Ceramic eggs gone!

[Kateb910]

So about a month ago i had put ceramic eggs in the nesting boxes to help promote my chickens to start laying in the boxes. They are 16-18 weeks now, so im thinking i might start getting a couple eggs soon. Well this morning i went out and opened the coop to check check on our feathered kids and looked in the boxes in hopes of finding our first egg, well no eggs layed yet but several of my ceramic eggs are gone!! Im of course thinking its a snake... My question is will the ceramic eggs kill the snake/ snakes that ate them? And how long does it take to kill the snake if so?.. Any feed back or experience with this situation?

 

[RainbowHen]

So about a month ago i had put ceramic eggs in the nesting boxes to help promote my chickens to start laying in the boxes. They are 16-18 weeks now, so im thinking i might start getting a couple eggs soon. Well this morning i went out and opened the coop to check check on our feathered kids and looked in the boxes in hopes of finding our first egg, well no eggs layed yet but several of my ceramic eggs are gone!! Im of course thinking its a snake... My question is will the ceramic eggs kill the snake/ snakes that ate them? And how long does it take to kill the snake if so?.. Any feed back or experience with this situation?

The snake may very well just regurgitate the eggs and be on its merry way

 

[Kateb910]

The snake may very well just regurgitate the eggs and be on its merry way

Im so hoping that will be the case!! I hate snakes and hate dealing with them.... Id read several different places that a snake cant hardly regurgitate a ceramic egg.

 

[ladybrasa]

Huh. Did you check outside the nests and under bedding in case they kicked it out?

If a snake ate them ... poor snake (imo). I thought snakes relied more on their smell/taste though? Rather than by sight. I don’t think snakes can regurgitate very well, and a ceramic egg isn’t coming out the other end, so basically it would very very very slowly starve to death, because snakes can go a long time between meals.

 

[ladybrasa]

Snakes can be a farmers’ friend, depending on species and where they are on the farm. Obviously not in the hen house! Most species aren’t particularly aggressive and just want to get away and be left alone.

Obviously do NOT mess with poisonous ones! But plain ole’ black snakes and garter snakes and such aren’t so bad.

 

[Kateb910]

Huh. Did you check outside the nests and under bedding in case they kicked it out?

If a snake ate them ... poor snake (imo). I thought snakes relied more on their smell/taste though? Rather than by sight. I don’t think snakes can regurgitate very well, and a ceramic egg isn’t coming out the other end, so basically it would very very very slowly starve to death, because snakes can go a long time between meals.

Yes, i checked around them underneath them and all around, they are gone.. i had 8 of them im down to 3 left and the 3 left are in another section of nesting boxes on a different wall.. Starvation of any animal is sad.

 

[Kateb910]

Snakes can be a farmers’ friend, depending on species and where they are on the farm. Obviously not in the hen house! Most species aren’t particularly aggressive and just want to get away and be left alone.

Obviously do NOT mess with poisonous ones! But plain ole’ black snakes and garter snakes and such aren’t so bad.

We had a 6 foot black snake in our coop in june and my husband caught it with a chicken in its mouth that he couldn't fully consume ofcourse cause the chicken was too big.. but needless to say the chicken was dead... it was a family favorite since we had to give it special care after we hatched it

 

[ladybrasa]

Can any other critter get in? That’s a lot of “eggs” for a snake to eat. Could a more visual motivated critter have gotten in and carried them off?

 

[Kateb910]

Can any other critter get in? That’s a lot of “eggs” for a snake to eat. Could a more visual motivated critter have gotten in and carried them off?

No, i do not think so.. we are going to do some investigative work today.

 

[Kateb910]

No, i do not think so.. we are going to do some investigative work today.

I do believe this has been over a couple of days.