Hatching eggs from vitamin def hen?

[Nancy Asselin]

Has anyone hatched eggs from a hen that was vitamin deficient? My friend has a pair of Cochins that were not fed the correct feed and the rooster showed signs of deficiency. We would like to try to hatch some of the eggs in case rooster doesn’t make it

 

[MysteryChicken]

Vitamin deficient hens may produce chicks with: Crooked/curled toes, Star Gazing/Wry neck, & probably some other issues I can't quite remember at the moment.

I'll look it up.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Excellent question. Depending on the vitamins deficient it could definitely prevent the embryos from reaching term or to get out on their own. Likely, they have not had the correct levels of amino acids and minerals as well.
What has their diet been?

 

[MysteryChicken]

Found more information.
https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/nutrition-and-management-poultry/vitamin-deficiencies-in-poultry#:~:text=Gross signs in chicks include,deficiency (see Vitamin E Deficiency

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...sociation-with-nutritional-deficiency.636839/

 

[ChickenCanoe]

There is nary a vitamin, mineral nor amino acid that should be deficient in an egg for bringing viable chicks into the world.
A deficiency of any of the following will cause problems: A, D, E, K, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6, B12, pantothenic acid, biotin, folic acid, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, manganese, magnesium, iodine, selenium, linoleic acid to mention a few. An imbalance of amino acids is a biggie too.

 

[Nancy Asselin]

Hen was fed scratch only for last couple of months

 

[Mosey2003]

You can try, but you'll likely see some issues as outlined above. I had a lot of dead in shell and failure to thrive chicks when I was feeding something that I didn't realize was deficient in some things.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Hen was fed scratch only for last couple of months

I'm surprised they were still laying eggs.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

One of my neighbors saw me at the local feed store and wanted to buy some of my hens. He said his were broken and wouldn't lay eggs. I asked what he was feeding them. He said, "corn". I said, "yeah but what else?" He said, "just corn". I said, "well, you are starving them".
I told him to buy a bag of layer feed and eliminate the corn. In less than 2 months they were all laying eggs.
I probably would have suggested mixing half and half layer with starter or all flock, but this store usually doesn't have any fresh feed other than layer. Plus, he was skeptical.