Egg-Laying & Chicken Biting

[BigBlueHen53]

Yes, oyster shell should be available 24/7 in a dish separate from food, just like grit. Non-layers will leave it alone. Keep kitchen scraps and scratch to a minimum, think of it as like candy or ice cream. The more of that they get, the less real nutrition they are getting from their balanced feed. Some say no more than 10%. That's like a couple of Tbsp per chicken.

 

[rosemarythyme]

UPDATE: I found the new nest! Does broodyness explain why she's using my box of gardening gloves instead of something perfectly reasonable like the coop? But she did lay yesterday and today. So she might be back to normal?

As a side note: they get layer feed and mealworms daily. They free range all day from 7a - 7p, and I put down scratch every couple of days. If I have kitchen scraps (tomato, zucchini, cucumbers mostly), I will put them down for the girls. I have not given them oyster shell- should I?

She may or may not be going broody, but is not yet broody. She may be building up a clutch of eggs by choosing a site and then returning there to lay, but unless she begins to sit on it day and night she's not trying to brood.

Since they're free ranging I'd cut out the scratch and mealworms, just to ensure they're eating a good amount of feed in addition to whatever vegetation they get/find.

Oyster shell should be available all the time for them to take as needed.