My hens started eating their eggs!

[unaspenser]

I have three year-and-a-half year-old hens... a dorking and two andalusians. We bought them last September and they started laying reliably in March. A couple weeks ago, however, we started noticing eggs with cracks in them fairly regularly. Last week we watched in horror as the three gals cracked and devoured two eggs. Since then, we have only had one egg from the lot of them. Sadly, they all lay white eggs so it's impossible to tell who it came from. The weird thing is that now the combs of the two andalusians have gotten very pale (like they were last winter when they didn't lay), and they aren't acting broody at all. The dorking still cackles and nests, but we haven't seen her lay for sure. I'm desperate! My husband and I are contemplating buying eggs for the first time in months. Anybody have any ideas about curbing this behavior, or should we go ahead and eat the gals and just wait for our younger 3 (all about 20 weeks) to start laying?

 

[Uppity Peon]

Blow a couple eggs and pack them with mustard.

Muaaaahahahaha!

 

[chickenbottom]

Quote:
yup mustard is the enemy

 

[unaspenser]

Quote:
LMAO that cracks me up (no pun intended)! Do you really think it would work?

 

[chickenbottom]

ive told this story on here alot of times for egg eaters my uncle had egg eaters he would break an egg on the ground let the chickens

over it and squirt mustard on top then let them get it i promise you they didnt go back for a second bite

 

[TexasVet]

Are you giving them a layer feed that has extra calcium in it? If not, you need to put some oyster shell in a separate pan for them. Chickens generally eat eggs when they aren't getting enough calcium in their diet.

Pale combs can signal a lot of things, but generally stress, poor health, or age. My older hens (I'm talking 3 years or older) have paler combs, and lay fewer eggs, with thinner shells, regardless of how much calcium they get.

Kathy, Bellville TX
www.CountryChickens.com

 

[unaspenser]

Interesting about the mustard story. It could be stress or the hot weather I suppose. They get layer feed and scratch grain, supplemented with baked egg shells (I was told baking them would keep them from developing a taste for their own eggs, but obviously not)... They also get to graze a section of our yard and have access to the compost pile. I'm stumped.

 

[Gailchickie]

In another thread someone suggested putting some golf balls in the nesting boxes. The theory is that the egg eater will try pecking at it (unsuccessfully, of course), and that will discourage her from pecking at the actual eggs.

I put out golf balls five days ago and I've gone from 1-2 eggs per day (I have 4 hens who should be laying, but one is molting) to 3 eggs per day!!!! (Starting with golf ball day!)-Gail

 

[Gailchickie]

I should add that the day before, I opened the egg door to find my best EE squatting above her beautiful egg and the egg-eater with her claw around the egg, trying to grab it out from under her!!!!!

(I grabbed it back)

 

[cybercat]

Time for rollout nest boxes. Keeps eggs clean and away from hens.