Good Morning All,
I create this post to vent about the inevitable of my Isa Brown hen-Basil has started the reproductive issue. She has been on/off laying no shell egg for these last few months now.
I have been on this path with my other Isa Brown hens, I know how it will end. I am just feeling sad ...here I am at this path again!
Basil is just about 1.5 years old and she was laying 7 eggs a week and a skinny hen. I do everything that I know to feed her whatever she needs to avoid that reproductive issue.....
These last few months she started to reduce to 6 eggs a week, I was thinking might be this and that, good, she does not lay so many eggs, then arrived an egg hold up by membrane only.
The many post I read on BYC is Calcium Citrate d+ and so I treat Basil with that. Just after a day of calcium table her egg is back to normal again, very good.
After a few weeks, it started no shell egg again so Basil is back on treatment with the calcium, it goes on/off. The no shell egg starts to return after the calcium is off for a week, then after a few days. The calcium is getting less effective so it seems.
I stopped the calcium tablet once I see many calcium deposit pimples on her egg.
Currently Basil has been on calcium tablet for for the last 3 consecutive days and this morning I found egg york on the floor and the membrane or soft shell hanging from her vent. I gently pulled it out and cleaned the outside of her vent. She is behaving normally, eating and digging.
The calcium tablet is no longer working, this means that Basil has started on the reproductive issue that she inherited because human made her that way so she can lay massive amount of egg for them.
Wishful thinking/denial is that...might be we have been having cold snap weather lately, this could cause.
My first flock of chicken is Isa Brown so I have walked this path many times before. I have many heritage breed in my flock now, but I still have 2 Isa Brown. I love them, they are so communicative & affectionate compare to my other heritage breed in my flock.
I use cardboard box as nestbox so that I can replace it every week, this is to avoid any bacteria that might cause reproductive issue. I put out free choice crushed eggshell, small seashell grid, they are in a big run with natural soil, feed with 4% calcium and extra sardine that has soft bones. I top up the calcium container often, treat with small quantity like 2 bananas for a flock of 13. Green leaftly is a daily, but not in abundant. What did I miss?
Moving forward....I will continue with the calcium tablet treatment and see how it goes in the next 2 days. I will work out what to do next....after been through this so many times already, I still pause/think/what to do.
I am so very sad.........here déjà vu I am at it again
I create this post to vent about the inevitable of my Isa Brown hen-Basil has started the reproductive issue. She has been on/off laying no shell egg for these last few months now.
I have been on this path with my other Isa Brown hens, I know how it will end. I am just feeling sad ...here I am at this path again!
Basil is just about 1.5 years old and she was laying 7 eggs a week and a skinny hen. I do everything that I know to feed her whatever she needs to avoid that reproductive issue.....
These last few months she started to reduce to 6 eggs a week, I was thinking might be this and that, good, she does not lay so many eggs, then arrived an egg hold up by membrane only.
The many post I read on BYC is Calcium Citrate d+ and so I treat Basil with that. Just after a day of calcium table her egg is back to normal again, very good.
After a few weeks, it started no shell egg again so Basil is back on treatment with the calcium, it goes on/off. The no shell egg starts to return after the calcium is off for a week, then after a few days. The calcium is getting less effective so it seems.
I stopped the calcium tablet once I see many calcium deposit pimples on her egg.
Currently Basil has been on calcium tablet for for the last 3 consecutive days and this morning I found egg york on the floor and the membrane or soft shell hanging from her vent. I gently pulled it out and cleaned the outside of her vent. She is behaving normally, eating and digging.
The calcium tablet is no longer working, this means that Basil has started on the reproductive issue that she inherited because human made her that way so she can lay massive amount of egg for them.
Wishful thinking/denial is that...might be we have been having cold snap weather lately, this could cause.
My first flock of chicken is Isa Brown so I have walked this path many times before. I have many heritage breed in my flock now, but I still have 2 Isa Brown. I love them, they are so communicative & affectionate compare to my other heritage breed in my flock.
I use cardboard box as nestbox so that I can replace it every week, this is to avoid any bacteria that might cause reproductive issue. I put out free choice crushed eggshell, small seashell grid, they are in a big run with natural soil, feed with 4% calcium and extra sardine that has soft bones. I top up the calcium container often, treat with small quantity like 2 bananas for a flock of 13. Green leaftly is a daily, but not in abundant. What did I miss?
Moving forward....I will continue with the calcium tablet treatment and see how it goes in the next 2 days. I will work out what to do next....after been through this so many times already, I still pause/think/what to do.
I am so very sad.........here déjà vu I am at it again
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