Rough, thin shelled eggs

[Bdcol23]

I get a very rough, bumpy, thin shell egg from one of my chickens. It isn't every time, but it's once or twice a week. Does anyone know what causes it and should I be concerned?

 

[nuthatched]

What do you feed your birds? Some hens lay funky eggs.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/

 

[PopoMyers]

Age of chicken? I get a rough one every now and then, sometimes a bump or two. Feed? Side calcium source? Pecking order?

 

[Bhubbard]

I have one Ameraucana that always lays an egg with calcium build up on it. The rest are perfectly normal so I believe it’s just how she lays.

 

[Bdcol23]

What do you feed your birds? Some hens lay funky eggs.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/

We feed them country companion feeds by Murdock. This only affects 1 chicken

 

[Ridgerunner]

How old is she? How long has she been laying? Some pullets lay strange eggs when they first start. Sometimes it can take a few weeks to get the kinks out of her internal egg making factory.

When I have a problem like this I try to determine if it is an individual hen problem or a flockwide problem. I don't want to treat the entire flock and mess them up if it is only one hen. Since it is only one chicken you are not doing anything wrong and it is an individual problem.

If she has been laying for a few weeks then she probably has a faulty egg shell gland, there is just something wrong with her. Or her body doesn't absorb the calcium she eats to use it, at least not correctly. With those rough shells I suspect something is wrong with her egg shell gland.

When hens get old, a few years, that type of thing can happen too. Their body just doesn't work the way it used to. That doesn't happen to all old hens but it does to some.

So, what can you do:

If she just started to lay, be patient.

Live with it.

You can try giving her extra calcium. I don't do that so I can't tell you how to give one hen extra without giving them all extra.

Get rid of the hen.

 

[Bdcol23]

How old is she? How long has she been laying? Some pullets lay strange eggs when they first start. Sometimes it can take a few weeks to get the kinks out of her internal egg making factory.

When I have a problem like this I try to determine if it is an individual hen problem or a flockwide problem. I don't want to treat the entire flock and mess them up if it is only one hen. Since it is only one chicken you are not doing anything wrong and it is an individual problem.

If she has been laying for a few weeks then she probably has a faulty egg shell gland, there is just something wrong with her. Or her body doesn't absorb the calcium she eats to use it, at least not correctly. With those rough shells I suspect something is wrong with her egg shell gland.

When hens get old, a few years, that type of thing can happen too. Their body just doesn't work the way it used to. That doesn't happen to all old hens but it does to some.

So, what can you do:

If she just started to lay, be patient.

Live with it.

You can try giving her extra calcium. I don't do that so I can't tell you how to give one hen extra without giving them all extra.

Get rid of the hen.

Thank you

 

[Magda12]

When hens get old, a few years, that type of thing can happen too. Their body just doesn't work the way it used to. That doesn't happen to all old hens but it does to some.

I can sympathize with those hens!