Eggs vanishing with no trace. Need ideas.

[Stak]

Eggs are disappearing here. Here are the details...

Did you get to the bottom of this? When it first started happening for us, I thought the neighbourhood kids were maybe getting in and taking them so we set up a camera and sure enough we caught the culprit. Turns out it's a big raven. Silly thing stands on the roof and announces what it's about to do though so if I'm at home, I can get out and get the eggs before it does!

 

[Stak]

This is our thief.

 

[Arwon]

I drilled a fine hole into an egg, filled it with rat poison and taped hole with masking tape, egg disappeared, havent lost anymore.

 

[Stak]

I drilled a fine hole into an egg, filled it with rat poison and taped hole with masking tape, egg disappeared, havent lost anymore.

I kind of like our raven. So long as I get a few eggs, it can have the rest. It only does it for a few months and then goes away again. This is the third year now. It also follows me around the neighbourhood a bit so I guess we're friends.

 

[Georgeuxo]

Eggs are disappearing here. Here are the details, need ideas:

Chickens are not reacting or screaming at all to whatever is entering coop.

I left a clutch of 3 eggs in the coop all week and we made sure to lock it up each night - nothing was taken.

Whatever is taking them goes in precisely between 7 am when my husband lets them out, and 12 when I check on them. All 3 large eggs gone again without a trace - no yolks or breakage.

We have been checking the coop like crazy, often 3 times a day looking for snakes. Monitoring it from a distance out the window 10 times a day hoping to see something coming or going - nothing. Nothing up in the rafters or hiding.

This area is snake infested. But I have no idea how a snake is doing it with the coop being heavily watched - and snakes are slow and tend to hang out while they eat.

I plan on buying a live trap and filling it with eggs, but can a live trap even catch a large snake if it is a snake?

What else could it be that is that stealthy and invisible, taking a whole clutch of eggs at once?

 

[Georgeuxo]

I have had eggs disappear and found a snake in my coop a couple of days later. Used lime around the access door. Lay the lime about two inches wide. Chickens don't care about it. No more snakes.

 

[montanalulu]

View attachment 1880118 dBe careful!!!! I cant stress it enough. I had eggs going missing 4-6 at a time. Couldn't figure it out for over a week. I was trying to let a few hens hatch a couple of eggs. They would all go to bed at night and be up bright and early waiting to get let out. I had a brooder laying on 8 eggs at one time. The next day or 2. All the eggs were gone. Couldn't believe it. Well, I figured since no eggs and , no one is laying on any, I may as well change the hay in nesting boxes. Okay , be prepared. I started at the top boxes , grabbed a few handfuls of hay. No problem. Getting the bottom layer well, there was a surprise waiting. I accidentally grabbed a 6.5 ft long chicken snake buried under their hay. Freaked me out. I got him/her out with a stick and turned it loose out in the woods about 2 acres away. Went back to change the rest of the boxes and, whoa!!! , another one in a different nest. The hay wasnt disurbed . Padded down like normal. But, just be careful they can hide in the hay or wood chips and you cant even tell. I thot something was up when, my plastic egg went missing

Wow!

 

[jspeese]

While it is admittedly cruel, I've also heard of carefully inserting a fish hook in an egg and leaving it as bait for the snake. I don't know what part of the country you live in (i.e., one in which snakes large enough to eat eggs like black snakes and rat snakes are found), but it sounds like it could indeed be a snake, since you are finding no trace of the eggs. I wouldn't mind snakes if they'd just prey on rats and mice but leave eggs and chicks alone.

 

[member 158781]

We caught a person taking our eggs. I would aim a camera at the coop. Be it human or raccoon, snake, possum or fox, you'll catch them with the camera.

 

[cmom]

Check this out from Walmart. A BYC member has posted some pictures from this camera and they are decent pictures and the price is great.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Tasco-8MP-Tan-Game-Camera-Low-Glow/55614224