weird eggs, molting or sick???

[newhenstein castle]

Hi, abou two weeks ago I posted a question about strangely white, thin and rough shelled eggs with a dark spot on the pointy part of the egg. Some said it might be due to molting. The hen is a 1 year old Australorb. I found a couple of egg poops under the roost, throughout the last two weeks, yesterday as well. All the other days the eggs have been this strange. What is wrong with her??? Does anybody know if she is indeed molting for so long and that's why?

Thanks all,
Conny

 

[shadowpaints]

does she have free choice to oyster shell? i know that if my hens dont i get shelless eggs

hope you cant figure it out!

 

[PepsNick]

Uum, well I think if the problem is oyster shells, all the hens' eggs would probably be like that. Usually when they're molting they stop laying all together... and if she's only one year old the eggs shouldn't be that color. I'd say take her to the vet. It could be a disease, or a cold? There are many diseases chickens can get like Marek's Disease and it's important for them to be vaccinated. If the vet says she has a disease, you should immediatley remove her from the other hens. I hope that helped!

- Nicholas




and btw--- i love your coop so much that im having a friend build the same one in my backyard! it's looking great! thanks!

 

[prancie]

it could be the heat

 

[Wynette]

what do you mean by "egg poops"?

Can you post pics of these eggs?

 

[newhenstein castle]

Quote:
bummer, I didn't want to hear the vet thing! oyster shells sounded so much easier. But you're right the others lay just fine.

Quote:
Ha, just make sure you pay attention to the detail - You MUST have flowers on the front

Hanging the water and food up is also hard, so make sure you build your door so everything underneath the coop is easily accessible. Have fun!

 

[newhenstein castle]

Quote:
This would be an egg poop:

This would be what the eggs look like when they do come out in one piece, though rough and thin shelled. Notice the dark spot?

Any other ideas? In the meantime I'll look up a vet.....

 

[Wynette]

Okay, that's just a soft-shelled egg; they often will lay them from the roost at night. Be really careful to clean all the remnants out - you don't want them to eat the broken egg, if they do, they develop a habit of egg eating.

If they do not have oyster shell, free choice, they can lay eggs like this - not ALL hens will lay soft-shelled eggs if they don't have oyster shell, though, so it could very well be the issue. That's an excellent first line of defense, if you will.

If your girls are young and haven't been laying long, it could be that they are just not fully acclimated to the whole egg laying thing. If they matured too quickly, soft shelled eggs are much more common. To avoid this, I switch my pullets to Flock Raiser when they are 12 weeks old. it will slow their growth down a bit, and even though I'm always super excited for that first egg...it's much more important to me that my girls are healthy and lay well, and the flock raiser seems to help with that.

You can also give treats that are healthy and high in calcium, such as yogurt, cottage cheese, and cheese. But, none in excess (except yogurt - they can have LOTS! I buy the Greek yogurt for them, as it's thicker so they seem to waste less).

Regarding the oyster shell - it's much less expensive to buy a 50# bag from your local feed mill than buying a small bag. It'll last a super long time, but I don't believe it has a shelf life!

 

[newhenstein castle]

Quote:
Hey, thanks for the last reply. I had to deal with soft shelled eggs before but the issue would usually resolve itself after a few days. HOWEVER, I've never had a hen lay poor eggs for two weeks straight. The thing that bugs me is the rough shell and the discoloration of the egg. But if would be happy to just try out getting them oyster shell. I was told that it wasn't necessary if they get layer pellets and get to free range once a day they would get enough calcium. But I am sure they'll get a kick out of the shells though! I am still suspicious. I will have to wait and see if this does it.

Thanks again!!!

 

[Wynette]

Yup - I think that's the right thing to do; provide the oyster shell free-choice, and they'll take what they need. It's not true that layer feed has enough calcium in it - not for EVERY bird. They all, just as humans, assimilate minerals & vitamins differently. I bet after 4-5 days, she'll begin laying regular eggs. Please do report back - I'd love to know for sure, and if this doesn't work, we'll keep trying to figure this out!