Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[mohillbilly]

never had one to eat eggs...but then I keep oyster shells out for them all the time , I only have to refill the dish once every 3 or 4 months. they don't eat them unless they need them, at least mine don't. oh so you know how big dish is it holds 3 cups that's all.

 

[PaleMelanesian]

(I'm not an old-timer)

I have an egg-eater in the crock pot right now. I tried ALL the tricks on a previous egg-eater and concluded they don't work. This time I just removed her right away. Even if she's only eating her own eggs (so far), she's eating feed and giving me nothing in return. All my chickens are destined for the kitchen, but some volunteer sooner than others.

I have oyster shell free-choice. I'm sure it helps, but not sure how much. They only very slowly eat it - lasts a long time.

 

[Beekissed]

Three generations of women raising chickens here and I can honestly say we've never had an egg eater...we've had hundreds of 'em. IMO, there is no such thing as an "egg eater" or we would have eventually run across one in our flocks. ANY chicken will be an opportunistic egg eater, meaning they will consume a cracked, leaking egg in the nest, on the floor, etc. That is not only natural but necessary, if you think in terms of this bird species living in the wild.

A broody will even push out non-fertile eggs and eat them, but to lay an egg and turn around and eat it...no. A bird that did that would have no opportunity of passing on the gene and its line would soon die out, in a natural setting.

The problem is thin shells or even too many eggs in one nest that get crushed when hens climb in and out...but usually it is thin shells. It isn't caused by folks feeding their chickens egg shells or broken eggs, creating a taste for eggs.

You can't "cure" it by planting loaded eggs or fake eggs. The only cure is creating stronger egg shells. Sometimes this just comes eventually as the birds are once again diverting calcium into eggs instead of feather regrowth. Or you had a chicken that was experiencing temporary calcium depletion and she only laid a series of thin shelled eggs but resumed her normal shell strength and magically, it seems, the egg eating stops.

Whatever the original cause, the most expedient way to correct thin shells is placing more calcium right in your feed ration and making sure they have plenty of protein in their regular ration. If you currently offer free choice OS, mix some right in the feed. If you don't offer any at all, do so. Try to see if your birds are eating more layer ration vs. "treats", if not, cool it on the scratch and treats.

If you say you never see any thin shelled eggs but you see yolk on the others or on a chicken's beak/face, it could be the thin ones are being consumed before you ever find them. If you have a sudden drop in egg production, see egg residue on the eggs or nest or on a chicken's guilty mug...before you assume you have a cull bird, just try upping the calcium and protein and wait it out. Things will correct themselves 9 times out of 10 and you won't have to kill that nasty bird with a taste for eggs....trust me, they ALL love the taste of eggs.

And that's just my take on it....

 

[Arielle]

I am still new to chickens, however I watch them alot and I'm willing to learn. AKA not a 20-30 yr veteran.

Tonight I observed a BO hen lounging in a nest box. This was very unusual as the sun had gone down ( light on in coop) and she should have gone home to her coop across the back yard. She had my attention!

As always, I stopped by periodically to visit and see what she was up to. Caught her eating the egg. Her egg as I had picked up all eggs for the day hours ago. Very thin shell and broken. I carefully collected the remains and tossed it in the feed pan. Meyhem !! Three hens tore it up. BO , with the largest section, ran out the coop door to devour her goodies. Noisy girls fighting over yummy food.

This hen is just coming back into lay; her first of the season AFAIK. Seems like a few/some of my hens start with a thin shell and do eventually put on a good hard shell in short time.

Yes, I have egg eaters, but the egg broke and they can't resist good food. Makes sense to utilize all nutrient sources and clean up to prevent predators investigating IMO.

 

[Tripp16]

Alright! Hi Old Timers. Lol


I have a question that I figured I would ask here because I knew I would get a straight answer. So here it is,,,,,

I have a silkie chick that will 2 months tuesday. She just recently has gotten a crossbeak or crookbeak so much so her bottom of her beak sticks out and the top doesnt close properly. She still acts like a little chick with the rest of her siblings and is eating and drinking. But will it continue to get worse?

What should I do??

 

[Beekissed]

I can honestly tell you I've never had any bird with a beak deformity like that and if I did, I'd cull it~particularly if it seems to be worsening. No need to force it to live that way or pass on the weakness.

Maybe another OT has some insight into this?

 

[darkmatter]

No need to buy mulch and straw, anything free is good.

 

[galanie]

I am still new to chickens, however I watch them alot and I'm willing to learn. AKA not a 20-30 yr veteran. 

Same here. I think watching them a lot is probably the best learning tool there is. I've learned so much more by watching them than I ever could have learned just reading about them. I watch them probably at least 4 hours a day, all in all. Sometimes more. They're entertaining some of that time but not always. Nevertheless, I watch. It's calming and educational even with they really aren't doing much.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree! When you've watched and been around normal, healthy chickens so much you can usually spot differences in their health and behaviors better. I love watching them on the green grass and sometimes when they "sun", I'll lay in the yard right next to them, especially on a soft, spring day. Me, dog and chickens sprawled in the sunshine. I'm sure passersby think my egg is cracked, but I don't care!

 

[Clay Mudd]

Same here. I think watching them a lot is probably the best learning tool there is. I've learned so much more by watching them than I ever could have learned just reading about them.

Watching my first flock actually changed my management plan. I had built a portable coop and run, intending to move the whole thing as the grass got destroyed. But seeing how much they tended to run into the woods and dig in the natural mulch-carpet of leaves, I started throwing leaves into the run, and now I get to watch them busily digging in their private mulch pile.

of course, later I read that other people have been doing the same thing forever...