[eryl]

Hi,
     I have 28 hybred free  range laying hens under 12 months old. Up until about a week  ago, I was getting 21-24 eggs every day. All of a sudden, afew days ago, production dropped over night to 11-12 eggs/day, also appetite dropped - I feed them adlib layers pellets in a feeder, so I noticed the level of feed was not falling as fast as it should. Appetite has picked up again a bit, but not egg production and some of the eggs I am getting are very very pale - almost white. Anyone any ideas?

[doganjo]

Not sure why it should be sudden other than a shock - fox or other predator prowling maybe - but otherwise decline and colour could be related to worms - when did you last worm them?

[chrismahon]

I'd guess your pellets have colourants in them- yolk enhancers they label them. If they have no grass and are not eating anyway the yolks will lose colour. The reason they are not eating could be due to parasites like red mite or lice. A moult would do the same but they are too young at the moment I think? Check them and the coop over throughly.

[eryl]

thanks for your replies and comments noted. should have been a bit more specific, its the shells that have gone pale , not the yolks. the hens look fine in themselves, if it was some sort of infection - worms or mites - there would be other signs. we always have foxes in our garden but the huts are secure. as I say, food consumption is back on the up s o I hope egg production will be. thanks again everyone.

[Perris]

shell colour is basically white or blue, and shades of brown are created by the bloom that the hen adds in the last stage of laying. Whatever they are like at the start of the season, most hens' eggs get paler as it goes on (presumably as the nutrients necessary to create the colour are depleted). Nothing to worry about, as you've noticed anyway!