Egg eaters

[karenls50]

We have tried to find out who is eating the eggs. We can’t catch them but we see hens in the nest and when we go out later the nest is wet with no eggs—or shells. I know some are laying. It might even be a rodent or a snake.
Is there a security camera that someone could recommend that I could use my iPhone to monitor? Has anyone used this method?

 

[Grits&Eggs]

I use Arlo cameras and recently bought an Amazon camera attached to my Alexa, i can view the coop movement right on the Alexa. Good luck! I had this problem and actually added more calcium to the feed and egg eating stopped, not sure if it is connected, but worked for me!!

 

[karenls50]

I use Arlo cameras and recently bought an Amazon camera attached to my Alexa, i can view the coop movement right on the Alexa. Good luck! I had this problem and actually added more calcium to the feed and egg eating stopped, not sure if it is connected, but worked for me!!

Thanks. We give plenty of calcium all the time.
I don’t have Alexa. I’ll gave to think of something else.

 

[Grits&Eggs]

have you seen signs of rodents (droppings) or snakes - they can slither through chicken wire but not hardware cloth, but I saw one go through a small hole dug by a possum into the day pen!

 

[karenls50]

have you seen signs of rodents (droppings) or snakes - they can slither through chicken wire but not hardware cloth, but I saw one go through a small hole dug by a possum into the day pen!

No. I haven’t seen any sign. But that’s why I want a camera to see what’s going on when I’m not there. I put wooden eggs in every nest. Hopefully someone will get a mouthful of wood and think twice.

 

[aart]

Chances are one of your birds is laying soft or thin shelled eggs that are easily broken and thus game for eating. Hard to catch them to figure out who and what. Camera could tell the tale, I had to run out to coop multiple times a day to find my softie layer, then retrieve eggs before they soiled the nests.

I know some are laying.

How old are your birds?
Gonna guess newly laying pullets, soft/thin shells not too unusual.
Could also be older bird nearing stoppage to molt, can get funky eggs then too.

 

[karenls50]

Chances are one of your birds is laying soft or thin shelled eggs that are easily broken and thus game for eating. Hard to catch them to figure out who and what. Camera could tell the tale, I had to run out to coop multiple times a day to find my softie layer, then retrieve eggs before they soiled the nests.

How old are your birds?
Gonna guess newly laying pullets, soft/thin shells not too unusual.
Could also be older bird nearing stoppage to molt, can get funky eggs then too.

 

[karenls50]

Actually they’re two years old. Second laying season. Yes. They are all just finishing a long molt. I’ll check them often. My rir was in a box today and I saw her vent distended like she was laying an egg. Several hours later I went out to check for the egg and there was not one egg from 13 hens. I feel something is taking them.

 

[rebrascora]

Where in the world are you? If they are just finishing their moult, it would not be unreasonable for them not to start laying again until the new year or at least after the winter solstice. You may have one or possibly two that are laying soft shelled eggs that are breaking as they are laid or stepped on and as others have said, they are fair game. Older girls tend to lay the odd soft shelled egg at this time of year as their systems wind down for the winter.
I am down to just one egg a day from my flock of 20+ and that will soon completely dry up.
I wonder if you perhaps have an unreasonable expectation of your flock. It is important to remember that eggs are seasonal produce too. For me, now is the time of year that I have to switch from an egg to a chicken diet, as it nears time to process those surplus cockerels!

 

[karenls50]

Where in the world are you? If they are just finishing their moult, it would not be unreasonable for them not to start laying again until the new year or at least after the winter solstice. You may have one or possibly two that are laying soft shelled eggs that are breaking as they are laid or stepped on and as others have said, they are fair game. Older girls tend to lay the odd soft shelled egg at this time of year as their systems wind down for the winter.
I am down to just one egg a day from my flock of 20+ and that will soon completely dry up.
I wonder if you perhaps have an unreasonable expectation of your flock. It is important to remember that eggs are seasonal produce too. For me, now is the time of year that I have to switch from an egg to a chicken diet, as it nears time to process those surplus cockerels!

Yes. Maybe my expectations are unreasonable but I guess I thought after they took the whole summer off to molt that now that they havea beautiful coat of feathers that they might start laying again. At least a couple a week.
Looks like we’re going to start having chicken for dinner and buy our eggs. lol.
Would leaving a light on stimulate them to lay during the winter? Then we’ll replace them in the airing with pullets.