I think the leghorn hens are eating their eggs..

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

What do I do if they are? i went to get the eggs today and one of the eggs in the nest had yoke all over it..and I only got 4 eggs today..I usually get 18 or so. Any advice would be appreciated

 

[digitS']

This information from the University of Florida may be of help. I'd try all the suggestions except putting a broken egg laced with pepper on the floor. Maybe that would be the last thing I'd try.

Not allowing laying on floor, "fluffing up" the nests, and collecting the eggs often, often, often would come first. Darkening the nest boxes works for some folks - I should say that they swear by it. I'd also make darn sure that they have plenty of oyster shells so they aren't deficient in calcium AND feed them extra protein.

Stay on 'em and here's wishing you the best of luck,

Steve

 

[TexasVet]

That's a lot of missing eggs, if you ask me, so I doubt the hens are eating them. More likely you've got a racoon, possum, or chicken snake raiding the coop.

Because snakes swallow them whole before crushing them, my money is on a racoon or possum.

By the way... I don't eat duck eggs, and I was getting at least one per day last year. So every day I'd drop the egg onto a rock in the coop and the hens would go nuts eating it. And not one of them turned into an "egg eater."

Ditto for giving them egg shells that are crushed only... not washed or cooked. Hasn't causeed any egg-eating problems at all, and I've been doing it for over a year now.

Kathy in Texas