Egg eating

[Lkcoop66]

I am having a terrible time with egg eating. I know one of the hens that is eating the eggs, she has a broken front comb, but she has some help from the ground squirrels and a few Blue Jays. I have been eradicating the squirrels and closed off the coup. Now I need some professional help on how to stop the hen from eating close to ten eggs a week?

 

[Dylan1776]

I'm fairly new to chickens myself so my knowledge is limited. However just yesterday at the store I saw some clay eggs that were marketed to stop egg eating. I don't know how all it works but that may be a good start.

 

[lazy gardener]

Fake eggs in the nest to start, be sure there is plenty of nice thick fluffy bedding in the nest box. If the nest box is open and airy, with interior easily visible, you might need to change that. Are the egg shells nice and strong, or are they (even if only a few of them) on the weak side? A strong shell is not as much of a temptation. It's natural for birds to clean up any weak shelled eggs. Most important, you might need to address diet. What are you feeding? (be sure to include a list of treats) Often the diet is deficient b/c the protein/mineral/vitamin content is deficient, the birds are not getting enough protein, the feed is stale, or the birds are getting too much in the way of scratch grains and other treats. Calcium is IMO a very small part of the egg shell strength equation, as calcium absorption is dependent on other vitamins/minerals. Are you offering extra oyster shell on the side?