My hen keeps laying eggs from on its perch. Broken eggs all the time

[MyCreoleBirds]

Hi everyonne. I am in desperate need of any help at all. I have three hens, in my flock of 7 chickens and I am getting rid of 3 of my roosters tomorrow, but the dominant hen of my flock keeps laying eggs from her perch. She used to play her eggs in the nesting box but not anymore, as of a week ago she start laying them from the perch while my other two hen lay in the nesting box. It cannot be a bullying problem because she is the bully. She is the top hen in the chicken coop, so I have no idea why she keeps laying eggs from her perch. Please help me, I have a germ phobia and I am to afraid to use the cracked eggs even though they are clean and the membrane isn't torn. The fact that the egg drops in the coop floor and then cracks in the dirty coop floor just makes mme throw them away every time

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

How old is she? My guess is she's choosing to push them out instead of holding them until morning. It should eventually stop as each egg should be laid later each day on a hen laying daily. Definitely don't eat cracked or soiled eggs.

 

[Bamabexchicks]

Hi everyonne. I am in desperate need of any help at all. I have three hens, in my flock of 7 chickens and I am getting rid of 3 of my roosters tomorrow, but the dominant hen of my flock keeps laying eggs from her perch. She used to play her eggs in the nesting box but not anymore, as of a week ago she start laying them from the perch while my other two hen lay in the nesting box. It cannot be a bullying problem because she is the bully. She is the top hen in the chicken coop, so I have no idea why she keeps laying eggs from her perch. Please help me, I have a germ phobia and I am to afraid to use the cracked eggs even though they are clean and the membrane isn't torn. The fact that the egg drops in the coop floor and then cracks in the dirty coop floor just makes mme throw them away every time

Hi, just want to offer a suggestion or 2! We bed our coop with grass hay for a couple of reasons: it's easy to clean up the poop by just pulling out the soiled hay,and rebed with whatever hay is still clean. The hay/poop makes for good garden compost. We put it in a closed barrel till we can use it in a flower bed or garden. It also cushions the eggs they accidentally lay from the perch. Also wonder if you could lower your perch and/or offer another nest box with more privacy for her?
On a different topic, cook the cracked eggs up and feed them back to your flock or the dog or cat. If the membrane is intact they are edible for someone!

 

[EggWalrus]

I wouldn't worry, she should outgrow this. In the meantime, put a pile of about 6-8" of hay/straw (or air bags) to cushion the fall of the eggs.
You can always wash the poo off the eggs from under the roost, and the extra hay will help keep it cleaner under the roosts.

 

[ChickNanny13]

Maybe add another nest box? I know it's been said 4 hens to a nest but she being "alpha" maybe .... If she's a new layer, it could be she just needs time to adjust to the laying process.

 

[aart]

I have three hens, in my flock of 7 chickens and I am getting rid of 3 of my roosters tomorrow, but the dominant hen of my flock keeps laying eggs from her perch. She used to play her eggs in the nesting box but not anymore, as of a week ago she start laying them from the perch while my other two hen lay in the nesting box

How old are your birds?
How many nests? I'd recommend at least 2.
Getting rid of the 3 males may solve the problem....multiple males can create chaotic havoc, which my or may not be visible to you.

I don't eat cracked eggs, membrane intact or not, tho I may cook them up for birds.

 

[EggWalrus]

tho I may cook them up for birds.

That's what I do. If they are cracked, super muddy, or older than 2 weeks, I back feed them to the birds.
I found a clutch of eggs hidden once and tossed them to the roosters. One was a rotten balut egg! And wouldn't ya know it. A rooster snapped it up and swallowed it whole! After seeing that, I must have puked for an hour!
Ewwww!

 

[MyCreoleBirds]

Thank you everyone for the help. I followed all your advice and she stopped laying from the perch now.I can't exactly pinpoint what the problem was but I the soft bedding help solve the cracked eggs problem and I guess she did out grow laying from the perch. Thank you so much everybody.

 

[Bamabexchicks]

Thank you everyone for the help. I followed all your advice and she stopped laying from the perch now.I can't exactly pinpoint what the problem was but I the soft bedding help solve the cracked eggs problem and I guess she did out grow laying from the perch. Thank you so much everybody.

So glad she figured it out! Now you get to eat those yummy fresh eggs.