Why your chicken are laying soft shelled eggs

Dear Dr Messo

I am a regular reader of your column in The Smart Harvest and Technology pullout. I keep commercial layers and supply my clients with table eggs. As you are aware, the egg industry is now booming, and I am transporting eggs to long distance clients and making good financial returns. My customers have started to complain that my eggs are breaking easily and are getting spoilt before they reach the frying pan. I have also noticed some with soft eggshell and the numbers are increasing. What is the problem? 

[Very concerned farmer, Utawala]

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Dear concerned farmer

Thank you for raising this issue of soft-shelled eggs in laying pullets, a condition very distressing to layer farmers in the egg industry. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began in Kenya five months ago, the poultry industry players have been slightly spared the drastic contraction of their financial earnings. The egg prices have been good and there has been no significant dumping of products from our neighbouring countries like witnessed before.

So, it goes without saying that any condition that will impact table egg quality at this time needs urgent scrutiny, evaluation and a quick resolution to return performance to normalcy. Here are situations or conditions that are likely to impact on the eggshell quality and the solutions to address each of them.

Calcium and phosphorus deficiencies

Both minerals are required for bones and egg shell formation. They do this by increasing metabolism of carbohydrates and fats in the body of all creatures. Interestingly, calcium and phosphorus can only function in the presence of Vitamin D. So, deficiencies of the three ingredients of calcium, phosphorus and Vitamin D3 will result into rickets in young birds, soft-shell eggs in producing chickens, drop in egg production, poor shell quality and massive loss to farmers.

Ask yourself these questions, did you change your feed supplier in the last two weeks before you noticed the changes in egg quality? Or did you receive a new batch of feed from your regular supplier? In the past, most feed millers used silver fish (omena) in compounding their feed, and the formulation with fish meal and limestone are very rich in calcium and phosphorus, but as fish has become scarce and expensive, most feed are now entirely grain based and are likely to be deficient in these important minerals if the right limestone is not adequately supplemented.

Vitamin C & D deficiency

Vitamin C is a very important requirement for a chicken during egg production. It is naturally synthesised by the bird in the kidneys and is an anti-stress and responsible for tissue repairs. It is a water-soluble vitamin, quite unstable and can easily be denatured in feed under hot environment. Deficiency will result into increased layer mortality, drop in egg production, thin and easily broken egg shells and in birds in cages, can cause fatigue. Supplement in drinking water by using straight ascorbic acid for four days at recommended rates during stressful periods, like hot environment.

Vitamin D on the other hand plays its part by increasing absorption of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium from the intestines of chickens. Any reduction or deficiency will result in drop in egg production and loss of physical strength of egg shells leading to increased egg breakage.

Disease due to Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV)

The last possible cause of weak egg shells is if the chickens have IBV infection. In this case, you may notice birds going off feed, developing swollen head, sneezing, showing wet eyes, a drop in egg production, weak egg-shells or completely shell-less eggs, wrinkled egg shells or in extreme cases, the colour of egg shells will turn from brown to white. The good news is that this disease is preventable through multiple vaccinations done during growing period. If your chickens were vaccinated, then there is no need to worry. However, you need a vet visit to confirm any infection.

[The writer is Head Vet, Kenchic Ltd, [email protected]]