[Kazoo]

One of my Black Rocks has started laying soft shell eggs, she has just laid one now at 8.35pm after struggling all day to get it out.  I know this is a diet related problem but not sure what I am missing.  The girls are a year old, they are penned for one hour in the morning then free range.  They scoff loads of pellets every morning before foraging, then have dandelion leaves and mixed corn in afternoon and cooked veg in the evening.  They always have plain water and one water with ACV in, they drink both equally.  Twice a week they get brown rice and other treats like blueberries, grapes etc.  They also have crushed oyster shell scattered in their pen and around the garden and also mixed in with their corn.  I check and they do all eat the shell and plenty of grit.  So where am I going wrong???  Very worried about Lola today and was convinced the egg would break inside her so if I am doing anything wrong I would like to know - any suggestions very appreciated!

[Aunt Sally]

The trouble with free range hens is that they only choose to eat their pellets in the early morning when they have no other option. Their diet the rest of the day may be quite deficient in calcium.  

Greens contain calcium but rice, cooked veg, and mixed corn don't !  My chooks free range most of the time and in the afternoon I give them a dish of warm moist layers mash, which they gobble down and I add extra calcium in the form of limestone flour to their pellets.

My girls eggs are hard as concrete  

[Kazoo]

Thanks Aunt Sally, will increase the greens (they had peas tonight) and will try the limestone flour you suggest.  They do tend to eat pellets in the morning but not through the day as you say.

[Aunt Sally]

By greens I mean brassicas; green cabbage, spinach, cauli leaves.

[Kazoo]

Oh, all the things they refuse!!!  I'll try thought thxs

[Aunt Sally]

Oh, all the things they refuse!!!  I'll try thought thxs

    Just like children