In the chicken farm, not only the poultry raising equipment is very important, but also the quality of the eggshell is an important factor affecting the economic benefits of the farm. It has caused serious economic losses to the farm.
Causes and prevention methods of soft shell eggs produced by laying hens
1. Inadvertent feeding of additives: It has been proved that the rational use of additives can improve the quality of eggshells. However, there are many kinds of feed additives used in China, and it is necessary to select additives suitable for the chickens and to master the reasonable dosage. Otherwise, it will break the balance of various nutrients and normal material metabolism, and make the eggshell thin.
2. Lack of calcium and phosphorus in the diet: laying hens need a lot of calcium to form the eggshell, and calcium deficiency will produce thin shell soft shell eggs. The laying hens feed about 100-130 grams of feed per day. The eggshell is mainly composed of inorganic materials, accounting for 94%-97% of the whole eggshell, and organic matter accounts for 3%-6% of the eggshell. The inorganic matter in the true shell is mainly CaCO3, and its content is as high as 93%. Therefore, it is necessary to add stone powder according to the feed intake and nutrition requirements of each variety.
3. Lack of vitamin D: Vitamin D can promote the absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorus, regulate the balance of calcium and phosphorus in the blood, and is conducive to the formation of bones and eggshells. In the absence of vitamin D, even if the calcium in the diet is sufficient, the absorption and metabolism of calcium and phosphorus will be impeded. The laying hens will produce thin shell eggs and soft shell eggs, which will cause a serious shortage of pheasants and broken wings. In this case, 500 g of hydroxycod liver oil can be added to one ton of feed.
4. Water shortage: Water is not only a solvent for nutrients, but also one of the most important nutrients. Water plays a role in helping digestion, absorption, transport of nutrients and metabolites, discharge of waste and regulation of body temperature. The chicken body and the egg contain about 64% to 75% and about 70% of water, respectively. Therefore, if the laying hen does not drink water for more than 10 hours, the next day egg production will drop by 10-20%, the thin shell soft shell egg will increase, and the egg production will gradually resume in 7-15 days. Egg production, or total egg production, has fallen sharply. Broken eggs and rotten eggs account for more than 3% of the daily egg production.
5. Suitable temperature: The most suitable ambient temperature for laying hens is 15 to 25 °C. When the temperature exceeds 30 ° C, the chicken body is difficult to dissipate heat, the appetite is reduced, the feed intake is reduced, and the excretion is increased. Long-term high temperature will destroy the nutritional balance of the chicken body, causing metabolic changes, causing the thyroid function of the chicken to be disordered, resulting in insufficient calcium and reducing the ability of the eggshell to form in the uterus. At the same time, due to the hot weather, the chickens breathe and breathe, and the body’s carbonic acid increases, which also hinders the absorption and utilization of calcium. Therefore, in the summer, we should also adjust the feed nutrition formula while strengthening the ventilation and cooling in the house.
6. Mycotoxin poisoning: The feed often suffers from mildew due to poor storage, unclearing the tank, etc. After feeding the chicken, the liver and kidney of the chicken are infested by mycotoxins, thereby destroying the metabolism of vitamin D in the chicken body, leading to the chicken. The weight loss, the feed conversion rate is low, the egg production is reduced, the eggshell color becomes white, and the eggshell becomes thin, soft, and brittle.
7. Older laying hens: Generally old hens (after 400 days old) have larger eggs, but the eggshells are correspondingly thinner. As the age of the laying hen increases and the genital organs age, the laying of eggs continues to overdraw nutrients, while consuming calcium and phosphorus in the body. Generally, the demand for vitamin A.D.E increases after 400 days of age, and should be added in time to improve the body immunity, promote the deposition of calcium and phosphorus in the body, improve the quality of the eggshell, delay the aging of the fallopian tube, and delay the rate of egg production.
8. Other factors: such as chicken infectious bronchitis, Newcastle disease, enteritis, aphids, other diseases that damage the reproductive system, and the stress of the house, the high density of feeding, etc. will cause the chicken to produce thin shell soft shell eggs.
Therefore, chicken farms should strengthen breeding management, poultry feeding equipment maintenance and biosafety work, pay more attention to feed nutrition and raw material quality, do a good job in chicken immune and antibody testing, and avoid unnecessary losses.