One deformed egg and then nothing?

[flickerloo]

I have six hens. I recently started feeding them red pepper flakes in hopes of kick starting egg production. It worked, and 5/6 are laying. One is finishing a molt. However, one hen laid one egg with a partially soft shell. That was a week ago. She has not layed since. She is a two year old golden spangled hamburg. Any idea as to what is going on? She seems healthy, bright red comb, as energetic and alert as ever.

I got her when she was 18 months old, and she only laid 2 eggs before going into a very long molt, so I don't know what her laying history is.

 

[Crysta]

I have six hens. I recently started feeding them red pepper flakes in hopes of kick starting egg production. It worked, and 5/6 are laying. One is finishing a molt. However, one hen laid one egg with a partially soft shell. That was a week ago. She has not layed since. She is a two year old golden spangled hamburg. Any idea as to what is going on? She seems healthy, bright red comb, as energetic and alert as ever.

I got her when she was 18 months old, and she only laid 2 eggs before going into a very long molt, so I don't know what her laying history is.

Soft shells usually mean they need more calcium. You should keep a bowl of oyster shells available so hens can get the calcium as they please. Calcium creates the hard shell of the egg.

Also the short daylight hours of winter along with cold weather slows egg production.

 

[flickerloo]

I feed Scratch and Peck layer feed which has oyster shell in it. They also always have oyster shell in a dish free choice all the time. She just had started laying again after four months. I just don't get why she laid one soft egg and then no more eggs at all

 

[Happy Chooks]

It's normal for that to happen when she starts back up from a molt. It's just everything kicking back into gear. She'll be fine.