hen not processing calcium correctly?

[technodoll]

Well, the calcium is in their layer food... and when I do add crushed oyster shell (once every couple of weeks) I just mix a bit in their food, otherwise the girls don't eat it or just scatter it everywhere on the floor.

I guess all I can really do at this point is wait and see if the problem goes away.

The eggs are not soft-shelled, just very THIN shelled. They crack easily, while the other eggs need a good whack to crack open.

I'll try to get a pic tomorrow!

 

[feathersnuggles]

There is something in one of those links (or one of the links in this post) about how it could be caused by not getting enough water. Did you catch that, too? So, perhaps your hen isn't drinking much water, maybe she doesn't like the taste of ACV in water (or whatever). I have one who doesn't drink water as much as the others. In that case, your adding a little more ACV whenever you give treats might help her. Betcha no one turns up their nose to treats!

Oh, and BTW... they do it because they Love you! They want to gaze upon your face as OFTEN as possible!

 

[technodoll]

LOL!

yeah they love me, aka the two-legged magic treat-dispensing machine

It is very possible that someone might not be drinking water, although I have been adding ACV to their water for at least a month now, if not 6 weeks, and the egg problem is very recent.

Could it be related to her not free-ranging anymore??

*bewildered*

 

[feathersnuggles]

Hi technodoll,

About your question on free-ranging: who knows, maybe.

I found a *trick* to getting all my girls to drink more water during the cold weather. I offered them a daily warm water "treat" in a round ceramic planter base. The base was pretty wide, so they all gathered around and drank, and drank, and drank! I think they enjoyed the warmth and the hydration. Anyway, you might give that a try. I first did it on freezing days when letting them out of their run in the a.m. -- putting it just outside their run. The warm water was to help it stay unfrozen for a while. I discovered they loved it warm.