They like the taste of their own eggs - oh no!

[Plum_A]

Hi all

My husband tripped down by the coop while gathering eggs this afternoon, and almost half of the hen's daily production, 8 eggs, fell to the ground and broke. Before he knew what hit him, ALL18 hens pounced on the broken eggs and feasted on them. When I went down to check on them about an hour later, I discovered that even the shells were gone.

My question to you - should I be worried about them eating their own eggs now that they've had a taste for them, and if so, what steps should I take to stop them from picking at their own eggs in the nesting boxes? I'm most afraid of this...

Thank you!

 

[wordgirl]

Our chickens have had several raw eggs (from broken eggs and eggs that were laid without shells) and it is possible that they occasionally break one on purpose (or it may be that an egg is just breaking accidentally and then they eat it), but I don't think they've really gotten into an awful habit about it. I was scared they were going to, though!

Probably they'll be fine, but hopefully someone else will chime in and confirm my experience.

 

[Mark's Menagerie]

One of our hens laid a very soft shelled egg right after the trip from virginia to michigan when we brought them home... both the hens & the rooster went nuts eating it... havent had a broken egg since.

I think you're probably safe but you might want to keep an eye on them for awhile.

 

[lovinlife]

My hens love to eat broken eggs. They've always done that. If I find a cracked egg when I'm collecting, I throw it on the ground and they all scramble to eat it, including the shells.

I've heard it's an instinctive thing. I would thing the eggs provide protein and the shells provide grit and calcium.

 

[digitS']

One of the worst experiences for someone with a small flock of hens is to have an egg eater.

I will occasionally feed eggs back to the hens. But, I always cook the egg and break the shell into small pieces before they see it.

Honestly, I think the nest is "sacred," not the eggs. Eggs found outside the nest stand a good chance of being broken and eaten. If you have problems with a chicken eating an egg in the nest, the first thing to do is make changes in the nest to make it a more secure, clean and inviting place for laying. There are other steps that you can take from there.

The final step, with an egg eating chicken, is to get rid of it. And, it may turn out to be - the sooner, the better.

Steve

 

[kathyinmo]

This happened to me today also! However, I believe they got a taste and liked it so much that they ate the rest of the days eggs! Yesterday I got about 2 dozen eggs. Today I got only 6 (2 were pecked at), and found a couple empty shells. I was in and out of that coop a dozen times at least. I am now on the lookout for the egg eaters! Dang it!

 

[peggym]

I had that problem also! I just collected the eggs more often during the day, though I'm a stay at homer so I can!!!!

 

[digitS']

Years ago, I had an egg eater but she developed another bad habit before she started eating the eggs - she started sleeping in the nest.

The first thing I did was clean out the nestbox. That's actually fairly easy for me to do - I just have to find the right size cardboard box since that is what I use for a liner. New nesting material went in too.

Then I was on that hen like a bird dog on a quail

. The eggs came in the house as soon as I could get ahold of them and the hen was tossed off the nest, repeatedly if necessary, when she got up there in the evening.

In about 4 or 5 days, she lost interest in doing anything but what was required in the nest. She was, otherwise, a good hen. I felt very lucky that she lost interest in eating the eggs and sleeping in the nest.

I've had other nest sleepers since and make a habit of checking on the birds just before "lights off." Also, there have been pullets who start laying just anywhere in the coop. I can't risk that behavior. Messing up their nest, putting something that blocks them from reaching it helps with that. But mostly, they just need to be "introduced" to the nestbox several times when they reach those early days of laying - let 'em know what a wonderful place it is

.

This isn't at all what the OP asked about: whether tasting eggs once will turn the chickens into egg eaters. But, if the "tasting" occurred in a nestbox - I'd do a thorough "remodel" just trying to improve the environment for nesting and NOT eating.

One thing that probably helps about 100% for nestbox egg eating is to cover the box so that it is dark in there. They can't see the egg, so they don't eat them - I guess. I've got a light fabric over the entrance (3 hen-size nestbox) but it isn't completely dark inside. It is just that I'm part way along in my plans for lace curtains, soft music and large, fluffy pillows

.

Steve