Are your chickens suffering from low-calcium levels?
Have you noticed your chickens’ eggshells are brittle and crack or break easily?
They may need a calcium boost in their diet.
Chicken layer feed with oyster shells will provide calcium support for your hens to be able to lay eggs with strong eggshells. Strong eggshells can keep bacteria out and improve the quality of farm fresh eggs. These shells act as a safe space for chicks and create a shield for yolks from harmful bacteria.
When do chickens need oyster shells?
It is easy to spot chickens who are calcium deficient:
- Soft-shelled eggs
- Behavioral issues
- Lameness
- Decrease or stop in egg production
- Bone Damage
Hens lacking proper calcium levels typically produce soft or brittle eggshells. Sometimes an improper calcium balance can cause hens to pull calcium from their bones to produce eggshells, weakening their overall skeletal structure.
What is all the hype about?
Each eggshell includes about 2 grams of calcium – or 40 percent of the shell. This number has big meaning when looking at simple math. If the average backyard layer chicken lays 180 to 200 eggs per year, that’s 0.8 to 0.88 pounds of calcium per year for eggshell development. This calcium must come from the diet to support eggshell production.
Ground up oyster shells contain high levels of calcium, and it is sometimes referred to as soluble grit. Although commercial feed has calcium, it still lacks the amount of calcium that laying hens need. On average, a hen needs 4 to 5 grams of calcium per day. Interestingly, eggs contain 94 to 97% calcium carbonate, all of which needs to come from the hen. In general, chickens who lay a lot of eggs need more calcium.
Are oyster shells necessary?
Not all chickens need to consume oyster shells, only the ones who are laying eggs will. Regardless, the flock will still benefit from consuming them:
- It strengthens the blood vessels.
- It reduces the risk of hens laying soft-shelled eggs.
- It reduces the risk of bones breaking or bone damage.
- It improves heart function.
- It protects the immune system of the chickens.
With the right chicken layer feed, you won’t need to supplement oyster shells for chickens. Ready to level up with Martin’s Chicken Layer Mash?
If you love your flock, then now is the perfect time to buy chicken layer mash! This April, you can buy 5 bags of Martin’s layer mash and get 25% off a bag of Martin’s scratch grains now until the end of April 2022.