Shell Less Eggs Every Day! Please Help!

[mothrhen]

An egg passing through quickly like that, with no attempt at a shell forming may be egg drop syndrome. It does not show any other symptoms. Did your hen get vaccinated against it? Also how long has she been laying these?

I have a Flower Hen that has just started to lay soft shelled eggs. She's just turned a year and one of my favorite layers. Her eggs are usually just beautiful but a couple months ago the eggs started to have a small spot on the fat end that looks like thinner shell. Yesterday I saw her drop an egg on the go that just had a rubbery soft shell. Also, the girls are on SS layer feed with oyster shell always available. Can/should I vaccinate adult birds? How long is the egg withdraw after?

 

[Mtn Laurel]

It might help, But if it was a worm problem, wouldn't all my hens be effected by now?

Only one of my three hens was having a problem with soft shelled eggs. I wormed them all figuring that they could be in different stages of worm load. Could be that different hens are impacted differently by worms.

 

[Mtn Laurel]

An egg passing through quickly like that, with no attempt at a shell forming may be egg drop syndrome. It does not show any other symptoms. Did your hen get vaccinated against it? Also how long has she been laying these?

I read up on egg drop syndrome when my gal was laying soft eggs and everything I saw said the virus had not been reported in the USA. Not sure where the OP lives but thought I'd mention that for those that may follow this thread. If you're in the USA, it would be highly unlikely to be Egg Drop Syndrome based on what I've recently read.

 

[sumi]

Quote: I've read about worms causing egg issues and they can have an effect on egg quality, causing problems such as shell-less eggs. Deworm the flock and see if that helps? And yes, though worms effect different hens differently if one hen has an infestation chances are they will all have them, so it's better to treat the whole flock.

 

[HappyHenFarm78]

depends on immune system and severity of worm infestation...

 

[iokra]

I have the same problem and don't even know who is laying the shell less egg. I have 4 mature chickens who are laying blue eggs and 4 that are about to start laying. I have a guess that one of the pullets is doing it. I do not see any worm in their pups, but I would like to try to deworm my flock if you the experts think might help. Can you still eat the eggs while deworming? For how many days should I deworm?

 

[sumi]

It may be the pullets laying the shell less eggs, as shell less eggs are more common in pullets and young layers.
There are a few dewormers available that you can use for your chickens. Some of the best ones as Fenbendazole (safe guard), Ivermectin, Eprinex and Valbazen. All, except the Eprinex has a withdrawal period of 14 days. Do the deworming in 2 stages, give the chickens a dose, wait 10 days and give them another follow up dose to make sure you kill any worms that may have hatched since the first treatment. It's up to you if you want to eat the eggs laid during the withdrawal period, but if you are allergic to any medicines I'd suggest you check with your doctor first. I know Valbazen is used in some African countries to treat worms in humans. Just don't incubate the eggs laid during the withdrawal period. It could have a disastrous effect on the developing chicks.

 

[JacobMaxwell]

Update: The hen is showing those symptoms again! She's just sitting in the run and falling asleep all the time. She pecks grass a little, but she's not too eager. Does this sound like worms?

 

[JanetS]

Read this. See if it helps.
http://hencam.com/henblog/page/4/

 

[mothrhen]

Update: The hen is showing those symptoms again! She's just sitting in the run and falling asleep all the time. She pecks grass a little, but she's not too eager. Does this sound like worms?

Have you checked really well for mites? I thought I was being really good about checking the girls for mites and never saw them. I realized after I felt something crawling on me that I couldn't see. They are impossible to see. Like the smallest speck of pepper is what I heard. I certainly can see that (I thought). Nope! get some reading glasses (even if you don't need them to read) and take a good look. Good luck with your hen.