How do I improve the quality of these eggs/shells?

[JLB]

My 2.5 year old Rhode Island Red, has had the same situation (several soft-shelled eggs, and occasional ridge around the equator of egg) since 1st of June. Before that she has been our number one consistent layer. She seems healthy otherwise and I give them all the things you do (organic layer pellets, oyster shelll and grit and they're out in the yard most of the day ranging etc). I have noticed her comb and wattle color have faded a bit, but otherwise she's healthy. Not molting at the moment. A chicken book I have suggested the ridge around the shell could mean the egg cracked inside her and then sealed up. Also, the gritty "barnacles" on outside of shell could mean the hen was stressed... I wonder if the change in egg quality could be due to age?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

How long do you have to throw out the eggs after they get wormed? Or better yet, can I cook up the eggs and feed them back to the chickens during the discard period?

I've done quite a bit of reading on this subject and discovered that the answer to that question will be as varied as the people who respond to it, and that there is a lot of disagreement (and some mis-information) out there....however I'll venture forth boldly, but hopefully not naively.

Short Answer:
Depending upon the de-wormer used, the short answer is generally 14 days after dosing, and you should discard all eggs. Feeding them back to the hens is not generally recommended as you would be re-dosing the de-wormer (theoretically). Usually the livestock medicine will state the slaughter/withdrawal time on the label (but labels on common medicines used won't state egg withdrawal for reason given in Long Answer below.)

HTH
Lady of McCamley
Longer answer

(if you are interested in more de-worming options and for others interested in general de-worming for egg production/quality)...

Usually the first sign of worm over-infestation is poor egg production or quality and thinnish looking birds. At some point we all get there.

With the limited space area in a back yard, even with good sanitation and rotation (the first line of defense), it becomes an issue of how to keep worm infestation in reasonable check...ie, no obvious physical symptoms in the bird (ie, thin looking, pale comb, dull ruffled feathers, diarrhea, listless, poor egg production/quality, susceptible to disease, apparent worms in droppings).

The choices are varied for what has been traditionally used for de-wormers but surprisingly limited if you want to remain within USDA/FDA approval for laying hens....ie eggs for human consumption...and avoid egg waste.

From my extended research currently only Hygromycin B is FDA approved for laying hens and on the market for chickens and requires no egg tossing and is effective against 3 types of worms.

With that in mind I chose to use Rooster Booster Triple Action Multi-Wormer (Hygromycin B and Bacitracin) after my hens bout with IB.

I had noticeable improvement in general health appearance and egg quality. Hygromycin B is proven effective against round, cecal and capillary worms and Bacitracin is a mild antibiotic used for chronic respiratory disease common in commercially contained chickens...something helpful if your hens were hit with IB.

Rooster Booster Multi-wormer is expensive if you have more than just a few chickens ($29.99 at the feed store for one 1.25 lb container). I found it at my local feed store, but found it slightly cheaper online here (with no shipping cost): http://www.abetterchicken.com/product/50101

The container I bought from the feed store had a factory label that said use one 1/3 oz. scoop (included) for 1 pound of feed. I weighed how much feed goes into my 2 gallon feeder, and adjusted from there. You mix it into their feed, and my hens ate it well. For my 16 hens, 1 container lasted 1 week. (OUCH! $30 for 1 week!)

Unfortunately dosage time (extent) is unclear on the label, and after extensive research I've discovered the industry standard is continuous feeding of Hygromycin B to control worms. The company states though that many of their customers use the product for 1 week every month.

It is recommended that you rotate de-wormers as not all wormers target all worm types, and worms can gain resistance to a particular medicine.

Many chicken owners recommend Wazine (Piperazine), Pyrantel, Ivomectin, and various other medicines for de-wormers, many of which have been used and researched through University Ag departments. They are effective and not horribly expensive, some even pretty cheap (less than $10), and you can find them through the feed store or online at the hatchery or chicken supply sites, even Amazon.

However, and this is a big however, from what I have learned from reading (off the net and from the USDA/FDA literature and from my Vet Tech daughter), in the United States these commonly used dewormers are not sanctioned for egg layers (Wazine was the final one pulled off a few years ago). Currently, only Hygromycin B appears approved for laying hens...(it just came back on the market after being off for some time due to manufacturing issues but never left FDA approval)...which means the common de-wormers are used for chickens "off label." if you follow the techical jargon, you could not "legally"sell eggs from those hens ever again after using that medicine. This may or may not concern you.

If your eggs are only for family consumption, no problem. But if you ever sell your extra eggs to friends to help off-set your feed costs (as many of us do), or at the local farmer's market, this may put you in a "no-man's" land depending upon your state regulations and any potential follow through with the federal position. (I suspicion there is no federal egg police following us small timers but rather if anyone got sick from your eggs and it was discovered you had used an off-label medicine, trouble could follow.)

From my research not all de-wormers pass into the eggs. Those that are a "mectin" type (like Ivomectin) are a systemic control method and do pass into the eggs. Other types of dewormers, especially the 'zole types like flubendazole, remain in the digestive tract and do not pass into the eggs, or do so only in small trace amounts. Interestingly, in England it is legal to deworm chickens with Flubenvet 1% without pulling eggs. Flubendazole is sold in the US as Panacur or Safeguard; however, chicken use is considered off label for the US which is why you have to buy the horse or swine wormer, and why there is no chicken dosing on the label, and why it is hard to figure out a 1% concentration. FYI: Flubendazole (available OTC in Europe) and Pyrantel are used as human de-wormers by prescription in the US.

To avoid all that, ie potential chemical exposure for bird and man, many choose to remain more "organic" and use herbal methods such as Verm-X to help control worm infestation (which I've personally tried). And it is especially here where you will run into some staunch supporters and rabid opponents. The research is sketchy, but there is some support for herbal treatments. Many use and swear by food-grade diatomaceous earth, but I can find no research to support its efficacy for worm control, but I do find evidence that it is harsh on the respiratory system, both hen and man, as its purpose is to scour the intestinal walls free and break down the cell walls of the worms. As I have suffered from asthma in the past, I have chosen to avoid it.

I have found no clinical study that shows Verm-X to have any effect in controlling worms, but lots of anecdotal endorsements. Verm-X lists their ingredients on their website (but not the can), and of them garlic and cayenne have been shown to reduce worms in studies. Verm-X is pretty expensive (about $20 a month for 15 hens). You mix the given amount into the feed for 3 consecutive days every month. My hens ate it. I can't say I noticed any improvement. But they weren't looking sick or laying poorly when I gave it to them either.

I've read old timers simply add garlic and cayenne into the feed or water. Also pumpkin seeds have been shown in some studies to expel worms. Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) helps increase the acidity of the gut discouraging parasites (but not killing them). All of these ingredients also boost the immune system, which goes a long way in helping the hen control the worms itself. A runned-down hen will succumb more easily to worms.

I've made a relatively cheap home-made herbal treatment by grinding pumpkin seeds (bought on sale in bulk) in a blender, adding fresh garlic and cayenne (enough to smell garlic and look rusty) and then adding Hoegger's Goat De-wormer (about $20 and lasts about 5 months for 15 hens, so $4 per month?), which contains wormwood which has also been shown to be somewhat effective. (I found a link on the Hoegger's site where one informal study on goats showed that the Hoegger's actually did a decent job as compared to a commercial dewormer.)

The hens loved it, and I honestly did see an improvement in egg laying shortly thereafter, and general health. I use my home-made herbal (costing less than $8 per month) for 3 consecutive days each month, then plan to give Rooster Booster Multi-Wormer quarterly to help control worms. I keep ACV (raw, unfiltered with the "mother") in the water on a regular basis (use only plastic water containers as the ACV will erode the zinc coating on the metal ones leeching heavy metal).

We'll see how that works for me long term.

 

[petitepoultry]

My Dear Lady,

Thank you so much for the info. I recently discovered capillary worms in my chickens stool and have started Rooster Booster. I was concerned about the edibility and viability of the eggs. You have answered all my questions without me having to be on a computer all morning! Thank you!!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

My Dear Lady,

Thank you so much for the info. I recently discovered capillary worms in my chickens stool and have started Rooster Booster. I was concerned about the edibility and viability of the eggs. You have answered all my questions without me having to be on a computer all morning! Thank you!!

I'm glad the information proved helpful.

An update since I posted that information, Durvet now produces a Hygromycin B product called "Strike III" It is cheaper and has no Bacitracin just Hygromycin B for de-worming, which may be important if you sell eggs as "No Hormones, no un-necessary anti-biotics." However the Durvet product does not contain the vitamins nor pro-biotics that Rooster Booster has, which I think is a nice boost to their immune systems while you de-worm.

FYI: Also, with some further research...I discovered that cecal worms can be harder to rid, so to remove that concern it is recommended to feed Hygromycin for 4 to 6 weeks, then repeat in a few months.

Because of that I feed now for 2 to 3 weeks quarterly as the herbals were not keeping things at bay once I had an established problem..

I also found with very careful measurement I could get my Rooster Booster canister to last 2 weeks for 16 birds, which improved its cost factor.

My birds look much better now, and I no longer have visible signs of worms (ie a moderate to heavy infestation).

Good luck with it. It's been a good product for me.
Lady of McCamley

 

[petitepoultry]

Thanks for the update.

I only found one capillaria contorta egg in the stool when I checked it, but I was concerned because she had diarrhea which is apparently one of the symptoms. I was going to start out with ivomec because of the diarrhea, but the morning I was going to give it her stool looked okay. I am now just going to start the Rooster Booster and give it maybe 2wks? They seem fine otherwise and it's a pen of 4 so the canister should last for at least that long.

Thanks again for the help!

 

[jennydunning]

This seems similar to my situation. I have 3 one-year-old hens. Egg laying is down (though at least in part because one hen is molting out of sequence and one got broody). All the eggs I'm getting have dull, chalky-textured, pale shells (no actual calcium residue though). I do add oyster shell to their layer pellets, plus they get scraps and have a large run. I did have to stop letting them forage free range because they were getting into the garden. Are they getting too much oyster shell? Or is there another deficiency? I don't provide grit but their fenced run is dirt and in the woods (with tunnel, or rather "chunnel" access).

 

[americanchicker]

Any thoughts on this egg?