Wet spot in nesting box

[MKchicken85]

I'm very new to caring for chickens. I have three pullets all about egg laying age. One has been laying for about 8-9 days and the other two haven't started yet. I figure it's normal to maybe have a day or two without an egg and the one laying (I think it's the white austra) usually lays in the afternoon. So on my days off I check periodically (I'm probably too paranoid about brooding) and on the days I work I check before I leave and when I get home.

Today there was no egg but there was a large wet spot in the nesting box. I browsed the forums here and it looks like it could mean they're eating the egg?? Would that really happen so fast?? She hasn't even been laying two weeks. No shell fragments and the pine shavings didn't look yolky to me.

I read it's normal for new layers to occasionally lay an odd egg (larger than normal or shape is off) and I guess I'm hoping this is just a weird thing that new layers sometimes do??

 

[CSAchook]

It could be one of your other two is getting ready to lay. The first couple attempts may not have much resemblance to a normal egg. For example, they may lay soft shell eggs (paper thin, soft and pliable shell) with no yolk. These tend to break on contact with the bedding/ground and make a wet spot. One of my pullets just laid her first egg today.. sort of... it was just a wet spot and a thin broken deflated shell that looked like a big piece of pine shaving at first.
TLR it is probably just a new layer working out the kinks and not any thing to worry about

 

[aart]

Welcome to BYC @MKchicken85!

Yeppers on the thin and especially soft shells from new layers.
It's good to check the nest often for these,
to get them before they break or to clean up the mess.