Soft egg shells - but only one hen does it

[JJAttaway]

We have 6 chickens, and one of them has been consistently laying soft eggs for a couple weeks. Sometimes she lays it in the coop overnight, and it's squashed by the time we let them out in the morning. Sometimes she lays it in the brood box, and sometimes the shell is still in tact, but it's thin and breaks really easily. It's also narrower and longer than the rest.

We make our own food based on Garden Betty's Chicken Feed recipe, and they're foraging outside all day. They have grit and oyster shells always available, and we keep their water well stocked and clean.

Does anyone have any ideas why this one chicken is laying soft eggs, while the rest are fine?

Please help us!

James & Julie

 

[Judy]

I would guess it's narrower and longer simply because it's easily molded by the body passages. If your flock has no history of disease, it could be a defective shell gland in that hen. Here are two sources that talk about the various causes.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/common-egg-quality-problems

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/publi...ndbook/16/thinshelled-eggs-and-shellless-eggs