Marans Egg Laying Questions

[pfmoore17]

My Wheaten Marans just started to lay eggs and I have a few basic questions.

1) How do I get them to use the egg laying box. They scratched around in it, but laid outside the box! Should I put an egg in the nest so they get the hint? How about a few golf balls?

2) I use wood chips for bedding. There are specs of wood chips sticking to egg, that I have to wash off. Any advice on an alternative bedding ?
Also, is it okay to soak the egg in water to clean or do I gently scrub it?

3) The eggs are nice and dark, though the smooth surface is marred by scratches. How do I avoid this?

 

[cybercat]

Golf ball or wood eggs will work. I put wood chips under straw works best. The straw they make into a nest and my eggs seems cleaner. Some do get soiled no matter what though.

 

[TACEYPERKINS]

Are your chickens young? It sounds like it. They don't know the routine yet. You can get a golfball or wood egg and put it in there, they will get the hint. It just takes some practice.
As for the bedding, the shavings will stick, not neccisarily a bad thing, Inless you want a perfect egg! You can use some straw or burmuda grass hay for their nest it will cut down on the shavings sticking to the shell. Sometimes the hens may scratch the eggs too when laying them. Sometime they are rough shelled. That is just how chickens are. You are not always going to get a perfect egg shell. Keep the nest box clean and you will have alot of great eggs.
Cleaning the egg- If you want to eat the eggs you can scrub them and rinse them. I would not soak them, they are poruse and will absorb water. If you are going to incubate the eggs, I would not wash them to much. You will not want to have a soiled egg to incubate. But, washing it ruins the egg's protective coat on the shell. Just try to scrap off anything hard and chuncky. Then you can take a damp towl to clean any remaining dirt! Good luck with your Marans and congrats on your new eggs! ~ Tacey