It happens to the best of us…
We take our regular walk to the chicken coop, open the regular door, reach into the regular nesting box…
And we get a very IRREGULAR-looking egg.
So, what does it mean when a chicken lays a soft egg? And how can you prevent it?
Today I’m going to share some of my natural remedies and hopefully ease your mind a bit. After all, we definitely want your chicken to start laying some regular eggs, now don’t we? Unless you prefer “mushy-water-balloon-like-eggs”, in which case feel free to continue to live happily in your mushy bliss.
Why did my chicken lay a soft egg?
Sometimes things don’t go as planned and your chicken lays a soft egg. Why is this exactly? Well it could be due to a few different problems.
- Could be a calcium deficiency. Chickens need calcium in order to produce hard shells. When a chicken lays a soft egg, it could be as simple as a calcium deficiency. One of the easiest supplements for chickens is to provide crushed eggshells (yes the very same ones from your chickens) or oyster shells. A handful of alfalfa thrown in the coop weekly will also make sure their calcium levels are high enough.
- Could be that your chicken is young. Young chickens often lay tiny eggs, odd-shaped eggs, or flimsy-water balloon soft eggs. When a young chicken lays a soft egg, it’s nothing to be concerned about because they usually grow out of it pretty quickly. If your chicken doesn’t, she might have a disease or major deficiency. If this is happening to your hen, I’d suggest looking into Newcastle disease or infectious bronchitis symptoms as these could be the culprit.
- Could be that your chicken is under stress. If a chicken is dealing with hunger, thirst, extreme temperatures, or even danger of predators, it could make her release her egg early, before the shell has completely hardened and this could be the reason why your chicken lays a soft egg. It’s a good idea to go through the checklist and make sure she’s happy & relatively stress-free.
Is the soft egg still edible?
Absolutely. When your chicken lays a soft egg it will feel very similar to a water balloon. Simply wash the egg with soap/water, then break open as usual. If you don’t feel like eating it, I’m sure any dogs or cats in your home would love it:)
Hi there,
We have four chicken. One of them is having problems waking. She’s off balance and keeps either tipping over forward or to the side. She was fine one day and then the next evening I saw her acting like this. She doesn’t seem to be in pain and seems to want to be doing “chicken things” but because she has to struggle to get around she just gives up and lays down. I add Apple cider vinegar to their water, they have oyster shells available to them (although it seems none of them are really eating them) and I sprinkle garlic powder in their feed.
Any advice?
My husband and I totally LOVE your website and YouTube videos!!!!
Hi Esmeralda-
Without seeing your chicken it is difficult to tell exactly what is wrong with it. It could have a vitamin deficiency or a disease such as Marek’s diseasse or even botulism.
Here is info on the possible diseases: https://www.nda.agric.za/docs/nervous/default.htm
You should have your chicken seen by your vet immediately in case it is a disease.
You should also increase her nutrition (and the other chickens too) by offering a mix of fruits and vegetables, dairy products, and fish meal/powder and/or include a vitamin fortified feed mix in the diet.
Best of luck with your chickens!
Thank you -Bobbi (DaNelle’s Assistant)
Any article or video for prolapse vent? My hen is on 3rd day of prelopse vent..it has gotten smaller so far but just doing research on what people say about it. Thanks 🙂
Hi Pam-
Sorry no video or article about prolapse. All I can tell you is prolapse results when the hen ruptures the muscle in her vent while laying an egg. Be careful if your hen is in with other chickens because the other chickens seeing the blood usually pick the chicken with the prolapse to death. Also know obesity and early sexual maturity can contribute to prolapse. Early sexual maturity can be caused by increasing day lengths during the chicks growing period, obesity, and switching to the laying ration feed too early. To prevent obesity, monitor their body weight and condition. Restrict the chickens’ energy intake if they are putting on too much weight.
I hope this helps. Best of luck.
Thanks -Bobbi (DaNelle’s Assistant)
We have a chicken that has a she cannot release….or so we thought,it looks like that is exactly what is happening but it’s not an egg. Any ideas what it might be and what we can do to help her? She doesn’t seem to be in pain but it hangs down almost to the ground now. Thanks for any help
She might be egg-bound. You can google it and find help on the forums.
Hi! ILYSM! You guys are an amazing family! You guys have great advice and are so entertaining to watch! I hope you stay safe during quarrentine! Thank you!
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Wow! What an interesting post! I have noticed that eggshells do seem a bit more fragile than when I was a kid, but then again, I can’t be sure if it’s just that I am stronger now than when I was a kid. But calcium deficiency would make sense, since farmers are always looking to cut costs. Glad to know that these “soft-shelled” eggs are still edible, but you’ll never see them in a supermarket. John V. Karavitis
I have never gotten any soft eggs I have only gotten some very large eggs with two yolks in them.