New to BYC, my 1st question for yall....

[joesmania]

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[liz9910]

from California, sorry I don't know the answer to you question, hope someone can help.

 

[joesmania]

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[TallChickMagnet]

I would say candle them right away. See if they are frozen. I say right away because if they are frozen you want to do it before they thaw. I have no idea on how to tell if they have ever been frozen. And...








PS: Chickens LOVE eggs...shell and all... and it's good for them. Great source of calcium and protein. Just make sure that the shells are small enough that they can't tell what they are or they will start eating their own eggs as they lay them.

 

[redsoxs]

Greetings from Kansas, joesmania, and

! Great to have you here! I would also question if they would even freeze in the coop except on the bitterest days. Here is why I say that. This a.m. I went out to let my ducks out of their pen. When I put them away last night it was dark and I didn't see an egg one had layed out in the run. This a.m. when I opened their door they exited and stampeded over the egg, breaking it. It had been there all night, it wasn't frozen, and the overnight low was 23. Granted, that's not bitter but the egg was totally exposed to the elements. If layed in a coop with chickens going in and out giving off heat, you might not ever have a problem. What kind of lows are you expecting? Oh, and best of luck to you!!

 

[joesmania]

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[1muttsfan]

Hi and welcome to BYC from northern Michigan

Our climate is similar to yours. We do get frozen eggs occasionally. Because the contents expand when eggs freeze they crack - sometimes just a little, sometimes very noticably.

I never use any heat in the coops and the chickens do just fine.

 

[joesmania]

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[joesmania]

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[TallChickMagnet]

Howdy TCM,

Thanks for the input. . . .

But how does one prepare the eggs for feed, hard boil them and mash em up shells n all?

I scramble them, put the shells in a ziplock bag, close it, and smash the shells with the palms of my hands or a coffee mug. Then I mix it into the eggs then give them to the birds along with any other treat that they might be getting... Sometimes I also microwave he shells to kill germs and bacteria, but only when I've been collecting the shells. I don't bother if the shells are from the same day...