[ghost61]

One of my young ladies has just come through a bit of a rough patch.  She was quite ill and then recovered but started to moult.  It seems that she is coming through that as she has started laying again, but the eggs are quite fragile and weird shapes.

I am guessing that her protein balance is still such that she can't quite produce a perfect egg and that things will sort themselves out in due course, but any reassurance would be great as this is my first experience of moulting.

I add limestone flour to their feed to make sure they get the calcium they need, and they've been wormed recently, so I don't think there is anything I need to do except be patient and understanding!

[Sassy]

If she has been unwell and then moulted she may need a little help. You could try Poultry Spice, a natural pick me up. Or some folk let their cats have a little cat food, not chicken though! She will probably recover with good husbandry and quality poultry feed though.

[ghost61]

Thanks Sassy.  I have fed her some cat food (tuna or salmon) and also used something called Immunotech in their drinking water as well as drip feeding her some too when she was out of sorts.  She is back to her usual self, except for the quality of her eggs, so I think that it is a case of being patient!

[Sassy]

Just a thought, it is good that you offer limestone flour but they need greens as well to make the best of it.

[ghost61]

Do that too! They think they have to demolish a whole small cabbage as soon as it's given to them!  I only have three birds, glad I don't have a large flock, otherwise the whole of the allotment produce would be just for them!

So hopefully I am doing everything I can and in time things will sort themselves out.  The other two lay every day, as did the other, and so we've been used to three eggs a day I panic when I have less than two dozen available.....

[Sassy]

It sounds as though you are donig everything right, the o :)nly other thing I can think of is that you are not offering treats at this time

[ghost61]

Yes I am.  They would whine continuously otherwise!  They get a few sunflower seeds, sultanas, mealworms everyday......they are thoroughly spoilt, they even had my mother in law's shrimps the other day!

[SusieB]

Please check the contents of your cat food.  Salmon is nearly always made with meat and animal derivatives, so likely to have chicken in it.  Even the gourmet ones.  Some of the tuna cat foods are fish only, but most have meat derivatives in them too.

[barley]

you could try a liquid tonic in the drinking water too - country wide stores do a good range of tonics

http://www.countrywidefarmers.co.uk/pws/ProductDetails.ice?ProductID=7130

[ghost61]

Immunotech is put into drinking water,  but drip fed neat if the hen is unwell.  They seem to love the taste of it, which is good as they hate Poultry Spice.

Pleased to say that she is now back to normal and we are getting our three eggs a day again.  Bless her she is such a lovable girl, I'm glad that she is back to her usual vocal self too!

[barley]

that's good news 

[ghost61]

Here's the beauty and my stained glass version of her!

Hope the attachments appear!

[ghost61]

Looks like the stained glass version didn't!

[Willow_Warren]

Very pretty on both counts.

Hannah

[joyfull]

love them both