My chickens don't ingest their oyster shells

[IamRainey]

They just won't. It's always there for them: grit, oyster shell and crushed eggshell. They're all over the grit and the eggshells but I never have to refill the cup for the oyster shell. Should I remove the eggshell? What will happen if they don't get enough calcium?

I have 2 that are about a year old. They get layer feed. But I also have five 8 week old chicks so there is always starter feed without calcium and my layers are as apt to go for that as for their layer feed. I can make the layer feed inaccessible to the smaller birds but I can't make the starter feed inaccessible to the big girls.

 

[ChickNanny13]

Why not just feed all your chickens Flock Raiser or even just put them on grower? Not having to switch & worry about chicks/Roos getting too much calcium from Layer? Just keep the Oyster Shell & grit in a separate dish. There's also other brands of feed that is higher in protein (+) that the whole flock can eat .... KikisGirls has a Comparison Chart with different feeds listed, search it in the article section.

 

[The Farmers' Daughter]

I would say that they're getting enough calcium from the eggshells and layer feed. Personally, I'd leave the oyster out as an option, but not worry about it too much.

 

[bobbi-j]

Agree with Farmer's Daughter. If they're getting egg shells and layer feed, they're likely getting enough. How is the shell quality of their eggs? If it's good, I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[IamRainey]

The shell quality of their egg is OK but not great. When I break them they sort of collapse rather than breaking into 2 hemispheres but every egg has a shell and they hold up in the nesting box when a chicken settles in to lay a second egg.

 

[GC-Raptor]

I'm feeding my 29 month olds a Non-Medicated Starter-Grower with Oyster Shells in a separate container. I used to feed a Layers feed, but I lost a couple of hens earlier this year and with 3 hens a 40# bag goes bad before its used up. I can get the Start and Grow in a 25# bag.

I give them Scratch Grains or Mixed Bird Seed as a treat scattered around their pen.
I mix in Oyster Shells 1 pound to 20 lbs of Scratch. I also mix in 1/2 lb of Poultry Grit to 20 lbs of Scratch.
This way they can pick what they want, just like they do with the Grains or Seeds.
I've been doing this for a month or two and Shell quality has improved. GC

 

[ChickNanny13]

Feeding fermented Flock Raiser with Oyster Shells in a separate dish & another with grit, my shells have been strong, not flimsy like the store bought eggs nor when I used layer. Great idea GC-Raptor, scattering with their treat...My girls stay confined & more to give them to scatch for.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

... It's always there for them: grit, oyster shell and crushed eggshell. They're all over the grit and the eggshells but I never have to refill the cup for the oyster shell. Should I remove the eggshell?...

Crushed eggshells are a poor alternative to crushed oyster shell. Because of the tiny size of crushed eggshell fragments and the short length of a chickens' gut, eggshell will not remain long enough in a chickens' digestive tract to be absorbed.

Besides, I feel that the dried membranes (which are high in protein) that adhere to the inside of eggshells are of more interest to hens than the calcium in eggshells.

 

[chickens really]

I feed my Birds a Grower Finisher. I supply oyster shell in a separate dish once a week. I don't bother with saving egg shells.
To train mine to eat the oyster shell I added a bit of scratch to it for a couple of days and they began to consume it.