First egg/ egg EATER!

[artsvarc]

My pulleys are 18 weeks, I've been checking multiple times a day. Today I was out... we heard the egg song. Looked and looked.. nothing, but my olive egger was in the box. I figured she hadn't actually laid yet. About an hour later I saw my other olive egger running with an egg in her mouth, broken. I don't know if she's been laying and they are being eaten before we can get them? I'm devastated that the first egg has finally arrived and was ruined. I'm going to need to research now how to stop it.

 

[Chickassan]

Don't worry about it just yet, it isn't uncommon to lose the first few due to curiosity.
If it does continue try upping their protein intake.
If that dosent help then roll away nest boxes will do the job.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Many chickens will eat an egg that is already broken. That's not unusual and does not make them an egg eater in my opinion. An egg eater purposely opens an egg to eat it. That is not good. In all my years I've only had one hen that purposely opened an egg to eat it but I've had several that would eat an egg already opened.

Often a pullets first eggs are not quite right. The internal egg making factory is pretty complex, sometimes to takes a few days for them to work out all the kinks in that system. It wouldn't surprise me if that first egg was thin-shelled. A hen walks on the eggs getting off the nest. It may have broken when she walked on it. Or something along those lines.

I know it is discouraging since it was the first egg but it's not an immediate reason to panic or do anything rash. See if it is repeatable or just an unfortunate accident.

 

[artsvarc]

Many chickens will eat an egg that is already broken. That's not unusual and does not make them an egg eater in my opinion. An egg eater purposely opens an egg to eat it. That is not good. In all my years I've only had one hen that purposely opened an egg to eat it but I've had several that would eat an egg already opened.

Often a pullets first eggs are not quite right. The internal egg making factory is pretty complex, sometimes to takes a few days for them to work out all the kinks in that system. It wouldn't surprise me if that first egg was thin-shelled. A hen walks on the eggs getting off the nest. It may have broken when she walked on it. Or something along those lines.

I know it is discouraging since it was the first egg but it's not an immediate reason to panic or do anything rash. See if it is repeatable or just an unfortunate accident.

Thank you!

 

[Chickassan]

@Ridgerunner is spot on.
Iv'e seen birds accidentally open pullet eggs simply by trying to arrange the nest to lay their own.
Open eggs are eaten with gusto by any and all, they're too nutritious to waste.