Nest Boxes on Ground and Eggs Being Smashed / Eaten

[anthonyjames]

Is this normal. My nest boxes happen to be on the floor portion of my coop that extend outside with a door on the top as to get eggs from outside. But the last few days, if I am not out there right after a hen lays the eggs get smashed open and the birds run around the run trying to stop the others from getting the shell and will devour it.

What does this mean and how can I get eggs without having to check every hour?

 

[hcammack]

Quote:
Sorry it sounds like you have egg eaters use wooden eggs so they can't break them. Its a big problem you might not be able to get eggs now if you don't check right after. Its a diffcult problem.

Good Luck,
Henry

 

[Ridgerunner]

We all feel differently about our chickens and have different reasons for keeping chickens, but if I had an egg eater and could clearly identify her, she would be in my crock pot before she could teach the others to eat eggs. You can try to rehabilitate her or build rollaway nests so she cannot get to the eggs, but I consider the risk of her teaching the others to eat the eggs and me subsequently having to get rid of them all not worth one hen. Your situation may be diferent.

 

[PandoraTaylor]

are you sure that they are all laying in the nests?
in my situtation, the only eggs I have caught them eating were laid from the Roost outside, it breaks when it hits the ground, and they eat it. I remove the remainder when I see it, but eggs in the nest are not broken or eatten.

be sure to offer Oystershell in dish, and maybe build a rollout nest.

If you can figure out for sure who is breaking/eating the eggs, I would say you may have to cull that one. I am unsure there is a way to break the habit once started.

 

[anthonyjames]

Thanks for the info. It seems when I went out this AM around 5am when the light went out it seems I have a bird that is dropping from the roost everyday. Know that I am not sure how to cure or identify. I did see that the egg that dropped was already being eaten by 2 other birds while the others were outside at the feed.

I due use Oyster shell and mix with their food.

I will keep a watch on them.

 

[ging3rhoffman]

Our nest are 18 inches about the floor, no broken eggs here.

 

[gsim]

My nests are at 24" ht and roosts at 48" ht. No egg eaters that I am aware of out of 24. (What a blessing!) Seems you need to redo your nests all to be rollout nests. Only other solution is to use a game cam to see if only one offender. Trouble is, one will teach others because they all perk up if one finds something to eat as you know, and that is how it spreads throughout a flock. I look for eggs around 4 times a day for fear of it happening. I have had eggs laid from the roosts overnight that break, and have suspected some of that was eaten before I saw it, and I am there before sunrise nearly every day.