Don't know what to do ....

[unionwirewoman]

My girls have been eating eggs for over 2 months now , and it has been getting worse . I have 18 hens and have been getting only 1-4 eggs aday in that time . I know it's not because of moulting , I clean the nest boxes everyday and every night they are sticky and wet . I've tried supplements , golf balls , card board , everything !!! They have oyster shell in abundance . My dilema is , I can't knowingly give them away when they eat eggs . People around here have chickens to lay eggs , not for pets . I feel the same way . I love my girls , but if they can't at least help pay for their keep then they have to go . The hardest part is knowing where to start . I plan on culling 1 a week until I notice this behavior stopping . It sounds so inhumane , but what else can I do ? I'm at my wits end , and I don't think I can even help out in the butchering . I don't have a problem butchering the meat birds we get , but it's a totally different story when you have to do it to the birds you love .

 

[d.k]

*when are they eating them??

 

[unionwirewoman]

I have no idea . I work 10 hrs a day so I can't keep a constant eye on them . When I go out in the morning (5:00 am ) there is nothing . When I get home ( 6:00 pm) the damage has already been done .

 

[BeckyLa]

Some folks on here have made their own roll away nest boxes because of this problem. Maybe if you ask around you can come up with something easy to make that will let the egg roll out of the reach of the hens.

 

[jdypat]

i had this problem for a few weeks.. i cleared away the nest and put them in a totally different location in the chicken house and that stopped it. i have nest on top of each other and the hens cannot stand up in the nest i think that helped. luck judy

 

[d.k]

*what kind of food do they get?--other than the eggs. And, do you think the eggs are too thin-shelled & that's contributing??

 

[lacyloo]

there are special nest boxes you can use for them that they rool the eggs away. but I hollowed out the eggs and put hotsause in them, once the chickends reilesed how naste they were.

 

[opihiman911]

I agree, try and move the nest box to another place and try and make it dark curtained off area so they can't pass by it and be tempted. Also if it is dark they will lay their egg and get out of the dark area quickly. Also collect eggs frequently or have a roll away so out of sight out of mind.
I have cured egg eaters by blowing out shells and filling them with hot mustard/tobassco mixture. Chickens don't have taste buds and can eat hot peppers, what I think it the deterent is when they get the thick hot mustard stuck to their beak, in their nose and eyes it burns them and they learn its not a pleasant experience.
I had one who was eating eggs and broke open a mustard egg. SHe started sneezing and coughing. When I looked at her one eye was covered with yellow mustard and swollen shut. I replaced the fixed egg and the next day she broke it open, but didn't eat it. That was the last time she did it. I kept up the mustard egg for a week or so, left good eggs in there to tempt her, but she was cured of that bad habit.
Instead of culling one a week, try and identify the culprit by looking for the ones with yolk and dirt stuck on their face and seperate them out with pepper egg treatment. In the end you may need to cull the egg eaters. Preventing egg eating from starting is much easier than stopping and curing the bad habit.
Good Luck.

Aloha,
Cory
Good luck. Preventing the problem is much easier thatn curing and fixing it.

 

[Churkenduse]

Chickens don't have taste buds and can eat hot peppers, what I think it the deterent is when they get the thick hot mustard stuck to their beak, in their nose and eyes it burns them and they learn its not a pleasant experience.

That is a great idea, I know they can't taste so I would not have thought of that.

unionwirewoman ... We do love our flock but if you find a reaon to cull them, you should not have to feel you need to explain, people eat chickens all the time, i only did it twice, it did upset me, but I did enjoy the meat and may get a few more roos to try it again, It is perfectly normal, that is what they are for.

 

[Buster]

I know someone who separated one hen at a time until he found the culprit and then culled just the one- he had 15 hens.