quite worried

Wexford Chuck

In the Brooder
10 Years
Aug 12, 2009
72
0
39
Wexford, Ireland
on the 4th of september my first rsl started laying and still no sign from the others untill this morning i went to the coop and found 2 eggs together on the floor under the perches and they were both broken and very soft shelled one shell was like paper not really a shell and the other was shell but very thin. a week ago today a fox got into the garden and killed my 2 beautiful banties and 1 rsl before my dogs managed to alert me and get rid of the pesky fox ( forever ) as my otherwise placid dogs went beserk with the fox, but thats another story. anyway back to my problem, the fox also mauled another hen and she survived and is getting back to full health, she nearly keeps up with others around the garden now. she was the one i was expecting to lay next as she is showing nice and red more than the pink of the others.
could this be her laying and the trauma do this to the eggs or have i got a problem that needs to be adddressed.
all my girls are free range and eat anything in the garden and also a supply of layers pellets are always available and they get wheat for scratch daily.
please help as i am really concerned.
 
I've read on here that sometimes when they first start laying the first few eggs can have a thin shell or no shell at all. I've seen people call these "egg farts". Maybe this is what's happening? It didn't seem like it was anything anyone was worried about when I read about it. Hope it all works out for ya:) I'm still waiting on my 3 hens to start laying, they'll be 4 months soon.
 
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my girls are all 20 weeks old, only one has been laying and she started on week 17 she has missed only 1 day since and we have had 5 double yolkers off her. she even laid the day of the fox within 30 mins of the ruckus.
 
Like watching a kettle, waiting for it to boil..lol

You have to be patient, before you know it, there will be eggs a plenty.

Do you provide any crushed oyster shell, or other source of calcium for your hens? I find if I get a hen laying soft shell eggs, it's usually because my crushed oyster shell supply has run low. I re-stock the bowl, and hard shell eggs are back the next day.
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No i dont use oystershell as they have a plentiful supply of layers pellets,i did put some down when i first got them but they just left it alone. they get yoghurt and soured milk mixed with grated carrot as a treat twice a week and the eggs that Big Red ( my laying hen ) have a very nice thick shell, i will try the oyster shell again if there is no improvement when they lay properly, as i think thy may be " fart eggs " as they were under the perch so they happened during the night and both smashed as they hit the ground. luckily the white and yolk had not been eaten so the girls are still oblivious to the tasty delights that 1 is laying.
 
Yeah, first eggs can be strange. I've seen the softshelled eggs under the roost before. I wouldn't be overly concerned. I would give them some oyster shell. And keep an eye out for more eggs. Sounds like you have 2 new egglayers gearing up.
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I just had that same problem - shell less eggs and thin shells...oyster shell added to the layer pellets did the trick. Getting gorgeous eggs now
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While my hens have had no trauma, some of their first eggs had the membrane shell and were laid on the roosting area. They also got broken as 'somebody' tried to eat them but luckily they fell through into the droppings pit. Here and there along the next couple months, I would find eggs on the roost and floor.

However, as the girls matured and figured out what was going on, little by little they have come to lay all their eggs in the nests and no eggs have soft shells anymore, and they are no longer pecked at or eaten.

I honestly believe that it just takes a little time for the hens to mature as nature makes things happen in its own way. I wouldn't be too worried about what shape your eggs are in at the moment.

Also helpful would be to put some fake eggs in the nesting area for your girls to see. They will get the idea and eventually come around. These eggs also do not break when pecked on and will discourage egg eaters.

Good luck, and glad your little hen made it through her ordeal.
 

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