Should oystershell calcium flakes be served under water?

[FussyHen]

I frequently get an egg that has no shell from (I'm sure) the same duck. Do you think it would make it more appetizing or easier to eat if it were lying under an inch or so of water? It wouldn't hurt it as long as it didn't get scummy (and maybe not even then).

I read somewhere that you can feed whole dried corn in a container of water. I don't think it gave the reason, but I am assuming that it was either to add moisture, or to encourage a bit of sprouting. So I'm wondering if water would encourage her to increase her intake if I served it that way.

Any thoughts are welcome!

 

[cayugaducklady]

Actual oyster shell is dissolvable in water. I think it would make a mess.

My girls will only eat manna pro oyster shell if they're desperate. It is not their favorite.

There are other hi calcium foods : cooked or canned carrots , parsley, crushed cooked egg shells, dairy such as plain yogurt, cottage cheese or milk.

 

[dotknott]

Oyster shell shouldn't easily dissolve in water unless the water acidic or has co2 being dissolved in it.

 

[Amiga]

I have added oyster shell to drinking water - I added it to the night water. The dust is suspended, so they get some when they drink, and the ducks would chase around and bob for oyster shell a little bit, too.

 

[cayugaducklady]

Our well water has a natural pH of 6.9. That's acidic enough to explain what happens if I don't protect it from hose sprays.

 

[FussyHen]

Since oysters live underwater, I hadn't considered that the shells would dissolve, but I just looked up the pH of seawater (7.5 to 8.4). I rinsed the dust off a tbsp of oystershell and put it in a small glass bowl of water to see what happens. In 24 hrs, nothing has changed, and nothing appears to have broken down. Will continue watching. Even if it does dissolve over time, I don't usually give them more than a cupful at a time.