How can I stop egg eating??

[Chickmama74]

I just went out to give my chickens some more water....It is 95 degrees and one of them laid the first egg. I was not quick enough to get it on time and they ate it.

How do I stop egg eating? I have see hollow a egg out and fill it with soap?!?!?!?! I don't want to make them sick from the soap.

What can I do???

 

[chickenbythesea]

we had a bout of egg eating and we filled the eggs with mustard, it stopped ours. It tastes awful to them. I also have heard of people putting wooden eggs in and letting them go at that, theory is that once they figure out that they aren't getting something they'll stop.

 

[Cotton42]

we had a bout of egg eating and we filled the eggs with mustard, it stopped ours. It tastes awful to them. I also have heard of people putting wooden eggs in and letting them go at that, theory is that once they figure out that they aren't getting something they'll stop.

x2. Blow out an egg and fill it with salt and mustard. One peck and they should be back to behaving themselves.

 

[Den in Penn]

Roll out or away nest boxes, they allow the egg to roll away out of the chickens reach. If the mustard fails.

 

[Chickmama74]

I just found another egg today and it was tiny. I took a photo of it compared to a to a quarter and and it just barely bigger. And I think I have another one on the way! I was glad to find it before someone ate it.

 

[Erica]

Another tip, make sure eggshells are nice and hard. Extra calcium or vitamin D (sunlight or cod liver oil) can help harden eggshells.

If mustard eggs don't work, roll nests usually will. But sometimes even that fails (a clever bird will reach into the egg compartment; at least mine used to). In that case remove all nest boxes and make sure floor area is clean and clear (i.e. no litter, just smooth dirt or concrete).
Eggs will roll away from beaks and chickens will learn that it isn't worth the trouble.

You may eventually decide it's not worth the effort... In that case don't keep any of these hens or let new birds be with them, or the new ones will learn the behaviour.

Good luck,
Erica

 

[n8ivetxn]

You may eventually decide it's not worth the effort... In that case don't keep any of these hens or let new birds be with them, or the new ones will learn the behaviour.

Good luck,
Erica

One of my hens is eating her eggs, and the others are learning to peck at theirs - I separated her last night, she has to go. I don't have time or the inclination to mess with this.... It's sad, I really like the hen. I think in 4 months I've gotten 3 eggs

 

[linguafranka]

I've been trying the mustard-egg thing & they seem to LOVE mustard! They will eat the mustardy eggshell right out of my hand when I reach in to take it away!
I will try with a bunch of salt. Think horseradish will hurt them? Wasabi? Soap sounds bad for them. What about tabasco??

 

[n8ivetxn]

any of those things should be fine. soap may sound bad, but the amount they're going to ingest won't hurt them, and I've been told the only thing ingesting soap will do is cause minor diarrhea...good luck!