[CattinJ]

...do they start laying more soft eggs?

We have 3 ex bats and are getting 1 soft egg a week at the moment....is this normal do you think?


Cat

[Pretty Chick]

Yes, as hens get older they may lay more soft eggs. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about 

[hillfooter]

Yes as chx get older they need more calcium as they don't metabolise it as well as younger hens.  You should ensure there's always plenty of crushed oyster shell freely available.

HF

[CattinJ]

Thanks Hillfooter...
They have oyster shell, and Im now baking the egg shells we use, crushing them and adding to the feed.  IS it worth adding some calcium powder too?  I know this can be bad for hens so wouldnt want to do anything that could harm them...

[hillfooter]

Thanks Hillfooter...
They have oyster shell, and Im now baking the egg shells we use, crushing them and adding to the feed.  IS it worth adding some calcium powder too?  I know this can be bad for hens so wouldnt want to do anything that could harm them...

I shouldn't say this if Joy is listening and she never sleeps, but baking then crushing egg shells is an awfully tedious process for the pathetic amount you end up with and oyster shell is so cheap and has 3 times the concentration of calcium that eggshell does it's not worth the effort.  One soft egg a week from three old batts isn't too excessive in my opinion.
 
Limestone flour from equestrian suppliers is even more concentrated calcium than oyster and if you use this you mustn't feed for long periods.  I've never used it so can't advise on dosage but you add it to their food rather than having it adlib.

There are several proprietry drink and feed supplements available whose efficacy I couldn't vouch for.

HF

[ehs284]

Don't forget that they need vitamin D to use the calcium. There are a number of vitamin supplements (cheap because you don't need much) and some people use cod liver oil although not all chooks are happy with this.