Why do laying hens need more calcium in their diet?
Why Add Calcium? Calcium is an essential nutrient in the diet of poultry. Not only do chickens need to build and support healthy bones, but they also need enough free calcium in their diet to produce a hard eggshell.
How does calcium affect the egg quality of layers?
Calcium: Both excess and deficiency of calcium will negatively affect the shell quality. An egg contains almost 2 grams calcium; hence an average of 4 grams of calcium intake per day is required by a layer to maintain good shell quality since only 50 – 60% of dietary calcium is actually used in shell formation.
Does feeding additional calcium to layer chickens affect the egg weight?
(2011) did not find any significant differences in egg production and egg weight among the Ca levels of 3.0%, 3.6%, or 4.2% of diets in aged laying hens. However, an excess of dietary Ca exerted a negative effect on egg production as a result of reduced feed intake (Ousterhout, 1980; Pelicia et al., 2009).
How many milligrams of calcium should you have a day?
Calcium requirements How much calcium you need depends on your age and sex. The recommended upper limit for calcium is 2,500 mg a day for adults 19 to 50. For those 51 and older, the limit is 2,000 mg a day.
What causes calcium deposits on eggs?
Tiny spots on the egg or small dots that look like fish eggs are often calcium deposits. If the hen is eating too much calcium, her eggs might end up with these deposits. Another cause of the calcium deposits can be that your chickens are receiving too much vitamin D3 in their diet.
What food has high calcium?
Sources of calcium include:
- milk, cheese and other dairy foods.
- green leafy vegetables – such as curly kale, okra but not spinach (spinach does contain high levels of calcium but the body cannot digest it all)
- soya drinks with added calcium.
- bread and anything made with fortified flour.
Are calcium deposits on eggs bad?
If the hen is eating too much calcium, her eggs might end up with these deposits. Another cause of the calcium deposits can be that your chickens are receiving too much vitamin D3 in their diet. This can lead to an overload of calcium in the blood called hypercalcemia and can lead to heart and liver damage.
