Shell less eggs and weak shelled eggs

[Brenasun]

First off, my hens have access to oyster shell. One of my hens has been laying shell less eggs, and when she lays a normal egg it is significantly weaker and the shell is not smooth. Today she laid one very weak shelled egg, so weak that I can see the yolk without candling. Attached to it though was a shell less egg. I know chickens can't lay two eggs in the same day, so I don't really have an explanation for that... but it was the same chicken. None of my other hens are having shell problems. In fact, those eggs are so strong they normally take two whacks to crack. The offender is a year old and has been laying for about 5 months. She's a california gray (a hybrid of barred rock and white leghorn) She's free range, fed grower crumbles, fruits and veggies and has access to oyster shell constantly. If you have any idea what's going on with her, I would greatly appreciate help!

 

[CarolynF]

I was hoping some of the experienced members would respond to this. I'm keeping my eye on it. I really want to know too.

 

[donrae]

Some birds just have reproductive problems, just like some human women do. New layers occasionally have funky eggs like you're saying, but this hen's been laying long enough her body should have worked out the kinks. There's really not much you can do to reset a chicken's system, so you just need to decide if you want to keep a poorly producing bird, just give her more time, or cull her.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

It could be a number of reproductive problems or it could be a problem with calcium absorption. You can try giving her vitamin D to help with calcium absorption and see if there is an improvement.

It is possible for a chicken to lay two eggs in one day. It just does not happen very often. If it starts to happen regularly it could be another sign of greater reproduction problems. But one every now and again is not odd.

 

[StaceySpins]

I too have a hen with reproductive issues. So far she has produced 2 membranes (photos of these in my photo section), many weak shelled eggs, several yolk-less eggs, one egg with no white, and one GIANT 2 yolk egg that had 1/2 a cup of yolk and white in it. The eggs that do come out whole are wrinkled or have a pin hole in one end.

Other than her weird eggs she is a good hen, sweet and does not mind being handled.