Baking chicken eggs shells

[Cats0569]

I have seen others talk about baking the egg shells to crush and feed back to the chickens. What is the purpose of baking and if you do it how do you do it? Temp time, size etc.

 

[NatJ]

I have seen others talk about baking the egg shells to crush and feed back to the chickens. What is the purpose of baking and if you do it how do you do it?

Personally, I don't.

I've fed unbaked eggshells to chickens for years.

My method: collect them in a bowl on the kitchen counter, along with all other food scraps, then dump them in the chicken run. Step on anything egg-shaped to crush it. Or squish the shells before dumping them, using a hand or a fork or a trowel or any other tool that's handy.

I don't think it is necessary to crush eggshells very thoroughly. Chickens do a fine job of breaking up the shells with their beaks, and I haven't had egg-eating problems. They tend to bite off the broken edge of the shell, rather than pecking at the smooth round side, so they are not really eating something that "looks like" an egg. Stepping on the shells, or squishing them some other way, may help a little by giving more edges for them to grab, but I think the main benefit is that I feel happier after squishing them a bit

 

[RoyalChick]

I do it because they are easier to crush if they have been baked first.
I collect them in a metal bucket on the kitchen counter.
Then, after I have used the oven for some regular cooking, I turn it off and put the bucket in the oven while it cools down.
That seems to be plenty to make them nice and easy to crush (I use the bottom of a wine or beer bottle for that and do it right in the metal bucket when it has cooled down).
Hope that helps. It is just what I do.

 

[nuthatched]

To kill off bacteria and to dry them out so they're easier time break. I put some in the oven on a sheet pan after I take whatever I was baking out. They just ride out the residual heat. You will need more than egg shells though

 

[NatJ]

I am curious what do you mean by "you will need more than eggs shells though"? More in the oven or more to give the chickens? I am learning about all the process currently. My chickens arent laying yet but am going to start saving my bought egg shells. I assume I can just bake and store them in a mason jar or something until they are ready to eat them?

I think it is referring to this situation:

A hen need a lot of calcium to lay eggs. One eggshell each day is not enough for her to lay an egg each day. This means a flock needs more calcium than they can get from just eating the shells of the eggs they lay.

So you typically need to add an additional calcium source (like oyster shells, or layer feed that already contains high levels of calcium).

A hen who lays one egg each day needs to eat the amount of calcium found in about 3 eggshells each day. Some is in her normal food (maybe 1/3 of her needs, if she is eating chick starter or flock raiser), and the rest needs to come from eggshells, oyster shells, etc. "Layer" feed is designed to have about the right amount of calcium (about 3x what chick starter does), so hens eating layer feed will not need as much extra calcium as hens eating other feeds.


Saving shells now, from store bought eggs, is a fine way to start. Yes, you can store them that way. Just be aware that at some point you will probably need to buy a bag of oyster shell too.

 

[Life of Eric]

I just pop em in the toaster oven for about 5 - 10 minutes at about 350 - 400.
As other said, its to kill off any bacteria and makes em more brittle and easier to crush.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Like others, I find it easier to crush them (and takes care of any germ-phobia). I just save up eggs on a toaster tray and pop them in the oven while preheating for dinner, so it doesn't use up any extra electricity.

 

[EddieSalita]

I find they eat them more readily if not baked. I tried both and as they are raw is much easier and seems more readily eaten. Maybe its the membrane or something. Like natJ I just crush them really well by hand into the scrap bin and feed them along with the other scraps. It's one of their favourite scraps to eat. Just make sure they don't remotely resemble an egg anymore. I've never had a hen that learned to eat eggs by making sure they are well crushed.

 

[nuthatched]

I am curious what do you mean by "you will need more than eggs shells though"? More in the oven or more to give the chickens? I am learning about all the process currently. My chickens arent laying yet but am going to start saving my bought egg shells. I assume I can just bake and store them in a mason jar or something until they are ready to eat them?

They need more calcium than the eggshells, like oyster shell.
If they're eating layer, they likely won't need supplement calcium.
Everybody feeds different since everybody's needs and environment is difficult.
Most people feed a higher protein feed, whether it's a high protein layer or a non layer with oyster shell.
I feed whatever higher protein feed my feed store has in-gamebird feed, chick feed, hi protein layer. I'm not picky. (Thankfully, neither are my birds.)

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I have seen others talk about baking the egg shells to crush and feed back to the chickens. What is the purpose of baking and if you do it how do you do it? Temp time, size etc.

I think just to make them more brittle or clean them