Needing Feeding Advice

[c_martin96]

I have had my flock on Kalmbach Henhouse Reserve with crumbles, my flock was crazy over it. I have a mixed flock of older laying hens with younger non-laying hens. I had a young hen go downhill quickly. I posted in the poultry vet advice group and was told it was my feed. I treated her and she got better but then suddenly passed. Most of my young hens in there currently were hatched around 10/28/25, which makes them around 18-20 weeks. I charged feed to my local mills all flock crumble. My flock is not a fan and now my older hens eggs are becoming misshaped and the shells are cracking when I pick them up. I have free choice oyster shells and they don’t seem to be interested. I’m not sure what to do. I’m also not 100% sure it was my feed. Curious what others think or suggest, any help is greatly appreciated!

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I posted in the poultry vet advice group and was told it was my feed.

Is this on Facebook? There is nothing wrong with that feed. What were your sick hen’s symptoms?

I don’t feed layer feed but have multiple oyster shell stations and still get the occasional egg with a thin shell. Your problem sounds more consistent and I would go back to the original feed.

 

[c_martin96]

Is this on Facebook? There is nothing wrong with that feed. What were your sick hen’s symptoms?

I don’t feed layer feed but have multiple oyster shell stations and still get the occasional egg with a thin shell. Your problem sounds more consistent and I would go back to the original feed.

Yes on Facebook, I think that group is super anti kalmbach But it was only one hen that had an issue and I’m actually wondering if it could have been mites, I never seen the mites on her until after she passed though. And I don’t see them in my coop or on the rest of my flock. I’m treating them all though.I searched them pretty thoroughly. But they said it was my calcium levels in the feed for too young of birds. But yes since I took them off the kalmbach henhouse reserve with crumbles my older hens shells are just cracking when I collect them.

 

[nuthatched]

Kalmbach is a really good feed, I wonder what their problem is.
Facebook is such a hive of misinformation

 

[saysfaa]

There is something to the Henhouse Reserve with crumbles having too much calcium to be best for non layers like your pullets. Maybe that one pullet was extra sensitive to the extra calcium or maybe it was something else.

In your shoes, I would give them two feeders. One with the Henhouse Reserve with crumbles and the other with the all flock. Chicken are pretty good at choosing how much of which they need in such situations. The older hens may eat more of the all flock as they start laying fewer eggs and as they get more familiar with it.

If you want to continue calcium on the side (always a good idea, imho), some flocks like flaked oyster shell much better than the pebble kind. Eggshells are another option very popular with the most hens.

 

[Ahoragi]

Did you do a gradual change of food?

 

[c_martin96]

Did you do a gradual change of food?

I did not, they had me convinced it would kill the rest of my pullets. I’m going to mix it and gradually change and maybe offer both options of all flock and the HHR with crumbles so they can choose.

 

[Tahai]

I agree that you need to do a gradual change and mix the 2 feeds together, if you decide to go off the Kalmbach.

(I briefly switched to Kalmbach a couple of years ago when my regular feed store closed down. My hens never adjusted to it, and so now I use the Naturewise All Flock from Nutrena that I buy at TSC. My hens are thriving on that.)