Should I Cull Hen That Lays Soft Shell Eggs ?

[rachaelc]

My Light Brahma hen is a little over a year old. She lays a soft shell egg pretty regularly. She lays a hard shell egg more often. IS there any chance that these soft eggs will break in her causing problems later? What should I look for if there is a problem. My other Brahma lays fine . They all get oyster shell and lots of healthy treats.

RachaelC- mother of all

 

[bethandjoeync]

maybe she doesn't get as much calcium as the others do. I would worry about one soft shell bursting inside her. do the others let her have oyster shell? I wouldn't cull her just yet.

 

[Silkiefan]

Ginger was laying several soft shell eggs a week... someone told me to feed yogurt, eggs & lots of stuff with calcium... that and I switched to high calcium feed, she's never laid a soft- shell again...

 

[rachaelc]

"Zinnia" and the girls get layena with oyster shell thrown in. I give them yogurt once a week and feed their shells back to them. They also get scratch once a day and get to free range for awhile. What kind of feed has a higher calcium content to it? I was planning to put them on gamebird chow here shortly so I can get the 12-14 week olds all on the same feed pan.
Rachael C - mother of all

 

[bethandjoeync]

I wouldn't mix the oyster shell in with the feed. have a separate bowl of it accessible to them when they want it.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

That's a good question, to wonder if a hen prone to laying soft-shelled eggs is more likely to develop problems with a broken egg inside her. I don't know the answer, but it's a good question.

I would guess that it would be easier for a hen to expel a broken soft-shelled egg than one mixed with bits of hard shell. I don't know if prolapse is more likely when a hen strains to lay a hard- or soft-shelled egg. Internal laying has more to do with the hen's egg-laying apparatus & not so much with the actual egg...I think.

Everyone has their own personal threshold as to how far they'll go to coddle a chicken that's not in prime condition. If this hen is past your limit then go ahead and cull her. That way you don't have to deal with future health problems, you don't have a poor performer using up your resources, you won't have her genetic material in any eggs you will hatch. You also won't risk having her or other hens picking up the habit of egg-eating if they start pecking into her softies and finding them delicious.

It sounds like they're all being given the best of care & feeding, a hen of her age shouldn't be laying so many soft-shelled eggs, especially with the diet she's on.

On the other hand, you could continue to keep her until she develops some internal problem and then cull her. Or sell/give her away to someone who doesn't mind her problem as much. Of course you know that once she's someone else's bird she'll start laying titanium-shelled eggs flecked with bits of actual diamond.

 

[ZooMummzy]

I personally wouldn't cull her, just separate out the oyster shells as suggested and see what happens.

 

[Kait27]

what's the calcium content of the layena? some layer foods are completely balanced and have calcium in them, some don't. I have my girls on a balanced layer pellet (blue seal) but I offer them oyster shells anyway, never had a soft shell. I would stop mixing it in with the food and offer it in a separate dish. they will self regulate how much they need. you'll be surprised how much they eat!
wouldn't put them on a gamebird ration either... the protein content could be too high. but don't put younger birds on layer, either- calcium can be bad for a young bird. they need separate foods until the younger ones start laying. pain, yes, but it'll be better in the end.

 

[rachaelc]

Thanks so much neighbors for all your good and sensible advice

I will put out the oyster shell free feed style and see how Zinnia does. If the eggs don't improve she could be happily accomodated over at grandpas house where there is lots of space to run. Production is a factor in this because I live in town and my space is limited . However, I HATE to see how sad the girls get if a friend moves away

Rachael C-mother of all

 

[feathersnuggles]

I have a 1 year-old hen who has developed a similar problem. Since they began laying, I've always offered crushed oyster shell, free choice in a dish in their run. They eat a balanced organic layer feed. They also free-range 5-6 hours per day.

The rest of the flock lay perfect hard-shelled eggs. This hen, Peeps, used to lay perfectly-smooth hard shell eggs since she began laying at the end of October 2009. About a month ago her shells started getting increasingly irregular surfaced, warty, and covered with random granular "beads" and bead-lumps. Some beads flaked off, some were stuck to the shell. Then, last week she started laying these rubbery shell-less eggs: some from the roost at night, some in the nest box. Probably 5 or 6 of these eggs, so far. Maybe more, if the hens have eaten any that I didn't see. In the last week, she's only laid 1 hard-shell (albeit, warty) egg.

Since she has been laying these rubber eggs, she now "sits" on the ground sometimes when they are free-ranging. This is very uncharacteristic for her - she's a high-spirited, strong bird and pretty much in the middle of the pecking order. She looks very healthy, her poop is fine, she eats a lot, she eats the oyster shell. I've tried feeding her yogurt mixed with a teaspoon of cod liver oil and some raw oatmeal. She picks at it, but doesn't want to eat much of it.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? I'm really scared that she has developed a defective shell gland. Is it possible to happen so quickly?