Update: Please advise - multiple Soft-shelled eggs and Diarrhea

[Sammster]

I have 8 RIRs. I'm concerned about a couple of my girls. I've been getting soft-shelled eggs, fairly often. Sometimes in the nesting boxes. Sometimes under the roost. Always broken open. I'm pretty sure which hens. I'm going by "messy bottoms". One is a year old. The other is 2 years old. I know there are two hens with this problem because I got two, soft-shelled eggs in a single day, a few days ago.

I saw the one-year-old hen poop out what looked like egg-white, today ~ while I was out, cleaning the run. I'm thinking that her soft-shelled eggs may be breaking inside her. Should I be concerned it might not all be getting expelled?

I've sprinkled oyster shell in with their pellets (Kalmbach non-gmo) because they don't seem to be taking the oyster shell from the dedicated oyster shell dish. Could the sprinkled calcium harm the girls who are laying normal eggs? I'm also giving calcium tablets to the 2 girls I suspect are having the problem.

We are also still dealing with very watery stools in some of the girls. I've tried going in to check their roost positions after they go in for the night, so I know who's having these problems - but when they see me they get excited and move around.

Because the diarrhea has been a chronic issue of late (probably a month), I started Corid, today - though I have not seen blood in the stools. It has not been overly hot out, so I don't think they are drinking, excessively. I see no indication that any of my girls feel unwell.

I am going to start allowing short periods of supervised, free-range time, in case boredom is playing into our issues. We do have hawks and fox - so they can only go out when I can watch them. One possibility is that the girls could have been stressed. We had "outside dogs" visiting, this past week. The girls were safe in their run - but the dogs were curious and "sniffy", outside their run.

Oh, and people doing fireworks, nearby - a couple times, so far.

Tonight I will go in after dark and check for mites. I found no lice.
The vick's rub seems to be helping a little with the feather-picking on two of the girls.

I'm just concerned. I think it's time to take out that microscope I bought, and learn how to use it. There is only 1 avian vet in the area, and she is not taking new patients - and refuses to check stool samples outside her patient roster. I'm on my own, and we have a lot going on. Still - they seem active and content. Wish I could read their little minds.

Update beow...

@Eggcessive ideas?

 

[Eggcessive]

Crushed oyster shell for extra calcium should be in a separate container than feed, so they can take it as they need it. If you can identify the one laying the soft egg, I would get some human calcium citrate tablets with vitamin d, and give one daily for a few days. If it doesn’t make a difference, then there may be a reproductive disorder.

 

[Sammster]

Crushed oyster shell for extra calcium should be in a separate container than feed, so they can take it as they need it. If you can identify the one laying the soft egg, I would get some human calcium citrate tablets with vitamin d, and give one daily for a few days. If it doesn’t make a difference, then there may be a reproductive disorder.

Thank you for your input. I have given the calcium citrate for a couple days so far, to the 2 suspected hens.
When you say "reproductive disorder", might it be treatable? Or just something we'll have to deal with? Tomorrow, several of my girls will get bottom baths. I found no mites, checking them after dark. But, ugh.... they're messy, again

 

[Sammster]

So - last night I monitored the girls for a while on the WYZE camera. Gerty went to the nesting box, and stayed for some time. No egg. She's back in the box this morning. But, last night she had a poop that was stringy/gelatinous. Some areas green, some areas yellowish with blood mixed in. I didn't find anything solid or rubbery in it. She is not one of the girls I suspected of laying soft-shelled eggs.

No soft-shelled eggs under the roost this morning, and the stools were less watery. But a couple of the girls were just hanging out in the coop, sitting on the floor. Very unusual. They did eventually go outside. Perhaps I was on track with the Corid? But something is going on with my flock. I ordered some Aqua-Mox, in case. But it will take 1-3 days to arrive.

I did replace the pellets in their feeder. No more oyster shell mixed in.

 

[Kiki]

Thank you for your input. I have given the calcium citrate for a couple days so far, to the 2 suspected hens.
When you say "reproductive disorder", might it be treatable? Or just something we'll have to deal with? Tomorrow, several of my girls will get bottom baths. I found no mites, checking them after dark. But, ugh.... they're messy, again

Usually reproductive disorders are not so fixable.

I just asked in your other thread...
Do you feed treats?

 

[Sammster]

Usually reproductive disorders are not so fixable.

I just asked in your other thread...
Do you feed treats?

Thank you, Kiki. That's what I was afraid of. I'm hoping, since it's more than one girl, that it's not reproductive, and that I can get a handle on it. Will try all possible avenues.

I did see that, thanks. Yes, I had been giving black soldierfly larva and occasional produce scraps - but stopped treats a few days ago, with all that's going on

 

[Lillith37]

Worms can also be a culprit for irregular droppings and egg-laying issues.

You can also keep the shells of their eggs and bake them in the oven to sanitise them and then crush them up and offer them back to your flock. Some of my hens prefer the oyster shell and some prefer the eggshell. It might help encourage them to get more calcium. I also second the human calcium supplement suggestion for the birds that are having issues.

 

[Sammster]

Worms can also be a culprit for irregular droppings and egg-laying issues.

You can also keep the shells of their eggs and bake them in the oven to sanitise them and then crush them up and offer them back to your flock. Some of my hens prefer the oyster shell and some prefer the eggshell. It might help encourage them to get more calcium. I also second the human calcium supplement suggestion for the birds that are having issues.

I can certainly try that, too. I'll prepare a bunch of eggs for the freeze dryer, tomorrow, and bake the shells. When you bake them, how hot do you go?

I did worm the girls in late winter/early spring.

 

[rosemarythyme]

When you bake them, how hot do you go?

I just put mine in the oven during preheat when I'm ready to bake something, and the preheat time is enough to get them crunchy. Anything from 350 to 425 works fine.

 

[Lillith37]

I do 130 Celsius for a minimum half an hour, but often I forget and they are in there for several hours. My oven isn’t fan forced either. You just need to put them in long enough to kill any bacteria.