Second Chicken has started laying soft eggs ?

[Farmer Tim]

Hi everyone !

I am completly out of suggestions now and so ive created and account here so i could ask you all for some advice. I have three chickens, two of which are hybrid Reds.

About 3 months ago one of them started laying soft shelled eggs everyday. We tried everything we could think of, including worming her, treating for mites and lice as she had a few here and there, we tried changing her diet, gave her more high calcium food and even bought some chicken conditioner for her water but nothing worked. Eventually she stopped laying altogether for a few weeks. About 2 weeks ago she laid what i believe to be a lash (looks a lot like the pics i found online) after that she didnt lay for a couple days but then laid one egg which remained intact although the shell was increadably thin and now she is back to laying soft eggs everyday.

I had given up and decided it must be an internal laying problem.

But from last week now my 2nd hybrid red has starte laying soft shelled eggs. I couldnt believe it because even when her friend was laying soft eggs she was laying everyday big eggs with hard solid shells. Now i have two chickens neither of them laying solid eggs but im getting two soft shelled eggs everyday ????

We are totally frustrated. Ive started crushing up calcium and vit d tablets and mixing them into yogurt, ive also started feeding them cod liver oil mixed with layers mash which they love. I have also from today tried using Vermx on bread incase the last attempt to worm with the flubevet stuff didnt work ??

They have access to osyter shell, we bake and crush egg shells for them daily. They have layers mash, layers pellets and some mixed corn, as well as various veg and fruit left overs from the kitchen.

Surely this cant be an internal laying problem for them both to have started. They both generally seem very happy, scratching around the garden chatting to each other but occasionally they do puff up and look sick but then they are fine again

Im totally out of suggestions ? pleeease someone give me some ideas what i can do ??

thanks

Tim

 

[CariLynn]

howdy Tim! I have one or two hens who are doing this, and like you, have tried giving them extra calcium, oyster shells, etc. I realized, when I was watching my flock, they are from my original flock almost 2 years ago, they were "mature" hens then, so mine have to be around 4 or 5 now. So I think for me, mine are getting to the end of their laying years and their bodies just are not as young as they once were. I have a few hens who do not lay at all.

Are your hens older hens? Sorry I could be of more help.

 

[Farmer Tim]

hi ! thanks for the reply Carilynn, to be honest im not sure how old they are. I know they were rescued from a battery farm and ive had them about 1 year. Im pretty sure the guy said they were all less than 1 year old when i bought them but i could be wrong. Is it normal for hens to start laying soft eggs when they come to the end of their laying life ??

 

[CariLynn]

Some of them, or to my understanding, can have soft shelled eggs or no shell on the egg if they are older. Your hens, being ex battery hens, may of had a hard life and were expected to lay, lay, lay....so it may of stressed their body and now it is beginning to show.

Here is a great web site that may help you out, I come here to refresh my memory sometimes:

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/979/maintaining-egg-shell-quality

This may help with some of your questions at least. Interesting topic, as I had a hen I took in a few weeks ago who had an unknown illness so when I found her dead in the chicken yard, I took her in for a necropsy, turns out she had a form of cancer but were waiting for the hard copy results to come in. The vet and I were discussing how in this day and age, she is seeing more and more problems in chickens as no one has any patience or compassion now a days. We want as many eggs as possible, we over breed, there is more chances of cancer now, ovarian issues and reproductive issues in hens, the meat birds get too big too quickly and that hurts them, etc.. was a very interesting discussion. Not that any of this is directed at you, just you had me thinking.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/1003/factors-influencing-shell-quality