Need guidelines with egg eaters

[Buff Hooligans]

If only you could strap little global positioning units to their legs, yolk-detecting alarms on their necks and a 24-hour webcam monitoring service...

I always think "what did people do in the olden days?". I guess in those days, they probably ate the offending parties. I don't think you will be going there.

Good luck. Maybe your crated girls know what they're incarcerated for.

 

[warren]

My largest hen went through a short phase of egg eating. She only ate the other hen's eggs. The shells were always thin and I think that as she was always second to lay she was going in, treading on the egg by accident and then happily eating it. I solved it by:
firstly collecting the first egg immediately it was laid,
by feeding more calcium,
and by nailing a curtain to the nest box to make it darker.
Apart from finding an empty membrane recently (with no shell) I have had no more problems with egg eating.

 

[fallenweeble]

well, i'm new here and new to chickens in general so i don't have any practical advice. however, i have been reading posts for weeks and it seems to me that this may be an instance of what purple chicken talks about so much, the "evil" of silkies who can take over both human as well as other critter's minds. you wouldn't happen to have one of those in your flock would you? (or maybe a close neighbor has one eh?) if so, that's probably the source of all badness happening in your flock, home, neighborhood, state, country etc.

silkie conspiracy theories aside, the posts urging you to plant bad tasting trick eggs are brilliant! i've used similiar types of things with both dogs and bunnies to deter them from eating/chewing on objects in my home and it usually works wonders. strong, spicy flavors in particular seem to keep critters from chewing (super duper hot-sauce has saved my baseboards in fact).
good luck and, just to back up what everyone else has said, you clearly are a GOOD chicken mama because you CARE!
good luck,
f. weeble

 

[Mysterybirds]

Just a quick little update. Yesterday we made ultradark nesting boxes out of some dark gray storage containers. We cut holes (just big enough for entry holes) in the fronts and I made some raggedy (rather gothic looking) strips of curtains from black material left over from my sons grim reaper costume. I put more golf balls in and added a lovely crystal egg to the box replacing the most heavily used one. I spent an hour out there introducing everyone (meaning sticking each one into a box and letting her fuss around) and then waited to see if anyone would choose to find their way back in. This morning? One lovely perfect still warm egg, all on its own with no one looking in or trying to peck it, nestled in one of the new boxes.

And one cracked egg in the corner of the shed. NOT cracked by a chicken but by the fall off of the grain bag that someone keeps trying to lay eggs on. Grrrr. Off to find a large metal trashcan to take over that corner. But at least no eaten eggs!

Thank you all. I'll update once a few more days have passed and I have a sense of whether it is working.

 

[Charlie Chicken]

Once you have a chicken that has discovered how good eggs taste it's pretty hard to discourage them. I have found that the most effective solution is to darken the nest so they can't see the eggs. I had a bad case of egg eating once in a pen where I was using a community nest so I simply hung a slotted curtain in front of the nest entrance. Problem solved!

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

OK - Several persons mentioned a curtain. Exactly what did you use? Did the girls worry about walking through it?

I am not currently having the problem. But was a few weeks ago. As I mentioned in another post, I had a massacre and lost 6 chickens. Obviously the egg eater was one of them because since then, all eggs laid have remained whole.

But in case the problem happens again, really curious about the curtan and what is made of. Perhaps some pictures would be good.

 

[Charlie Chicken]

I used a scrap piece of vinyl with strips cut in it so the chickens could easily pass through. They just poked their heads through the curtain, saw that everything was okay and continued on through. It sure worked for me because I went from 3-6 eggs being eaten every day to zero eggs eaten after the curtain was installed.

 

[Mysterybirds]

I'm the wrong person for a picture - dialup, no good with cameras or computers, just not a posting pictures person. Hopefully someone else can do the picture thing for you. I can describe what I did. Mine were easy to rig because I have these rubbermaidesque storage containers with snap on lids for boxes. I took some heavy black fabric remnants and put the top under the lids before snapping them closed. I then cut the fabric hanging out in strips about 1.5" wide. And then spent a good long time shoving chickens into the openings to give them the idea that they could get through the curtain into the box. They seem to understand the concept because they have been in laying a few times today.

Sorry to hear about your massacre. I hope you have no further occurences of predators or egg eating.

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

Thanks for the picture and the description.

I am good right now, but you never know. My girls had not eatten eggs for years and then all of sudden a few months ago, it seemed like every egg was being eatten before I could get there. I knew because I could see a few pieces of shell or a little yolk in the nest box.

Thanks again!

 

[SandraChick]

Dark nest boxes helps in many cases. If you have a roo, make sure you show the roo the nest box---the roo will suggest to the hen where to lay eggs--and roos typically choose places that are dark and cozy!!!! It's fun to watch him cluck and coo to show a hen where he wants them to lay!

The use of golfballs (over other "fake eggs") has multiple advantages....it lets the girls know Where you want them to lay- as well as if they get pecked at they get their brains jiggled---yup--it's why it works better than other fake eggs for egg eaters. It works as an instantaneous negative feedback

Extra protein is also helpful. Many chickens will go after the eggs because they are starved for protein. Be careful using too much catfood--as it has more selenium than you want to give to birds (they need micro amounts...but too much can kill them of cause birth defects)...it's great as a short term solution, but it should be just that- short term. Other protein treats can be worms dug up from your garden, meal worms from the bait or pet shop, your meat leftovers from dinner etc.

Calcium can be a problem also. Many folks who give layer feed don't give additional oyster shell free choice because there are oyster shells in the feed. Chickens need more calcium sometimes than others...only by giving them extra oyster shell at all times for them to eat when they need it will this be rectified. ALso, if the shells are soft...the eggs may crack and once it's cracked, I know of NO chicken that won't eat what is there!!!----which goes to what mystery chicken said "one cracked egg in the corner of the shed. NOT cracked by a chicken but by the fall off of the grain bag that someone keeps trying to lay eggs on."....I don't know of any chicken that wouldn't eat that egg and then go back there to look for more later!!!!

The rollaway nest box can also be very helpful...but for me it's too much to build it---a simple box is so much easier and less time consuming!

Good Luck ALL

Sandra