Is there anything else I can do for them?
Thanks !

 

[chicknhawaii]

This topic is so similar to what I was going to post as a new topic, I thought I'd join in...my Chick-Chick's 2nd batch of eggs are like Riocotesei's chicken's eggs BUT her 1st batch of 2 (laid 2 days ago) were fine...

 

[Silly Chickens]

When my BR started laying, her 1st egg was normal...then for about 1 1/2 weeks she had only soft shelled eggs. They were completely soft. I had already started feeding her oyster shell too. Since then her eggs are good. My other BR started with soft shells then went to regular.

 

[cajunlizz]

yes , Oyster shells are a must and also laying pellets

 

[chicksgalore]

I've had a couple lay a soft-shelled or two when they first started laying. It always straightened itself out shortly. Those of you who feed oyster shells in addition to layer pellets, I thought the layer feed contained that or something similar already? I have never fed oyster shells, even before my girls were free range and have never had any problem.

 

[derby]

Can you eat the eggs with soft shells?

 

[cajunlizz]

Quote:
I read several times in here that we are suppose to PUT bowl of oyster shells / GRIT and let them eat all they want

 

[thechickenchick]

Quote:
I just scrambled mine up and fed them back to the chickens! As long as it is sealed you could probabally eat it though.

 

[chicknhawaii]

I am glad to hear that it can take anywhere from the next batch of eggs to 1-1/2 weeks for the girls to get things sorted out.

The guy at the feed store told me that there's enough calcium in the Triple-Duty (aka Dual Purpose) for layers and there's no need to add anything else. Especially since my girls roam the yard for a few hours each day...

Maybe the best thing is to consult with the people where you buy your feed at and find out what's in the feed you buy then see what they recommend. If the shells for Chick-Chick remains soft for more than another week, I'll be heading to the feed store for advice!

 

[priszilla]

depends on your feedstore-the folks at my real feed store ( the one I go to most) are knowledgeable farm folks. THe people at the average TSC are not- so it varies. SOme people have been told by the feed store to only feed scratch- or only feed starter-- for life! so buyer beware