My new batch of hens have got everything they could ever want, a nice big coop, a fresh patch of grass, bedding and plenty of food and water.
Why then are they only giving me a few eggs if I'm lucky?
I think I know the answer to this one - egg eater.
I'm pretty sure the eggs are being eaten by a bad hen. The harder question is how to stop it. My wife is going to check and collect the eggs a couple of times a day to lessen the time they're in there. I've added in some ceramic eggs which won't break to fool them into thinking they can't break them and I've added loads of bedding for the nest boxes so the eggs are snuggled down into it.
I'm considering interviewing them one by one, with an egg on the table, and any that go for it will be sentenced without trial (on bin day).
Any other suggestions from fellow chicken keepers before it gets to this?
Blow an egg......
ReplyDeleteMake the hole in it slightly larger than the original
Then fill it with scrambled eggs mixed with a large amount of chillie powder
Try that
This weekend I'm doing this! Sounds like fun on it's own!
DeleteAlso if you know which chook it is, considering taking it away from the others - they can pick up the same behaviour. We did as John has described, though I think we used mustard.
ReplyDeleteGood point......
DeleteIf it gets taken away, it won't come back! I need to find the culprit first...
Deletecheck their beaks usually some evidence remains, are you finding shells? is it possible they are just laying elsewhere? we bought in some hens recently and i was about to complain to the seller as not one egg after 3 weeks then found 2 huge piles in the long grass ..........
DeleteCould it be that she is lacking in something mineral/protein wise? OR just a plain Henibal! (Cannibal)!
ReplyDeleteSorry, not much use on the hen front...
Another good point... Sorry for popping up again...just thought the same thing.....try all the girls with occasional dog food..
DeleteWe use mustard too.
ReplyDeleteI've read of washing up liquid as well does the same thing
Delete(As I haven't got any mustard in the house - hate the stuff)
DeleteGive them back their eggs shells crumbled up so they don't look like entire eggs, they could be lacking calcium, I usually do this along with the other things you are already doing, marble or rubber eggs, checking a few times a day.
ReplyDeleteAlso check places where eggs could have been laid outside the usual places, we once found a clutch of about 20 or so eggs that had been laid by a couple of birds we thought had gone off lay underneath a bush nowhere near the henhouse. Once we moved them they went back to laying in the house as usual.
Lack of calcium in the diet is what I'd say.
DeleteJane x
I'll increase their calcuim as well although they've got layers pellets and grit so whould be getting plenty. One chicken has been getting out each day and laing in the 3 free rangers pen. I orked this out today when there was 4 eggs off three hens! Sneeky thing then went back to the greenhouse to roost!
DeleteIt could be they are all doing it at times, mine seem to do it at times but I kind of think they are breaking the eggs because of weak shells and then just eating the broken remains. More calcium may strengthen the shells, in my case I think it was just birds getting too old with weak shells.
ReplyDeleteMy wife said one was weak shelled today so this might be a problem. I guess because they're trying to grow so many feathers it might be takign it out of them.
DeleteAre you sure it couldn't be magpies or crows eating the eggs ? My ex batts laid like mad for a week then stopped for a bit, shock due to the change of scenery probably otherwise the chilli /mustard trick is a good one
ReplyDeleteThere is a magpie about at the moment, so it could be. I've not seen it go near the pen. I have a just the answer to that problem...
DeleteIt often starts with a soft shelled egg and very difficult to stop. Collecting more often is good, oyster shell and grit even if they are outside all the time. Catching the one with the sticky beak is the answer!!
ReplyDeleteThis weekend I'm going to do a little test with the one bird I think it could be and see what happens. If she pecks an egg as soon as she sees it then shes a gonna!
DeleteAs a wee lad taking care of the family flock, my dear departed mother always cautioned me to make sure there was plenty of oyster shell as if the chickens ran out of shell they would eat their eggs. AND, if they started eating their eggs then they would be impossible to stop and we would have to eat the chickens.
ReplyDeleteShe was very opposed to feeding the chickens broken eggshells as she though it would get them in habit of eating eggs.
I've fed our chickens eggshells before with no problems.
They've got oyster shell mixed in with their food so shouldn't really be that but I'll give them extra in a seperate feeder and see if that makes a difference. Not sure I fancy eating these chickens as they're still quite thin!
DeleteI have an egg eater and have caught her with yoke on her beak but it seems to be eggs that have a soft shell are targeted...normal ones are left alone.
ReplyDeleteit maybe they just aren't laying many at the moment.
When I've had exbattery hens before they've always continued to keep laying really well so I think they are laying, but it's hard to be sure. I could do with a web cam down there I think!
DeleteI found it was due to weak shells. I fed extra shell grit and they stopped eating eggs. But my friend tried the same and it didn't work.... so must be other causes too.
ReplyDeleteI'll put the grit feeder down there tomorrow and see if it makes a difference before the weekend. Thanks!
DeleteThank you everyone for your comments! I'll keep you all posted on what happens!
ReplyDeleteWeak shells are the issue I find. Sort that and the problem stops
ReplyDeleteI'm going to try to tackelt that. with my wife collecting the eggs a few times a day it seem so tbe helping
DeleteWhile no personal experience (yet), 2nd Family that lives at the other end of our property has had the problem. They were told it was weak shells, and it would break and once one gets a taste of it they want more. There were told to use golf balls and they did put some in each nest. They also were told to darken the next boxes (so it was wasn't so bright, they put up curtains on the nest boxes) and it stopped. Oh, and they said make sure they aren't bored, give them stuff to do. Not sure what that means, ha.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!! I'll be watching to see and learn myself!
They shouldn't be bored they've got a huge run outside on fresh grass, but I'm pretty much trying everything else, although I have no golf balls here (I've only ever played once and I don;t think it was my sport! In fact I don;t think I have a sport!) -
DeleteI'll make sure I post an update when I get the problem sorted.
Thanks for your coment!
I hope 2014 proves to be a good year for you and yours!
ReplyDeleteThank you, so do I!
DeleteHi, I've just found your blog and I'm enjoying it a lot. As to the eggs, are you sure they are being eaten? We've been raising chicken for quite some years now and find that during winter they lay a lot less. We also have a dog that loves eggs and eats them as often as he can... But if your chicken are really eating the eggs, that may mean they have some mineral deficiency, which you could solve by mixing some grit (the sort that's sold for pigeons) in their food. I wish you luck!
ReplyDeleteHi Kev, it's a blown egg with mustard, not chilli. Birds don't detect the hotness of chilli, they enjoy it. Taking the eggs in frequently, leaving ceramic eggs in the nest, enough nest for all the chickens - one nest per 5 chooks, and good nutrition all work. If you know which one it is, and you can't break the habit, you'll have to separate her because the others will learn the behaviour from her. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWe actually caught one of our hens in the act! She tasted really good, yum. Then we found that the blue jays were flying in and pecking the eggs and eating them. Now we leave the hens in the hen house until late in the day and collect the eggs and then let them out. We have on less blue jay, too.
ReplyDelete