Hens knocks only one of the hen’s eggs out

[NRHen]

About a month ago we bought a new, better chicken coop and moved our four chickens to it. Egg laying slowed a little bit while they transitioned, but they seemed to adjust well. One hen we found was laying a few of her eggs and a random spot outside the coop for a little bit. They are finally all laying in the nesting box, but seem to be knocking only one of the hens eggs out of the nesting box across the coop and down into the run. I sat outside yesterday witnessing one of them that was making all kinds of racket during the process working probably an hour to do this. The eggs don’t seem to be bad. None of them have shown any signs of being broody. I’m pretty sure it’s the eggs only from one chicken because I’ve done several test on leaving only one egg in there, no eggs, or six eggs that they’ve laid already. They don’t seem to mind how many eggs are in there, but one a day is on the ground. One of my chickens lays larger eggs and it’s never that one. I think there is more than one of them doing it too.

 

[Perris]

hello @NRHen ! welcome to BYC
that behaviour is really bizarre to me. Are they eating the egg that they expel?

 

[BlueBaby]

You could put some food coloring on the vent of the hen that you are thinking that the egg's belong to. That would tell you if the egg's that get moved out is always from that hen or not. The food color will leave a bit of that color on the egg when it's laid.

 

[NRHen]

hello @NRHen ! welcome to BYC
that behaviour is really bizarre to me. Are they eating the egg that they expel?

Amazingly, only one has cracked, but only barely. Once they have it all the way down to the run, they will leave it alone.

 

[NRHen]

You could put some food coloring on the vent of the hen that you are thinking that the egg's belong to. That would tell you if the egg's that get moved out is always from that hen or not. The food color will leave a bit of that color on the egg when it's laid.

Interesting. I’ll have to look up some more info about that as we are fairly new chicken parents. Thanks.

 

[Ebony Rose]

Have you hatched out any of those eggs? Could be the hens know something that we humans don't. Also thinking, how low on the pecking order is the suspected layer of these rejected eggs?

 

[NRHen]

Have you hatched out any of those eggs? Could be the hens know something that we humans don't. Also thinking, how low on the pecking order is the suspected layer of these rejected eggs?

Have you hatched out any of those eggs? Could be the hens know something that we humans don't. Also thinking, how low on the pecking order is the suspected layer of these rejected eggs?

No, we do not have a rooster. They never did this prior to the move. If it’s the one I think it is, she is last in the pecking order, but they don’t necessarily bully her in any other way.

 

[Ebony Rose]

 

[BlueBaby]

Interesting. I’ll have to look up some more info about that as we are fairly new chicken parents. Thanks.

I found an older thread here that discusses it:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/who-uses-food-coloring-in-vent.389809/

This post here in it tells how it's done:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/who-uses-food-coloring-in-vent.389809/page-4#post-4725285

 

[Perris]

Once they have it all the way down to the run, they will leave it alone.

how odd! I do hope someone has an explanation for this...