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Ms Marple

Soft shells and ex batts

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Hello. I don't get on here much at the moment but I am sure someone out there will have been through a similar episode. For about 6 weeks now I have had two chickens looking a little rough around the edge so to speak. They are both ex-batts. Two from four that I got last June, so I am guessing that they must be about 2.5 years old? Unlike the others they seem to have lost that bit of tail featherage that give them a nice upward point (does this make sense?). I thought perhaps they were having a moult as egg production across my 12 girls suddenly seemed to drop off from 9 to 10 per day down to between 3 and 7. Then I realised that I was getting 2 softies on a regular basis. I wormed, I upped the calcium via limestone flour in porridge with cod liver oil, but to no avail. Having read all the stuff on flystirke I have just examined both ot them - but neither they nor any others have dirty bottoms. Then one of them actually layed a soft egg in front of me now - perhaps because I hade been handling her - they are perfect except for the total lack of shell. Just the sac.

 

Any suggestions or is it just age, having lived a hard life originally? They both appear to feed well, although they both stop eating before the others- again i have assumed it was their age.

One last query re hot weather and maggots. A bit naive here but... if I have not emptied the poo tray for a few days, should I naturally find maggots in it in this weather? None on the chickens but maggots in the poo tray this evening and I had only emptied it yesterday evening.

 

Long post but any thoughts greatfully received.

Many thanks

Terri

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This happened to both my ex-batts think they are just worn out.

 

Try Zolcal D which you can get on the internet and put in their water which may help. I also found that mine thrived on the layers pellett esp for ex-batts and a bit of tuna now and again.

 

With regards to the maggotts that doesn't sound right to me....would suggest cleaning more often and perhaps putting some citronella oil on the bottom of the coop. If they are coming from the chickens in their poo I would prob give them Diatomaceous earth to get rid of them,....I'd also clean out the run and put DE and citronella oil in there too.

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