[PaulineM]

Hi

Two of my Isa type hens who I got Nov 2010 have over the last few weeks gone from laying a good egg virtually everyday to laying very thin and crinkly shelled eggs.  I know this is why the egg factories get rid of them at this age and I certainly have no intentions of doing away with them.

I tried giving them cod liver oil and extra limestone flour but I know this is a very short term solution. All my other girls apart from one original Isa that has had this problem from we got her, so obviously I was given one that was past her best (but we love her anyway) lay really nice eggs, they are all fed on Allen & Paige natural range pellets and a handful of just wheat (No corn) in the afternoon and greens a couple of times a week.

What I was wondering was would Ex Batt food be any good for them and if so would it be suitable for all the girls?

Sorry for the long post 

[Casey76]

Hi there   I don't think ex-bat crumbs is actually formulated any different from normal layers, except it is in large crumbs which is easier for debeaked chickens to pick up compared to pellets.

If you bought them in Nov 10, you may just have to accept that they are coming to the end of their laying cycle.

Do they have free choice oystershell available (not hard grit)?

If you can also supplement some dark leafy greens as well as the CLO and limestone flour, this will support the calcium absorption.

Good luck

[PaulineM]

Casey, they have oystershell, grit and limestone grit in a small feeder ad lib. They also free range from early morning to bed time.

In my ignorance I expected Isa hens to slow up with egg production and eventually stop, I hate seeing them trying to lay most days and producing these eggs that they then have to try to eat to get rid of them.

Should I continue to give limestone flour mixed into some mash which all my girls eat or just let nature take its course?

Pauline

[GrannieAnnie]

At their age, you are lucky to be still getting eggs at all from them.  The eggs do get weirder as the hens get older.  As you know, life isn't always fair on animals as well as on us humans.

[PaulineM]

I would be very happy if they stopped laying altogether its just this in between stage were they still try to lay most days and the eggs break etc.

They were true to type and from we got them in Nov 2010 at POL, they have layed everyday hardly ever missing a day, they well and truely deserve a rest