The following factors are important for the quality of eggshells in the later stages of egg laying and must not be overlooked!
Factors influencing eggshell quality
1. Age. After the peak of egg production, the quality of the eggshell will gradually decline as the age of the flock increases, because the physiological functions of the chickens begin to deteriorate, the intestinal absorption capacity of nutrients (calcium, trace elements, etc.) decreases, and the metabolic ability of nutrients in the body decreases. The main manifestations are: the number of deformed eggs and broken eggs increases, and the thickness, egg color and gloss of the eggshell will decrease. It has been found that in the later stage of egg laying in laying hens, zinc and manganese can improve eggshell strength, and organic trace elements can increase eggshell strength and reduce egg breaking rate more effectively than inorganic trace elements. 2. Temperature, humidity and light.
Temperature and humidity:Among the environmental factors, temperature and humidity have a big influence on the quality of eggshells. Under high temperature and high humidity conditions, the feed intake of chickens decreases significantly, the quality of poultry eggs also decreases, and the egg weight will decrease accordingly, and the thickness of the eggshell in summer is not as thick as the eggshell in spring and autumn.
Lighting:The random change of light can easily cause the physiological disorder of the flock, resulting in a decrease in egg production rate, and a large number of small eggs, white shell eggs, soft shell eggs, and broken shell eggs, resulting in a decrease in quality.
3. Stress response.
High temperature, chicken disease, noise, fright, density, etc. will cause stress, among which heat stress has a greater impact on the eggshell, heat stress makes the chicken breathe faster, water intake increases, feed intake decreases, resulting in a corresponding decrease in calcium intake, coupled with faster breathing and more CO2, the sharp increase in water intake changes the blood pH value, especially the bicarbonate ion (HCO3-) concentration in the blood decreases, affecting the eggshell gland function, resulting in the reduction of the synthesis efficiency of the eggshell and making the eggshell thinner and fragile.
Fourth, chicken disease. Atypical Newcastle disease and egg reduction syndrome:The egg production rate of the flock will decrease by 10 50, and the brown shell eggs will become white, and the broken shell eggs and shellless eggs will increase, resulting in a greatly reduced hatchability and fertilization rate, and it is difficult to reach the original level even after recovery. Infectious bronchitis:During the laying period, the number of eggs produced decreased sharply, the number of coarse-shelled eggs and deformed eggs increased, and the egg whites of some eggs became thin and watery, and the quality of eggs decreased significantly.
Once the chick develops this disease, it will cause permanent lesions, so that it cannot lay eggs or deformed eggs when it is sexually mature, and the egg production rate will be 10%-20% lower than that of this breed of chickens. Studies have found that the use of organic trace elements can effectively improve the broken and thin-shelled eggs caused by disease during the recovery period of disease-stricken laying hens.
5. Feeding management.
Management Chaos:Frequent water cuts, feed cuts, unstable light hours, and frequent changes in feed formulations may lead to a decline in egg quality. Overweight:The fat deposited in the eggshell gland leads to the obstruction of the secretion function of the eggshell gland, which is easy to produce thin-shelled eggs and soft-shell eggs, resulting in an increase in the breakage rate and affecting the quality of eggs. Improper medication:After the use of some prohibited drugs during the laying period, the egg-laying mechanism of chickens is affected to varying degrees, resulting in a decline in egg quality and a decline in qualified eggs. 6. Feed nutrition.
1. The calcium content is too high or too low
Laying hens need a lot of calcium to form eggshells, and calcium in the feed alone is not enough, and a lack of calcium in the diet will produce thin-shelled eggs or soft eggs. Therefore, if the stone powder particles added in the chicken compound feed are insufficient, the calcium content in the feed is too low, which will have an adverse effect on the formation of eggshells, and thin-shelled eggs and soft-shelled eggs appear. However, the calcium content in the diet is too high, which will reduce the palatability of the feed, affect the appetite, and then affect the egg production rate, and in severe cases, it can make chickens have gout.
2. Improper phosphorus content and calcium-phosphorus ratio
Phosphorus is related to the elasticity of the eggshell, and too low phosphorus content will reduce the elasticity of the eggshell; Too much can affect calcium absorption; Therefore, the reasonable ratio of calcium and phosphorus has a great impact on the quality of eggshells.
3. Trace elements
Trace elements are essential nutrients for animals, which affect the quality of eggshells to a certain extent by directly or indirectly participating in many physiological and biochemical reactions in animals. The structure of organic trace elements is stable, avoiding mutual antagonism, and there are many absorption pathways, and high biological potency. Studies have shown that zinc hydroxymethionine and manganese have a good effect on eggshell strength and hardness.
4. Vitamins
Vitamins (especially VE and VD3) are cofactors and promoters of calcium absorption, VD3 deficiency will affect the absorption of calcium and then affect the quality of eggshells, and VD3 deficiency will make calcium and phosphorus absorption and metabolism disorders even if the diet is sufficient, resulting in small eggs, deformed, thin shells and soft shells, decreased egg production and hatchability, etc. In addition, timely addition to the diet can ensure that the chickens effectively obtain VD3 and VE.
5. Feed mildew
Feed due to poor storage and mildew, after feeding chickens, resulting in the chicken's liver, kidneys, etc. are damaged by aflatoxin, thereby destroying the metabolism of vitamins in the chicken's body, resulting in poor disease resistance of chickens, reduced feed remuneration, weight loss, reduced egg production, and softer eggshells.
*: Veterinary pharmacology and prescribing techniques.