Thin pale shell with watery whites

[stephmarie8907]

I have one hen (not sure breed) that has laid 3 eggs in the past 3 days, with all of them being very pale in color compared to the other 2 laying hens. We cracked one open today, and the whites are very watery too. She isn't even a year old yet. Oh and she did lay shell-less eggs for probably a week before we finally got eggs with shells. And I'm not sure if it has anything to do with it, but her eggs are very round too. Like, almost a perfect sphere.
She is the biggest hen, and seems to be the grumpiest one (she pecks the other hens from time to time, especially if I have just finished petting them).
No coughing or sneezing noticed at all.

I'm getting overwhelmed with all the "it might be..." that I am finding by googling

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

If she's acting fine I wouldn't worry. Some hens lay wonky eggs, either permanently or temporarily. Stress can cause it, which for a chicken is if anything is different. Either it will straighten out or not.

Always keep a separate bowl of oyster shells free choice to keep the shells strong and make sure your feed is fresh and of good quality.

 

[aart]

Take a deep breath.....there...relax.
With chickens sometimes it's best to go the 'time will tell' route rather than 'worst case scenario'.

How old are you birds, how long have you had them, and how long have they been laying?
What and how exactly are you feeding?

Pics of birds would help us tell you what breed they are.

Oh, and, Welcome to BYC @stephmarie8907 !

 

[bobbi-j]

I agree with Oldhen and Aart. No need to panic if she's acting healthy. How long has she been laying? Did she lay through the winter? Or did she just start up?

Sometimes Google is not our friend...

 

[pnwoldie]

I have this same issue that has been driving me nuts for some time. One of my three 2-year-old hens, either a barred rock or a RIR, lays a huge egg with a very thin, porous shell and a lot of water in the egg. You can actually pour off the water and be left with a normal looking yolk and white. Sometimes the egg gets broken in the nest, and sometimes she will drop one from the roost or in some other place outside the nest box. The other 6 hens all lay normal eggs. My fear is that eventually an egg will break before she can lay it and she will get egg yolk peritonitis, which would be the end.

All of the hens seem healthy and happy. They get Scratch & Peck layer feed, eggshells ground and fed back, and oyster shell. Treats are healthy, like a handful of sunflower seeds or a small amount of fermented goat milk. They have a large secure run, a huge outdoor fenced run, and in the afternoons if there are no hawks around they are let out into the fields. They like to hang out in the loafing shed that once was used for cows.

I should probably isolate those 3 hens one at a time and figure out which one is doing it. I don't mind the crummy eggs so much, just hope for the best for her. The first batch of chicks I got had a lot of problems and variability -- this year I got black australorps from a local hatchery and hope for better quality.