Practice makes perfect, and sometimes young chickens just need a few tries before they get the hang of putting an entire egg together completely before laying it. It is relatively common to find a few soft eggs in the coop if you have chickens at the start of the laying cycle, but when it becomes a regular occurrence, there may be several other factors at play other than an occasional ‘off day.’
Diagnosing the cause of your hen’s soft eggs may make you feel a little like a chicken psychologist or, in some cases, even a psychiatrist. Our loveable chickens take lots of things to heart, and causes for soft shell eggs can range from physical factors like dietary deficiencies and age to illness or being upset by the resident overly macho rooster.
Why Is My Chicken Laying Soft Eggs?
If you talk to non-chicken owners about soft eggs, they will think you are referring to ‘sunny side up’ eggs! Unless you keep chickens, most people can hardly imagine an egg without a hard outer shell.
Soft eggs, also called rubber or shell-less eggs, have a characteristic soft outer covering. When you first encounter one, it can be quite disturbing as it feels spongy, almost like a water balloon with a membrane holding the inside in place. You will be able to see the yolk through the soft outer covering; for all intents and purposes, it is a fully formed egg, except it is missing its hard protective coating.
Thin or non-existent egg shells significantly affect the quality of eggs, which may indicate a health issue that needs to be addressed. Let’s look at the most common reasons chickens occasionally produce eggs with soft shells and what you can do to remedy this cause.
8 Reasons Why Chickens Lay Soft Eggs
Finding a random soft egg inside the coop is not something most chicken owners need to worry about. Everyone has an off day occasionally, and one of the hens might just have hopped off the nest prematurely while laying because she didn’t want to miss some tasty treats being handed out. However, when this unusual occurrence becomes a regular phenomenon, it may signify a deeper issue.
1. It’s A Once-Off
Even the best laid plans sometimes go awry, and chickens may occasionally experience a laying mishap. A rushed hen that doesn’t want to get left behind when she sees her friends wandering away into the yard, or one who is startled by a loud unfamiliar sound, may pass an egg before it is 100% finished forming.
This is nothing to be concerned about, and the eggs that follow should revert to normal.
2. The Age Of The Chicken Matters
Depending on the breed, young hens come into their first laying cycle at around 20 weeks of age. Their first few eggs may be tiny or irregularly shaped or feature soft shells. This is entirely normal, and it is a signal that your babies are ready to graduate to layer feed which will better support the production of eggs.
They say age brings wisdom, but in older hens, it is also more likely to result in occasional egg quality problems, most notably thin-shelled or shell-less eggs. As hens get older, even by the second laying season, they show a marked reduction in their ability to absorb calcium as effectively as they did when they were younger.
Calcium levels can be corrected, even in the second and subsequent cycles, by providing additional calcium sources in an easily digestible form. If you have a flock of various aged birds, provide a source of calcium like oyster shell and make it available as a separate item in the coop. Older hens must be able to help themselves ad lib, rather than overfeeding calcium-enriched feed to chickens that don’t need it.
3. Diet
You can’t put poor-quality gas into your car and expect it to run smoothly; it is the same for our hens. A chicken’s diet significantly influences the quality of the eggs that it can produce.
One of the first things that chicken owners need to check is the amount of calcium in their feed. While there are other essential dietary requirements for laying hens, including plenty of protein, shell production is mainly influenced by the availability of calcium. Pullets coming into lay should be moved from growing mash onto laying mash which contains a significantly higher percentage of calcium.
Maintaining a balanced diet for chickens can be quite a balancing act. Too little calcium and other nutrients can lead to thin shells, and an oversupply of calcium in the diet can lead to a whole range of other egg production issues! Don’t be tempted to ‘fix’ one problem by mixing and matching feed supplements. It is much better to supply additional oyster shell grit and let those that need it help themselves.
4. Heat
Heat can really take it out of our feather-covered little friends. Soft shell eggs are far more likely to occur during heat waves than when the weather is cool. Chickens often don’t eat as much when it is hot as in cold weather. The result is a drop in the egg production rate and the quality of eggs.
Most of us don’t have giant cooling fans in our coops, but there are other ways you can help your hens get through heat waves. Provide ample fresh water stations and cool summer treats for them to peck on – serve up some frozen peas or berries in a shady place and watch your chickens start loving summer! Other great summer coolers are cold cabbage and melons.
5. Chicken Diseases
Soft-shelled eggs are a symptom of quite a few poultry diseases. Most of these are not common, but it is something that chicken owners need to be aware of. Each of the diseases listed below can impact the quality of eggshells of affected hens.
- Egg drop syndrome ’76 – Chicken may appear completely healthy but produce soft-shelled eggs.
- Avian influenza – During this viral disease’s progression, there is usually a visible reduction in the quality of eggs being produced. Thin shells and no shells are one of the symptoms.
- Infectious bronchitis – This is a respiratory disease with similar symptoms to bronchitis in humans – fortunately, it only affects birds. Affected chickens must be quarantined, and the coop needs to be disinfected to reduce the chance of it spreading.
- Newcastle disease (NDV) – In addition to respiratory distress, birds with NDV also frequently show may appear lethargic or have diarrhea.
It is essential to note that while chickens are being treated with medications, drug residues can taint their eggs. Establishing a safe withdrawal period before eating eggs from chickens treated with specific drugs is essential.
6. Health Issues
A chicken with osteoporosis or shell gland irregularities may produce soft-shelled eggs. A far greater concern if your chickens are regularly laying soft eggs is that regularly straining to pass these soft, flexible eggs can cause prolapse.
Cloacal prolapse is a serious condition where the chicken’s reproductive tract gets pushed outwards while straining to pass the soft egg. A good preventative measure is to keep your girls fit and active as it is a condition more commonly associated with overweight, inactive chickens.
A chicken with prolapse from passing a soft egg will need veterinary attention. It must also be isolated to prevent the injury from being pecked at by curious coop mates.
7. Parasites
Being infested with creepy crawlies would not be pleasant for anyone, and our hens feel the same way about parasites. The presence of external mites has been clearly shown to cause significant stress to chickens.
Regularly deworming and providing external parasite treatments will ensure that your chickens do not become anemic or agitated due to parasite infestations.
8. Environmental Stress
Chicken politics is pretty complicated! From the outside, your hens may all look similar, but each character fits into a clearly defined hierarchy that is often ruled by a mob of ruthless bullies. Soft eggs can result from stress caused by being relentlessly henpecked and harassed.
The best answer to this scenario is to avoid overcrowding and ensure that there is plenty of space and places for lower-ranking birds to get some peace and quiet. Add some hay bales so they can get out of sight, or put up extra perches at various heights. Food must be distributed so that all the birds can eat without being pestered.
Outside stressors like prowling predators or inquisitive children peeking in while hens are laying can also upset your chicken’s mojo. Predators that can lead to soft-shelled eggs are a particular concern at night since an egg takes around 20 hours to produce. The final result in the nesting box is the product of many hours of being in production, and stress during the initial stages can also result in egg abnormalities.
Hens do not need a rooster to produce eggs. If you keep a rooster, ensure that the ratio of hens per rooster is at least 8 to 10 so he can divide his time equally and doesn’t get on any particular hen’s nerves too much. It can be highly stressful for hens to be pursued relentlessly by a pesky roo.
David Cameron is a passionate chicken enthusiast. Growing up, he always wanted to be a veterinarian and loved animals. After graduating from veterinary school, David spent over 40 years as an equine veterinarian. He and his wife retired a few years ago and moved to North Carolina. Here, David’s love of chickens grew even more – he now has 7 chickens and 6 quail. If you have any questions about chickens, feel free to reach out.