Rubber / jello eggs

[midget_farms]

I have 1 hen who has laid 2 eggs in a row with no shell. Plus she is dropping them while on the roost & not in the nests. I go in & see a jello egg sitting on the wire under the roost. Kind of gross.

I've started feeding them crushed egg shells, but it has only been for a day. I switched the feed from layer to starter when I added the new chicks - didn't realize I could get such a dramatic result.

May go get some oyster shell tonight.

 

[gryeyes]

How odd that you posted this just after I found two "jello eggs" earlier this week!

I keep layer rations in the feeder in the coop with the grown up chickens, but started using general purpose feed (the one between starter and layer) for the ducks and the adolescent chicks. The Big Chickens have been eating the non-layer feed in the run, which I left out for the ducks. (The young birds are segregated.)

When I found the "jello eggs" I nearly panicked. However, all the other eggs were fine that day - and have been on the following days - but I quickly put an oyster shell cup in the coop. Plus, a couple times this week, I've scattered some in the run; the chickens get to it and snatch it all up, so the ducks aren't getting any extra calcium. (I've been adding brewer's yeast to their feed, though, for the niacin they need.)

I am not sure who laid the shell-less eggs. I get six to eight eggs a day from my 8 layers, and got SEVEN eggs plus the two jello eggs that day. So that was at least 1 egg over the highest number (and 1 more than the number of hens). One was much smaller than the other. Maybe it was just a glitch in the egg-making process for one pullet? She's only been laying around a month now.... maybe 3 weeks. I think it was her because she's the ONLY one who lays in the rollaway nest box in the new coop. There was a regular egg from her, and these two shell-less eggs.