We just had the same thing happen. We feed mostly forage, supplement with commerical. But I've started giving them eggshells, so far this works great for us. Haven't had another thin egg yet. And our hen that had the problem is pretty low on the pecking order. Angela
--- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, "David Sullenberger" <David_Sullenberger@...> wrote:
>
> Diana wrote:
> "...increasingly thin. Today I picked up her egg and it was so fragile it just crushed. They all get the same feed, scratch, treats and oyster shell. She..."
> *** 15 ***
>
> Hi Diana:
> When you say "...get same feed, scratch, treats and oyster ...." can I assume
> "feed" is a commercial lay ration?
>
> If so is it fresh? Is it moldy, or are there places where feed thrown out of feeders can collect and get moldy?
>
> Are there ingredients listed on the tag indicating the presence of Manganese and Magnesium ? These would be something like: Manganous Oxide, Manganese Acetate, etc. Magnesium may be listed as: Dolomitic limestone, Magnesium oxide, Magnesium sulfate, etc.
>
> *** 15 ***
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> Sometimes a bird is frightened while the egg is passing through the part of the oviduct which puts the shell on and expelled too soon. If this is a one or two time occurrence - suspect fright or other trauma such as a peck order fight, etc.
>
> *** 15 ***
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> What is her position in the peck order? and has the position changed? It's possible she has lost her previous rank and is nearing the bottom of the order in which case the thin shell is an indication of the stress and the beginnings of malnutrition as she's being kept from the lay ration and probably the oyster shell. If this is the case she will stop laying completely as she is not getting sufficient nutrition to both maintain life and produce eggs.
>
> You can keep her alive by making sure she gets to eat the ration at least once a day and gets water at least twice. Often times these birds become very tame and will eat out of your hand which make the whole process a lot easier.
>
> In any event it's always a good idea to keep the Omega bird alive as that prevents the Psi bird from becoming the Omega.
>
> *** 15 ***
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> Good Luck!
>
> Prof
>
> *** 30 ***
>
CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com
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