[PaulineM]

Hi
Got my girls last August, one brown hen straight away had problems with very thin shelled eggs. I tried giving her yoghurt, cod liver oil, limestone flour, shell max booster etc. and although these worked for a little while she still couldn't produce a good shell.
When we got 2 new brown hens around Nov she stopped laying all together much to our relief. However since just after Christmas she started laying again and she was laying lovely strong shelled eggs so we kept our fingers crossed that maybe the break was all she needed.
Yesterday when I lifted her egg the shell broke and today again she had tried her egg as they do with a little peck and it must have broken as I caught her frantically trying to get rid of the evidence.
They get smallholder layers pellets, oyster shell mixed with limestone grit, greens occasionally and wheat late afternoon. They free range.
I never see this bird eat the oyster shell mix.
Any ideas much appreciated- should I find out about the implants to stop her laying altogether as I don't want the other girls getting to like eating eggs.  HELP

[joyfull]

if an egg breaks it is perfectly natural for them to eat it - this removes any evidence that a preditor might find interesting, plus they get some protein and a little bit of calcium if it was a thin shelled one. Only start to worry about them becoming egg eaters if they start to peck open a hard shelled egg.

[PaulineM]

Thanks Joyful
Last year she only ate her own eggs but what I am dreading is that if it follows on from last year it will mean every egg she lays will break and she seems distressed when this happens. I'm also worried in case one breaks inside her.
2 other hens joined in with her today eating the egg, could this encourage them to eat eggs? 

[joyfull]

mine all scramble for any broken eggs or thin shelled ones and I haven't ever had a problem with them eating proper shelled eggs. Does you older hen have access to dark leafy greens - this could help her absord any calcium as it might be she has a problem doing so.

[PaulineM]

They had raw broccoli the other day and maybe once a week I give them a savoy cabbage.
I definitely think she must be an older hen although she was sold to me as 'this years bird'
She is one of the best charactors anyway so I will she how things get on. I would love to be able to solve her problem tho!

[PaulineM]

Hi Everyone

I think I might have solved this problem 
I woke up the other morning with a flash of inspiration! I realised that the only thing that had chanced recently was about a week before the thin shelled eggs started, I had stopped giving them their pellets as a mash in the mornings. So straight away I ressumed mash for breakfast. Anyhow yesterday Mabel layed an egg that although was thin shelled it still survived and today what appears to be a completely perfect egg! 
She does have a longer bottom beak and finds it a bit difficult to pick up small items. 
So my conclusion is she must not have been getting enough pellets.
Keeping my fingers crossed that this is the problem solved 

[joyfull]

fingers crossed for you xx