MY hens are eating there eggs??? what to do?

[Arlen1234]

I have 4 layer hens (3leghorn)+(1 Rhode island red leghorn cross/hybrid) I don't know witch of them are eating the eggs.
can you please tell me what to does?
there feed is: maize + barley mixture .
thy are free range chickens.
will it help if I debeak them?

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Please do not débeak them! I would put fake eggs in the nesting boxes. I have also heard others make a small hole in eggs and blow the contents out and replace with mustard. Soon your egg eater will learn that eating eggs isn’t as yummy!
Good luck!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

They're eating eggs because they have a bad diet. They need calcium and protien, not just corn and grain. Unfortunately breaking this habit is really hard and you may always have problems. I have one hen I have to break almost every few months.

DO NOT DEBEAK THEM. That would be like cutting off most of a toenail, but somewhere as sensitive as your nose. It's cruel and unnecessary for everyone except for egg factories where they will peck their neighbor to death for more room.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Arlen, are they opening an egg to eat it or are they just eating an egg that is already broken? Many chickens will take advantage of the free food of a broken egg. That does not make them an egg eater, it makes them normal. It's when they learn to break an egg open to eat it that you have a problem.

What have you seen that makes you think you have an egg eater? Have you seen one break open an egg, seen them eating an egg already broken, seen them eating the shell of an egg that something else may have eaten, or just finding egg shells? You said they free range, where is this happening, in the coop or elsewhere? The problem may be something else, not an egg eater.

I have seen several hens eat an egg that was already broken. That was not a problem. I have had one hen that would open an egg to eat it, usually one or two a day and leave the rest alone. She did not have a bad diet, she learned that an egg tastes good and how to open one. I had a pullet just starting to lay and she was dropping an egg from the roost at night that would break. I think that's how she learned to be an egg eater.

It took me a few days to figure out which one it was but one day she broke an egg open in front of me. I raise mine for meat so my solution was easy, she was eaten. That's probably not an option for you. There are various things that people try to overcome this, roll-away nests, mustard eggs, ceramic eggs to mention a few. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. Where this is happening may make it more challenging for you.

Some more information may help me come up with specific suggestions.

 

[bradymars]

Put blinders on them it’s very hard to stop them once they start

 

[aart]

What have you seen that makes you think you have an egg eater? Have you seen one break open an egg, seen them eating an egg already broken, seen them eating the shell of an egg that something else may have eaten, or just finding egg shells? You said they free range, where is this happening, in the coop or elsewhere? The problem may be something else, not an egg eater.

Ditto Dat^^^

there feed is: maize + barley mixture .

@Arlen1234 Do the grains have a poultry premix added to it?
Is there a tag on the feed bag that tells the protein and calcium percentages?

 

[Arlen1234]

thanks a lot I also think debeaking is cruel, I wont do that! I will put fake eggs in the coop , and I will try the mustard thing and I will supplement there diet with more calcium.
I will tell you guy's if it works

 

[Ruthster55]

Do you have golf balls? Those are really hard and unrewarding when pecked at.

 

[bradymars]

Besides chicken blinders you can also use beak rings you can find them on line they fit in the nose and around the mouth so they can’t peck but can still eat

 

[WhyDoILikeChickens]

I have had egg eaters and stopped it a few times.
Mostly when lacking protein the egg becomes essential. Scramble some eggs for them, probably 1 egg for 4 hens is enough. Once or twice a week. Let the shells dry a day or 2. Crunch the shells and give as calcium supplement. 1 shell 2 or 3 times a week.
Overall the best solution is a complete feed, preferably from a feed mill. They can still free range. But these other ideas will help for now.