Feeding egg shells

[Delmar]

I saw a guy mention the other day that he feeds his layers egg shell. This makes so much sense to me as a way of getting the calcium the birds need to make shells back into the birds. It did, however, make me wonder what precautions need to be taken. I assume they would either need to be rinsed really well, to get the egg white off, or microwaved long enough to cook any egg residue. What else? Run them through a coffee grinder so they are not recognizable as egg shells? I would hate to remind the chickens that eggs are yummy!

 

[92caddy]

I just throw my egg shells in the scrap bucket, I dont rinse them or cook them and then trow it all into the coop. There are some on here that will say you have to do both. I feel as thou its each to their own.

 

[TigerLilly]

Quote:
I'm with him ^
Mine just get dried & crushed before feeding.

 

[algopurple]

I am sure I will be told that this is wrong and I shouldn't do it but I always just throw the shells in the chicken run minutes after the eggs are cracked for cooking. The chickens have never gotten sick and in 6 years, have never figured out what it is they are eating. Even when an egg gets broken in the nest box, they only eat that one egg and don't bother the others. At least that's how it seems since production is never down.

 

[Jx2inNC]

Quote:
Same here. Cracked egg in the pen gets splattered on the ground for them to fight over. But they still don't crack open good eggs even though they see me do it.

 

[knjinnm]

Quote:
X2

 

[Mervin]

I dry them out and crush them up although I'm not sure you really have to. Like everybody else, I've seen mine cleaning up broken eggs but they haven't actually started doing it intentionally.

 

[Delmar]

Do they pretty much clean the egg shells up completely, when you just throw them in the run?

 

[lichick28]

I Microwave The Egg Shells & Crush Them Up In A Paper Towel. I Clean Up A Broken Egg As Soon As Possible. Seems If I Leave A Broken Raw Egg In The Pen I Find More Broken Eggs The Next Day.

 

[knjinnm]

Quote:
Crush the shells and mix them in their feed.