How many eggs can a snake eat?

[Lesliewine]

well he was back tonight went to close my baby chicks and other chickens up and he was there don't think he got any today because I collected them as soon as they laid But my chickens are not laying as good with this heat But was able to catch them today right after they laid which is hard to do since they don't lay at the same time everyday But needless to say he will not be back my husband got rid of him most of my chickens are scared of them But he thought he was going hang out all night and get the eggs in the morning But he has been hanging around for about 2 weeks So I was just over it we couldn't catch him in the act this one was sneaky about a month ago we had 2 in coop at once we got them out and run them off But don't know if it was one of the same snakes since all have been between 5 to 6 foot we are having some big ones lately hoping will be a little while before I see anymore But I will always stay on alert.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

well this is about a 5 foot black snake cant catch him in the act But we have to close Our chickens up at night Because the yard they free range in is in the woods so we are afraid a wild animal would kill them Be cause we have seen a red Fox a couple weeks ago just right down the road from our house wasn't even a block away But I go in coop and do a walk through look and check under shelves and check the whole coop before I close them up for the night We also lost a baby chick yesterday evening sometime no sign of chick anywhere we still have 3 though But this snake is really sneaky because I check several times a day trying to catch him and haven't been able to catch him eating eggs or after he has consumed one because you can tell when they have ate one because it takes a while to digest so you can see a bulge in that area we ran one out Sunday but we caught him before he got the egg he was after But we run him off well my husband got him out of the coop But you would think he would want something tastier then a egg Like one of theses rabbits we have a lot of rabbits around our house and plenty of wild bird and am sure they are plenty of wild life here in the woods so was wondering if anyone had a idea of about how many they could eat in a day and how they have to wait between meals

Most (but not all) snakes that specialize in eating eggs has a sharp bone in the back of their throat that pierces the egg shell resulting in the egg's contents being emptied into the shakes stomach for quick processing. The snake then regurgitates the broken shell and if your hens find the egg husk soon nothing will remain.

The truth is that shakes have a strong union and they will not work any harder than is necessary to make a living. In other words bunny rabbets run off while wild birds fly away and all of this is conducive to snakes eating eggs which besides being a high energy meal is also the easiest meal out there because eggs just lay there waiting to be eaten.

 

[Ravynscroft]

Snakes will go for eggs if they're available over bunnies or rats due to the fact that eggs can't injure them while they're eating them... the last thing any wildlife wants is an injury since that shows weakness and the scent of blood can attract a bigger predator than it that might kill it...

If you're worried about more snakes, simply get a decent quality minnow trap and bait it with some eggs outside your coop... the snake will go in, but can't figure out how to get back out...

 

[cowchickendog]

I just recorded our resident bull snake eating 4 eggs in my chicken coop. Afternoon, swallowed one at a time, whole...then about 8" inside from his mouth...the eggs would crush from his constrictions. You couldn't tell he had the egg inside once it crushed. He did this 4 times. Encouraged him to move on...even tho he appeared to be wanting to curl up for a quick nap in the laying box. He moved on, leaving the coop a different way then he entered. Still recording him, about 5' from the coop fencing, he disappeared down a small whole between rocks that cover our septic tank. This evening, 4 days later, he was inside coop again, enjoying eggs. My girls lay every day, however, haven't had eggs since 4 days ago....or maybe we have? Local biologist thought those first 4 eggs might keep him satisfied at least a week. Hummmm???