Soft shell eggs

[Peytonandpancakes]

I have a 2 yo hen that has started laying soft shell eggs. This happens to maybe 60-70% of the eggs she lays.
She eats laying crumble and has oyster shells and dried, crushed eggshell at all times.
she eats, is alert, of good body weight and exhibits no outward signs of illness.
I purchased calcium gluconate per recommendations by BYC and articles I’ve been reading. I know the oral dosage, but how OFTEN should I give it? And for how long? Will this be a lifelong treatment?
She’s a sweet girl and the first chicken my daughter even hatched.

 

[aart]

I purchased calcium gluconate per recommendations by BYC and articles I’ve been reading. I know the oral dosage, but how OFTEN should I give it?

Did it help?
Probably give daily for a week.
What is the dosage you are using?

I would recommend Calcium Citrate with Vitamin D-3.

@azygous is a pro at the calcium supplement game.

 

[azygous]

When I see a thin shell egg, which I did this week from an aging layer, I pop a calcium citrate tablet into her beak immediately. With this hen of mine, that's all it took to get the shells back to normal. You will keep giving a tablet a day to your hen until her eggs are coming out with a good shell. It won't take long. Calcium is a miracle cure. This is what I recommend and what @aart is talking about.

 

[Peytonandpancakes]

When I see a thin shell egg, which I did this week from an aging layer, I pop a calcium citrate tablet into her beak immediately. With this hen of mine, that's all it took to get the shells back to normal. You will keep giving a tablet a day to your hen until her eggs are coming out with a good shell. It won't take long. Calcium is a miracle cure. This is what I recommend and what @aart is talking about. View attachment 2575991

Are the calcium citrate tablets big? Do they dissolve quickly? Or do you put it down her throat with a pill popper?

 

[azygous]

Have you ever give a pill to a cat or dog? It's like that. Just stick the pill into the beak and when the chicken closes their beak the pill then goes right down. They can swallow big pills that would choke you.

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Have you ever give a pill to a cat or dog? It's like that. Just stick the pill into the beak and when the chicken closes their beak the pill then goes right down. They can swallow big pills that would choke you.

What about a bantam cochin? I have a new layer with soft shells, despite lots of calcium available.. should i cut the pill in half for her smaller beak?

 

[azygous]

You can cut the tablet in half. But give her both halves.

 

[AngBantamLuv]

You can cut the tablet in half. But give her both halves.

Thanks, i will try it!!

 

[Peytonandpancakes]

When I see a thin shell egg, which I did this week from an aging layer, I pop a calcium citrate tablet into her beak immediately. With this hen of mine, that's all it took to get the shells back to normal. You will keep giving a tablet a day to your hen until her eggs are coming out with a good shell. It won't take long. Calcium is a miracle cure. This is what I recommend and what @aart is talking about. View attachment 2575991

Thank you so much! I will get the calcium citrate and start tomorrow.
And calcium gluconate should be used for an egg bound hen, correct? Can calcium gluconate ever be used orally instead of SQ or IM?

 

[azygous]

I wouldn't bother with calcium gluconate. The citrate is so much better.

There are three different sources of calcium, all different, all digested and absorbed at varying rates of effectiveness. The most common source is calcium carbonate. This is what egg shells, oyster shell, and calcite derived calcium supplements are. It's the highest in calcium, but it's the most difficult to digest and absorb. Some hens absorb it so slowly and inefficiently that it's not able to adequately supply their shell gland. So, they often produce shell-less eggs or very thin shell eggs.

The second kind of calcium is calcium gluconate. It comes from fruits and vegetables. It's not very high in calcium and still hard to digest and absorb.

The third kind of calcium is calcium citrate. It's the by-product of the manufacturing process of making citric acid. This form of calcium is very easy to digest and absorb. For this reason, it works much, much faster than the other two types of calcium. This is the form of calcium that's best to use when a hen is having reproductive issues from the relatively minor one of shell quality to the most serious and life threatening one of egg binding.