Poorly chicken

[mullethunter]

Bernadette my 3 year old pekin has always struggled a bit with her eggs. They're very pointy at one end, and she often seems to get a lot of pain 6 - 12 hours before even a normal egg is laid. She's always laid soft shells every so often.

 

The last month though, she's laid roughly 2 eggs a week (less than normal when in lay, she would normally lay 3 or 4 a week) but every one has been laid while roosting with a very thin she'll or just a membrane.

 

They haven't had many treats - just a small amount of corn some evenings and the shell-less eggs (between 5), are fed marriages layers pellets, were wormed at the start of May with flubenvet, and I've just put some avipro avian in their water.

 

Does anyone have any idea what could be going on and if there's anything else I can do to help?

[Cat tails]

I talked to an egg specialist last year at a poultry show. My New Hampshire bantams layed very thin shelled eggs at one point. Ginger's eggs are still quite thin.

He told me that after the first two years this was to be expected and if it was his hen, she would have ended up in the pan. Luckily she is not his and is still laying thin shelled eggs.

 

I think some are just not very good at the egg business...

[mullethunter]

Well, Bernadette will not be ending up in anyone's pan!

 

I definitely agree some just aren't that good at eggs, and I don't mind so much for me - I'm happy to feed them back to the girls, I just know it's not pleasant for them to lay soft eggs so if there's anything I can do that'd be good.

[AndyRoo]

Our Bluebelle can be a little prone to thin shells but I find if we give them a mix of fresh veg, oyster shell, mealworms, a little corn, and some tonic in her water he shells improve a lot.

 

The problem is I can't really segregate her so I just do this about 1 week per month.

 

She's a good layer - often giving us double-yolkers when she's on form - but it's also quite common for her to be a 'softie' when it comes to laying.

 

Last week she laid an egg which was essentially just a thin shell, enough that the contents didn't leak, but contained just a small amount of egg white and that was it. It was actually attached to another thin shelled egg she laid at the same time.

 

Perhaps try something like that for a week and see if her shells improve - even temporarily.

[mullethunter]

Thanks Andyroo. Apart from the oyster shell that essentially is what they have. They have grass and other plants when they come out to free range, or broccoli or cabbage if they're shut in for a while, mealworms occasionally and the last few days they've had avipro avian in their water. After I put the avipro in she laid an egg with a good shell the next day - first one for weeks - but then today another membrane only

[mullethunter]

I thought I’d posted a question about this somewhere more recently but can’t find it. Anyway. Bernadette came into lay in mid March after being very poorly in February. She laid for about a month, every other day, but every single egg was membrane only and laid whilst roosting at night. She then was very poorly again over Easter, and after she recovered I started putting lifeguard tonic in their water (I’m sure at DM’s recommendation)- first at the ‘treatment’ dose then at the maintenance dose. I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but today she laid her first proper egg 

[SeramaSilly]

Well done Bernadette!!!

I have a serama who has only ever laid soft-shell eggs too but recently I've been putting a pinch of Country Living Egg shell improver in their nightly pellet porridge and she's laying proper eggs now too!! 

 

 

[mullethunter]

I’ve not heard of that but good news from your flock too then 😁

[SeramaSilly]

Thank you - it obviously doesn't work all the time because I found a soft shell this morning!

[The Dogmother]

A good poultry tonic does help.

Some birds, though, just aren't good at laying, or their shell glands get a bit knackered over time. I wouldn't worry too much; it sounds as if your routine is good.