Something Eating/Stealing My Eggs?

[machoman]

I have interesting update. I found a shell after I posted! I separated my leghorns and found they are actually each laying an egg a day, one is just brown. Nobody ate their eggs. I've since put the Wyandotte in with them and she also laid an egg, so she's not guilty either.

I have a barred rock that I thought was laying but she's not or she has a hidden nest somewhere. She's huge for pete's sake. I thought for sure she's be laying by now. I bought her July and she was too young to lay, but still large, I would say around 4.5 months old. So, I've narrowed it down to a barred rock and a game pullet we just added. We also have two roos and a cockerel. The eggs started to disappear a couple of days after we added the game pullet. She does not sleep in the coop, but hides somewhere else. But, I did see her looking around inside the coop the day after I separated the leghorns. I thought chickens were simple creatures, but they've sure got me baffled.

 

[DebbieDee]

My barred rock is 20 weeks and still not laying....So maybe she's just not laying yet too:cd....

 

[Woodcox Acre]

My hens have also gone into molting and have stoped laying. I've been told to put a light in the coop
and they will start laying again, but I have decided to give them the brake they need to get through
the molting season, I feel they will be stronger and healthier when they start laying again. I have three lady's
and six pullets that have not started to lay yet. I'm hopeing as they mature they will start laying, but they are
all molting. Will they only molt once a year? or twice? We have just built our new coop and we did insolate it,
hoping they will do alright this winter as we do get down in the teens many nights.

 

[chandler sims]

All right something eating eggs off the roof of my pen and busting little holes in the eggs and eating the yolk.

 

[jjw5]

Your reply is very helpful, I'm trying to figure out what could be eating our eggs. We have some shells left behind and the perpetrator pushes the eggs off the laying box onto the ground and then leaves most of the shells behind. We have other animals-pigs and sheep around and the pigs seem to encourage rats/mice so I'm guessing that is what we are up against. Thanks for the descriptions!

 

[CHICKENRANCH14]

This past week I have found an unharmed egg in my garden, it has a 2 ft high fence around it, an egg out in area by chicken coop, chickens are not out free ranging, egg just fine, egg out by tree unharmed. Today however I went to mist down my girls and there as an egg with the top perfectly cut on pointed top and rest of egg uncracked and the insides all gone. Anyone have a clue? I have two inch wire around coop. Nesting boxes secure to upper level wood coop. At bottom of whole are there is also fencing dug down into dirt 4 to 5 inchs down and bend so animals cannot get in. I welcome any help. I am clueless.