Feeding egg shells

[moomysooer]

. These girls all came home together from Rural King first week of July. I'm wondering what's up with the one so much further along in developing? Will she lay eggs sooner?

 

[Beekissed]

She may....but then again, she may be a HE. Got any pics of the rest of "her" body?

 

[FlyWheel]

My impression has been that people microwave or bake to dry them out so they're easier to crush. I don't cook mine, they dry naturally and then my son crushes them. No egg eaters here.

That's why I bake mine. First I rinse out the shells running my finger inside to get off the goo (albumen),then dry/bake them at 250F for 6-10 minutes. This makes the shells more brittle so they crunch up easier. By removing any moisture it also keeps the grains from sticking together. Finally I grind up the pieces in a "Magic Bullet" processor. Basically reducing them to sand.

 

[moomysooer]

She may....but then again, she may be a HE.  Got any pics of the rest of "her" body? 

here ya go.

 

[Beekissed]

here ya go.

Oops. Your she is a HE. Has some pretty sickle feathers going on in that tail...those will soon be big enough to be called cock feathers. He'll need about 10-15 hens to go along with him if you don't want barebacked hens....he'll be breeding here soon and doing it often.

If you intend to keep him, you might want to start teaching him about how to act around humans now....not by petting or picking him up and such, but by teaching him to avoid humans at all costs. He needs to be wary of humans before he ever gets his male hormones kicking in...this will help him understand that relationship when all the testosterone starts clouding his mind. When you enter the coop, he needs to move away from you or stand way back, not moving towards you freely. If he does, give him a scare and walk after him until he is running away from you. Repeat if necessary. The hens will soon realize you are focused on that one bird and will not get too excited after a bit.

I'd do that as often as it takes to give your HE a healthy respect for humans as predators. Later on, when he's proven he can be trusted to not flog humans, you can just treat him as normal but every once in awhile just give him a refresher to keep it in his mind.

If you do all that and you may not be on here later asking what to do with a rooster that attacks you.

 

[moomysooer]

Thank you. I don't like it, she/he is my favorite, but he's going to go. Don't want chicks now. Just learning about chicks. Thanks for answering!

 

[Kimberly4403]

I just rinse my egg shells and remove the membrane makes drying and crushing easier and i just add it to my daily scraps

 

[Mom2Sav]

So if I put out the egg shells when I feed them scraps I don't need to add any oyster shell? Thanks

 

[Den in Penn]

So if I put out the egg shells when I feed them scraps I don't need to add any oyster shell? Thanks

That depends on if you are also feeding a high calcium feed or a lot of lower calcium scraps. There really is no always correct answer for that. If you are feeding a low calcium feed, even with feeding back of the shell there is a loss of calcium over time from the system. They do excrete some in the droppings and you could also be giving or selling eggs out of the cycle. So having oyster shell around is an insurance for stronger shells.

 

[Mom2Sav]

That depends on if you are also feeding a high calcium feed or a lot of lower calcium scraps. There really is no always correct answer for that. If you are feeding a low calcium feed, even with feeding back of the shell there is a loss of calcium over time from the system. They do excrete some in the droppings and you could also be giving or selling eggs out of the cycle. So having oyster shell around is an insurance for stronger shells.

Ok, good to know. Would I just leave OS out for them to choose at will?