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[Bexibex]

Hi guys

 

I got my first ever chickens a week ago today, 4 ex-bats. They all seem to have settled in well apart from a bit of bullying but I am concerned about one of the girls - Blanche. On the first day she laid a tiny egg, smaller than a 20p piece that had nothing in it. The next day she lay a slightly bigger egg which had just a blood spot in it and some white. She then didn't lay anything for a couple of days when she laid a larger egg but this was soft shelled - almost translucent and only full of white. She keeps going into the nesting box each day and making all the laying noises but nothing appears. She goes in the box sits for an age, comes out, paces around for a bit,then goes back to the nesting box. Is this normal or could she have a blockage? Also, how long on average do hens take to lay egg? My girls make egg laying noises for about an hour before anything appears and do a lot of pacing around etc. They are also not laying every day but I didn't expect that anyway, I just hope Blanche will be ok? Any advice greatly appreciated for a newbie like me!

[Guest]

she's been through a stressful move and that can upset their egg laying routine. Are you giving them poultry grit and oyster shell so that they have the extra calcium to make the egg shells? older hens need a bit of help with their calcium intake.

 

If something is coming out of her then I wouldn't worry, it's when they don't lay and look ill that i get concerned as that can be peritonitis.

 

Keep an eye on her, make sure they have grit etc and if no improvement and you think she's unwell, take her to the vet.

[Bexibex]

Hi

 

Thank you for that. I am giving grit that a friend gave me but I don;t think it contains oyster shell. Should I be giving this aswell?

[Guest]

have a read of this

 

http://www.ruleworks.co.uk/poultry/poultry-calcium-supplement.asp

[sage]

Hi had my 7 ex bat 9 weeks, they took about 3 weeks to settle. Mine are on ex batt pellets in the feeder to eat as they want (swapped from crumb after about 6 weeks). In a morning I give them a bowl of crumb with a scoop of limestone flour & a scoop of seaweed in mixed to a sloppy paste with water. I get shell-less eggs from on of the girls but the others are now fine.

Tried giving them crushed egg shell & oyster grit but they just left it.

 

Sage

[Bexibex]

Hi everyone

 

Thanks for your advice. Blanche is still not laying but I appear to be doing the right things and she seems extremely happy in herself. Will keep my eye on her. I phoned the BHWT Careline and it could just be settling in time or she may never lay again. Either way, it doesn't bother me. I love getting eggs every day but if that was my main concern I would not have gone for ex-bats. I just want them to have a happy life.