Will they be egg eaters?

[crawfordmama]

I was shuffling through some paperwork in my office this afternoon, when I noticed my flock just outside my window. Rosemary was off to the side by herself, puffing up, and lowering her rear end like she had to poop. She did this several times without producing anything. Then she dropped her wings and walked forward, and an egg popped out. I ran outside and found a soft-shelled egg, and gave Rosemary a good scratch to console her. She then dropped her rear again and out came a shell-less egg. Three of my other girls quickly began scarfing it up. They were crazed! I tried pushing them away with my foot, but eventually had to stand on it and tried unsuccessfully mashing it into the frozen ground. Poor Rosie wandered off to the side of the yard seemingly embarassed. I tried to comfort her, telling her "these things happen".

So what becomes of my three other girls? Will they figure out that what they snacked on this afternoon is what they lay every day? The thought of having egg eaters horrifies me! Thanks for your input.

 

[swimmer]

My guess is no. It would be one thing if they went up to a hard shelled egg and pecked it open. But the soft ones they will eat. So your saying she laid one thin one, then one without a shell? Is she new to laying? I think this may have been happening to my white rock a week or so ago. I thought she was eating her eggs, but I think she was laying some thin shelled ones and maybe a shell-less in one day, and those will most likely get eaten if very thin. I found a few thin shelled remains in our coop that were flung around. It seems for the past few days, she is now laying normally.

 

[crawfordmama]

She has been laying for a couple of months now. This is her first "issue". The first egg she laid this afternoon had a soft shell, then she laid one with no shell at all. I thought it was odd that she did it out in the open, instead of doing it in the coop. I have one other girl who on occasion lays soft shelled eggs, but she always does it in her nest. Also, it seems like when they lay one soft shelled egg, there is always another that follows a short time after, like a couple eggs got "stuck" in them.