A warning to all using painted plastic eggs in nest boxes

[rainbowgardens]

I was using a painted decorative easter egg in my nest boxes. Not the kind you open and fill, but the pretty speckled painted ones used for display.
A while back, I found one of my hens with a huge bulge on her chest. Dread filled me as I assumed it was sour crop, but when I picked her up I found that it was one of those eggs stuck to her feathers. It had been raining and she had laid in the nest with wet feathers. The paint softened and her feathers stuck tight. I really had to work at her for a while to rip the feathers off. She was not happy!!

 

[gritsar]

Ugh! I'll bet that was a mess!
I've always used golf balls.

 

[fordmommy]

 

[Happy Chooks]

Poor thing.

 

[G Wiz Ranch]

I use wooden eggs

 

[Uppity Peon]

Quote:
I guess if you want to use one, soak it in hot water for a while and wash all the paint off of it first.

 

[cmom]

I have always used golf balls too.