Something wrong with eggs

[azygous]

Egg shells are fine to feed back to chickens. But, bacteria may be on them. Unless you heat the egg shells and destroy the bacteria, you may risk "feeding" your chickens a helping of bacteria such as salmonella or E. coli.

 

[Sammster]

What are some good methods to crush up egg shells? currently I'm jamming them all into a mason jar and pounding it down with a large wooden rolling pin.

A rolling pin seems like a good way. I did just order a cheap coffee grinder, as Samantha suggested. It was only $18 on Amazon. Unfortunately, I used my last coffee grinder for glass (I'm a glass artist).

 

[Sammster]

Egg shells are fine to feed back to chickens. But, bacteria may be on them. Unless you heat the egg shells and destroy the bacteria, you may risk "feeding" your chickens a helping of bacteria such as salmonella or E. coli.

Got it! I baked my eggshells, today. I'll keep doing that

 

[yakitori]

A rolling pin seems like a good way. I did just order a cheap coffee grinder, as Samantha suggested. It was only $18 on Amazon. Unfortunately, I used my last coffee grinder for glass (I'm a glass artist).

that's a great idea! I'll have to see if I can get a cheap one off facebook marketplace.

 

[aart]

What are some good methods to crush up egg shells? currently I'm jamming them all into a mason jar and pounding it down with a large wooden rolling pin.

That's kind of what I do.
I have a metal measuring up and a thick water glass with almost the same radius at base as at the cups wall/side. Make shift mortar and pestle, works good.

This is my shell feeder, usually has OS mixed in.

 

[NatJ]

I've never had a problem with my lazy way of feeding eggshells back to hens:
--drop eggshells into a bowl on the kitchen counter as I use eggs
(optional, squish the shell with my hand before dropping it in)
--every day, take that bowl out and dump on the ground in the chicken pen
--step on any shell that "looks like" an egg (this breaks up the shell a bit)

I do not bake, wash, dry, grind, or otherwise process eggshells.
I do not worry about bacteria that may be on the eggshells, considering how many things chickens pick up & eat off the ground anyway!
I do not care whether eggshells are in large pieces or small, as long as they don't look like an actual half or whole egg.
I have not had issues with hens eating eggs.

I know many other people do it differently, and that's fine if it works for them.
But I do not want people to think that feeding eggshells back to the chickens REQUIRES complicated processing first, because at least in my case it does not.

 

[Sammster]

Each girl gave me a shelled egg, today. One is small, nearly round, and quite bumpy. I think I have a fair idea who laid it.

 

[Tankueray]

Each girl gave me a shelled egg, today. One is small, nearly round, and quite bumpy. I think I have a fair idea who laid it.

Congratulations!
The bumps are inconsistent calcium deposits. That should subside with time and adequate calcium. Make sure they regularly get some sunshine so that Vitamin D will help them utilize calcium more efficiently.

I didn't specifically see this mentioned, although it's the reason you needed more calcium to fix their shells - If they're 6 months old and laying, you shouldn't have them on Start and Grow feed anymore. Also, is it the medicated kind? They definitely don't need that.

While it technically doesn't hurt them to be on chick feed, it's formulated for the nutritional needs for rapid development. Once they're grown, some things need to be dialed back, like iron and protein, and others, like calcium and fiber, need to be increased. The "tweaks" aren't huge, so that's why it doesn't hurt them, but they would need certain supplements and seasonal protein/carb adjustments in order to stay in the best health. Chick feed is good for broody hens since they're not laying, only eat once a day and need to pass a lot of waste at once, and the chicks will eat it too.

If you don't want to get that deep into formulating chick feed with supplements and for seasonality, something like Flock Raiser is a good option if you have various ages and species, or Layer feed if you just have layers. (Note: Breeders and Show birds are a totally different ball game.) For store bought, both Purina and Nutrena are fine, DuMOR is okay, but Producer's Pride (TSC) is somewhat lacking.

Free choice grit is a must, and calcium (e.g., oyster shells, limestone) is a must with all flock, but never a bad idea with layer feed either, because just like us, some need more calcium than others, and they'll take what they need.

Also, if you add ACV or electrolyte/probiotics to the water, only do that once a week. If it's 90+ degrees F, no ACV but electrolytes can be done 2-3x week. The point there is that ACV all the time can keep their systems too acidic and causes their temperature to rise (bad for summer), and electrolytes are very high in salts, making them drink more salty water, and making their kidneys work harder.

 

[Sammster]

Congratulations!
The bumps are inconsistent calcium deposits. That should subside with time and adequate calcium. Make sure they regularly get some sunshine so that Vitamin D will help them utilize calcium more efficiently.

I didn't specifically see this mentioned, although it's the reason you needed more calcium to fix their shells - If they're 6 months old and laying, you shouldn't have them on Start and Grow feed anymore. Also, is it the medicated kind? They definitely don't need that.

While it technically doesn't hurt them to be on chick feed, it's formulated for the nutritional needs for rapid development. Once they're grown, some things need to be dialed back, like iron and protein, and others, like calcium and fiber, need to be increased. The "tweaks" aren't huge, so that's why it doesn't hurt them, but they would need certain supplements and seasonal protein/carb adjustments in order to stay in the best health. Chick feed is good for broody hens since they're not laying, only eat once a day and need to pass a lot of waste at once, and the chicks will eat it too.

If you don't want to get that deep into formulating chick feed with supplements and for seasonality, something like Flock Raiser is a good option if you have various ages and species, or Layer feed if you just have layers. (Note: Breeders and Show birds are a totally different ball game.) For store bought, both Purina and Nutrena are fine, DuMOR is okay, but Producer's Pride (TSC) is somewhat lacking.

Free choice grit is a must, and calcium (e.g., oyster shells, limestone) is a must with all flock, but never a bad idea with layer feed either, because just like us, some need more calcium than others, and they'll take what they need.

Also, if you add ACV or electrolyte/probiotics to the water, only do that once a week. If it's 90+ degrees F, no ACV but electrolytes can be done 2-3x week. The point there is that ACV all the time can keep their systems too acidic and causes their temperature to rise (bad for summer), and electrolytes are very high in salts, making them drink more salty water, and making their kidneys work harder.

Very helpful, thank you! I actually just ordered Purina flock raiser because it's 20%, and I have seen so many posts recommending 20% protein in winter. We are having very cold Temps, right now. I haven't used ACV in a while, but did add a drop of oregano oil in their water this last time, just because it's been a while, and it is supposed to help in times of stress. What do you think about that?
The start and grow is not medicated. I ended that kind when they started laying. They do spend most of the day in their pen. It's covered, but they get filtered sunshine, if there's sun. They didn't want to leave the pen, yesterday, but I'll try them again, today. It's just so cold

 

[Becky_]

This is very common in new layers, their eggs are often out of the ordinary, it is nothing to worry about. I typically crush up my leftover egg shells and feed them to my chickens, which pervents them from eating their own eggs, is a great source of protein , hardens the shell, and they love it!