Is this a good idea?

[TwentyOneChickens]

My flock isn't eating their oyster shells and they are having some egg troubles because of that... I just bought Citrical calcium citrate petites. I was thinking, maybe if I crushed them up, made it into powder, and stirred it into a bowl of water, they could drink that and get their calcium.
Is this safe? Effective? What is the best way to do this?

 

[azygous]

The best way to treat a hen that you have determined has poor egg quality due to low calcium is to treat the individual hen by popping the whole calcium tablet into her beak. This way you target only the hen that needs it with the undiluted dose instead of risking other hens that don't need it getting too much by mixing it into food or water.

Get the tablet as far back onto the tongue as you can by pulling down on her wattles to get her to open her beak.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My flock isn't eating their oyster shells and they are having some egg troubles because of that... I just bought Citrical calcium citrate petites. I was thinking, maybe if I crushed them up, made it into powder, and stirred it into a bowl of water, they could drink that and get their calcium.
Is this safe? Effective? What is the best way to do this?

What kind of troubles are they having?

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

What kind of troubles are they having?

They keep laying broken and thin shelled eggs.

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

The best way to treat a hen that you have determined has poor egg quality due to low calcium is to treat the individual hen by popping the whole calcium tablet into her beak. This way you target only the hen that needs it with the undiluted dose instead of risking other hens that don't need it getting too much by mixing it into food or water.

Get the tablet as far back onto the tongue as you can by pulling down on her wattles to get her to open her beak.

Are you sure I can fit this in her mouth?

(also sorry for the bad quality. I used my computer cam.)

 

[azygous]

Yes. You would be surprised by the stuff chickens can swallow whole. A whole lizard. A whole mouse. Half my sandwich.

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

Yes. You would be surprised by the stuff chickens can swallow whole. A whole lizard. A whole mouse. Half my sandwich.

Wow! I did it before I read this so I gave them half at a time (but I did it twice so it was the whole pill)
I gave it to the chickens that I saw lay broken eggs and 1 hen that lays very thin shelled eggs. It was hard at first but then I got the hang of it

How often should I do this?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

They keep laying broken and thin shelled eggs.

I see you have a few other threads about this. You feed an organic feed - is it pellets or a loose type food where you see the different ingredients - like peas, oats, barley, etc.?
Do you give other treats as well?

If it's a loose type feed, they may be picking and choosing bits they like best instead of eating all of it to get a complete balanced diet - there's vitamins/minerals added to that, but if they being choosy, then they aren't getting those either. Extra treats like scratch, etc. would dilute the nutritional content further. If your feed is loose, then try soaking it and offering it wet to see if the egg shell quality improves.

While extra calcium may be needed, they could also be lacking in nutrition as a whole.

Other things that can cause shell quality problems - worms, lice/mites, overcrowding, stress and prior history of respiratory illness.

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

I see you have a few other threads about this. You feed an organic feed - is it pellets or a loose type food where you see the different ingredients - like peas, oats, barley, etc.?
Do you give other treats as well?

If it's a loose type feed, they may be picking and choosing bits they like best instead of eating all of it to get a complete balanced diet - there's vitamins/minerals added to that, but if they being choosy, then they aren't getting those either. Extra treats like scratch, etc. would dilute the nutritional content further. If your feed is loose, then try soaking it and offering it wet to see if the egg shell quality improves.

While extra calcium may be needed, they could also be lacking in nutrition as a whole.

Other things that can cause shell quality problems - worms, lice/mites, overcrowding, stress and prior history of respiratory illness.

It's a seed mix, so I definitely know what you mean. I've been researching different types of feed lately but I can't find any that are organic and soy-free.

I am like 99.9% sure that it's not caused by overcrowding. Now, they have all lost some feathers around their heads and bellies, and they're not molting, so mites could definitely be a possibility. But they don't seem to be itching/twitching or bothered at all by their feather loss.

 

[azygous]

@Wyorp Rock is right. You need to examine the nutrition in your feed.

If layers don't get enough protein, they can't make eggs, and all the calcium they ingest won't help much. Average size hens need from 14 to 16 grams of protein a day, and they need to eat around 100 calories a day.

Back to the calcium. For a hen that is laying poor quality eggs and I know she's getting an adequate diet, I give her a calcium tablet each day until I see her laying normal eggs again.

I'm curious why you won't feed soy. It's a very good source of protein.