Reintroducing a hen

[aart]

She's probably still stressed out some.
What is their regular feed?
Are they consuming the OS?
Maybe sprinkle some on the ground along with a tad of scratch.

 

[Mandee297]

She's probably still stressed out some.
What is their regular feed?
Are they consuming the OS?
Maybe sprinkle some on the ground along with a tad of scratch.

They eat an all flock feed and I do see the oyster shell going but not sure who is eating. I’ll put some in feed. I’ve also been grinding up eggshells too

 

[Mandee297]

They eat an all flock feed and I do see the oyster shell going but not sure who is eating. I’ll put some in feed. I’ve also been grinding up eggshells too

Your pet will love this Kalmbach Feeds All Natural 16% Flock Maintainer Duck & Chicken Feed, 50-lb bag:
https://app.chewy.com/HWgA4aUhPcb

 

[azygous]

I agree with @aart. Your hen is very stressed, The egg color indicates that as well as the thin shells.

I strongly suggest you give her a calcium supplement of calcium citrate for a few days to combat the shell quality issue. The stress issue should work itself out but if you can ease her stress by segregating her for at least part of the afternoon in a safe enclosure it will help.

This will provide her with a "rest" each day, but she will still be in the flock with the others to derive the emotional benefit of being in proximity to them, but without being physically challenged.

 

[aart]

They eat an all flock feed and I do see the oyster shell going but not sure who is eating. I’ll put some in feed. I’ve also been grinding up eggshells too

I wouldn't put it in the feed, but maybe sprinkle a few pieces on top.

Your pet will love this Kalmbach Feeds All Natural 16% Flock Maintainer Duck & Chicken Feed, 50-lb bag:
https://app.chewy.com/HWgA4aUhPcb

https://www.kalmbachfeeds.com/sites/default/files/specs/1016PEL.pdf
Should be fine, never seen an 'all flock' with that low of protein.

 

[Mandee297]

I agree with @aart. Your hen is very stressed, The egg color indicates that as well as the thin shells.

I strongly suggest you give her a calcium supplement of calcium citrate for a few days to combat the shell quality issue. The stress issue should work itself out but if you can ease her stress by segregating her for at least part of the afternoon in a safe enclosure it will help.

This will provide her with a "rest" each day, but she will still be in the flock with the others to derive the emotional benefit of being in proximity to them, but without being physically challenged.

Thank you very much. I will look into a calcium citrate. Unfortunately I’m at work 9-5 so there is no way for me to be able to give her that “rest”. I feel like a bad mom. I’m home Saturday and Sunday’s and would be able to figure something out but I’m not sure how to pull that off during the week without putting her back in garage. Which seemed to stress her out too being isolated.

 

[Mandee297]

Thank you very much. I will look into a calcium citrate. Unfortunately I’m at work 9-5 so there is no way for me to be able to give her that “rest”. I feel like a bad mom. I’m home Saturday and Sunday’s and would be able to figure something out but I’m not sure how to pull that off during the week without putting her back in garage. Which seemed to stress her out too being isolated.

Also what would be a calcium citrate and could all the girls have it?

 

[aart]

I feel like a bad mom. I’m home Saturday and Sunday’s and would be able to figure something out

You're not a 'bad' keeper....the weekend will be fine.
Us retirees can forget that not everyone has all day every day to tend to flock issues.

 

[azygous]

This is what I'm recommending. Only give one table a day to the hen with the egg issue. The others should not get it.

As for the safe pen, if your run is too small to accommodate sectioning off one corner as a safe enclosure for this purpose, then the run is too small and is very likely adding to this problem.

I realize this may require more than a quick fix solution, but it's definitely worth pursuing in my opinion.

 

[Mandee297]

This is what I'm recommending. Only give one table a day to the hen with the egg issue. The others should not get it. View attachment 2478102As for the safe pen, if your run is too small to accommodate sectioning off one corner as a safe enclosure for this purpose, then the run is too small and is very likely adding to this problem.

I realize this may require more than a quick fix solution, but it's definitely worth pursuing in my opinion.

Thank you! I don’t believe it’s too small, I just am not sure when I will be able to create it. ☹ The run is 9.8 x 9.8 x 6.56 ft and only 4 hens occupy it. The gals have about 100 square feet of run space, and also free range supervised