Why is my cockerel eating feathers??!!

[Starburst]

why would you feed chickens eggs my chickens are smart enough to tell boiled eggs are eggs and it will make them eat their eggs

Oh, sorry! I meant to say that you should feed them crushed up boiled eggs. You definitely don't want to feed whole eggs, as that will lead to egg-eating. You can also do scrambled eggs.

 

[Boccom]

I wouldnt feed them eggs at all since eating their own eggs is just weird

 

[Three Little Bunnies]

I wouldnt feed them eggs at all since eating their own eggs is just weird

I know it seems weird, but baby chicks live on egg yolk for twenty-one days (inside the egg they hatch from). I have seen egg yolk save chicks who otherwise probably would have died.

 

[Starburst]

That makes a lot of sense! I guess it is kind of weird! However, it has a lot of protein and nutrients and feeding them crushed up eggshells is like feeding them oyster shells. I usually feed eggs to them when we have more than we know what to do with.

I wouldnt feed them eggs at all since eating their own eggs is just weird

 

[Boccom]

I would feeds them eggs if I made sure it wasnt their own

 

[Starburst]

I guess you could do that. For me, I'm not very concerned about what eggs they eat.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Is there some kind of deficiency in his diet that causes him to want the protein in feathers?

No. He is simply taking advantage of free protein floating around. That is just something chickens do. It does not signal a deficiency. It is not something weird. If he were plucking feathers off of the others it would be a problem but it doesn't sound like that is the case.

I guess I just assumed that you couldn't since I don't feed scratch until laying age.

A broody hen feeds her chicks stuff we would consider scratch or treats soon after she brings them off the nest. First she takes them to a spot where they can get grit from the ground. You may not feed scratch until laying age but a broody hen sure would.