Soft shell - need to kick-start shell forming

[MandS]

Nella is six and a half but is still laying nearly every day, however she's laying shell-less eggs.

She got doughy crop and I successfully treated her (link here). She's fine but since having the crop issue, she's not layed a shelled egg.

Annoyingly, it is causing another issue. She lays it before we let them out, very early, and by the time we get there, she's eaten it. That isn't in itself too much of an issue, but she's then not really hungry (plus she's eating the straw it's layed on) and so she's suddenly getting very thin.

Does anyone know:

a) how to kick-start her shell production (tried Tums, but only half a tab per day) plus I snook some oyster shell inside blueberries. Neither worked.

b) get her to put on weight quickly. Her keel bone has always been prominent but now it sticks out by about a third of an inch and I can feel around the side of it easily as there is very little breast meat. It's very noticeable when you hold her.

She's fine in herself. Poop more or less normal. Scratching around. Happy. Just very thin and I'm guessing it's because, unlike before she was ill, she's not eating her layers pellets like she used to (first thing she went to when she woke up and are avidly).

Hopefully someone has been here before.

Thanks

 

[Lady of McCamley]

At 6 1/2 years of age, her shell gland may no longer be working properly. Likewise her appetite may have lessened. It can happen with older hens.

You can try giving calcium supplements directly like the Tums, but if it's an aged shell gland, it won't do much to help.

Watch her for egg binding as shell-less eggs are much harder to pass.

You can also try creating a warm mash with supplements in it to try to encourage her to eat.

But again, in my experience my aging hens will begin to have shell funk the older they get.

LofMc

 

[Happy hen lover]

I was advised to put calcium citrate tab directly into beak of my soft shelled layer. I started dissolving tabs on their wet mash and that helped.

 

[MandS]

Thank you both. I do think it's related to the crop issue where she then didn't eat for about 4 days. 2 days before that started, she'd layed a perfectly good egg. This vicious circle of her eating the egg and then not eating much else is causing her weight problem too.

I will give more Tums sand see if that will do it, just hope that it won't be too much if I go to one or more tablets per day.

Again, I'll ask if anyone knows a good method for getting her weight up quickly without damaging her in the process.

Thanks again.