Suspect I have a chicken eating eggs

[Kerilou]

Quote:
I was asking the same thing last week.. Seriously...I added a 12 easter eggs amongst my 10 nesting boxes (they only use 2) and have not had a broken egg since. As soon as I added the fake eggs, they all were very curious and started to peck at them. I find them moved and once in a while on the floor, but whatever they are thinking, they are not bothering their real eggs any more! I am not questioning it, just going with the flow! I filled my eggs with sand and hot glued the seams shut. Good luck!

 

[chicken boy sam]

Well, since I haven't gotten the easter eggs yet, I'm having my dad collect the eggs constantly during the day while I'm at school and today we didn't get any more cracked today. Tonight I'll get the easter eggs, although right now, I have golf balls inside the nesting boxes.

 

[chicken boy sam]

Well, since I haven't gotten the easter eggs yet, I'm having my dad collect the eggs constantly during the day while I'm at school and today we didn't get any more cracked today. Tonight I'll get the easter eggs, although right now, I have golf balls inside the nesting boxes.

 

[vfem]

I have false eggs in my coop as well to deter the egg eating... its happened once or twice. But collecting constantly helps. The oyster shell doesn't help.... what probably happened was someone accidently cracked one and it tasted good so they started messing with the eggs to get more yummy. But once they mess with fake eggs (golf balls would probably do fine) and nothing happens anymore... they'll lose interest again after a couple weeks.

If that doesn't happen, you may have to dispose of whomever is doing the initial egg breaking!

 

[Kerilou]

Quote:
yeah, I read somewhere on here that golf balls work just as well!

 

[rancher hicks]

You want to keep your nest box size to a minimum. Just enough room to do her business but not enough to walk around. Dark is better, lots of bedding so the egg doesn't drop and break. I keep a wooden egg in each box and take them out to wash. I use unfinished wooden eggs as they are brown like the hens eggs.

 

[chicken boy sam]

The problem is that we can't put a lot of bedding in the nesting boxes because they kick it out and the have mites!

 

[Kerilou]

Quote:
The chickens have mites?

 

[chicken boy sam]

Yeah,so we cleaned out the coop and powdered them with this stuff. I need to powder them again too.

 

[BlackBart]

Quote:
Some people swear the best thing for mite control is no-pest strips. They have been using them for years with no ill effects.
Read it for yourself and make up your own mind. Just a small excerpt of the thread from another chicken forum.

Quote:

Parasites put a huge strain on a bird. Compared to the alternatives available, these strips seem pretty good. All pesticides involve trade-offs; you have to evaluate the risks and benefits to you, the birds, and the environment. Benefits of these are: no direct physical contact; limited exposure to the vapour for the user (only when in the coop), and slightly more for the birds, who are outside most of the time; thorough penetration of nooks and crannies, so that all mites, not just the ones you reach, are killed.

Rotenone is likely far more harmful to the user, considering the physical contact and dust inhalation.

Dichlorvos breaks down quickly in contact with air and soil, and does not bio-accumulate (concentrate in the food chain).

I've noticed that my mortality rates are way down in my birds since I started a program of alternating eprinex (once a year) and pest strips (one or two a year).