How To Prevent Dirty Eggs in the Chicken Coop

Great and informative article! I personally use hay for bedding in the nest boxes, the females prefer the use of hay rather than any other bedding. Unfortunately, even though they have plenty of roosting space that is not nearby the nesting boxes, some hens still sleep in the nesting boxes for some reason. The article states that it is a hard habit to break, and I personally have never tried to stop them from nesting in the boxes because I do not wish to stress them during the night, and they will just go right back to the nesting box anyways. I believe there should be a section in this article that gives tips on how to get hens to stop sleeping in nesting boxes!

Awesome tips! Thanks

Excellent review.
We use artificial grass as pads for our chickens. It's rare that we get a dirty egg, and if the pad gets soiled we just take it out and wash it. We keep a number of extras available all the time. We got ours at Lowes and they had an end of run so they gave it to us for free.

Great article. I’ve used an inexpensive yoga mat from Walmart….. gave me plenty of pieces that can just be hosed off and reused again.

Detailed article with good information.

Well written. Informative ..and offering solutions!

Informative article with lots of good ideas on how to keep eggs clean.

I’ve found that Excelsior hardwood strands make a great bedding in a nesting box. It’s available in bulk corm Uline (product S-12432) for $19

I have a question - maybe you know. I read somewhere that if the shell has poop on it, that you should throw it away because the shell is a living organism like our skin - it absorbs things. Most of the time if there is a little on there, like marks etc...I will wash them but now if they are really pooped on I chuck them. Was that fact or fiction? Thanks!

i buy inexpensive indoor/outdoor carpet the width of my nesting boxes and cut to fit, my boxes r wood, easy to take out and clean or thow away and repeat. have also used placemats from $tree and cut to fit, very inexpensive. empoyee at home depot always wonders why i only buy a foot of carpet!

Very insightful information, Especially for a new chicken owner. I do particularly like the idea of using sand as a base for a cleaner Coop and nesting box. What do you feel about the nesting pads? I bought some, for when The weather starts to get more rainy and cold. Thanks again for the helpful article.

Excellent information! Thank you for passing this on!
In a side note: I have one Easter Egger that was severely injured by a fox - she now has no Achilles’ tendon in one leg, so she hops and doesn’t jump. She sleeps in a nest box nobody else uses, so I just clean it and leave her alone.

Very good info, but I've never had a broody hen soil her nest. In fact, a good broody is probably the cleanest hen you're ever going to have.

Nice information.

Great article very informative

Well done article!

Great tips on keeping eggs clean!

Keeping nest boxes and coops clean goes a long way for keeping eggs clean.

Nice article with good suggestions on how to keep eggs clean.

Very useful with lots of detail and good, helpful suggestions. Thank you so much!