Egg shells

[KimbosKluckers]

I keep reading how people must bake the egg shells before giving them to chickens. Why is that? Can they have a boiled egg with the shell? Raw? Thanks.

 

[AGstudy]

It is really easy for eggshells to mold if they don't dry fast enough. Also, any bad bacteria on the shells would be destroyed by the heat, verses reentering your birds' systems.

I don't cook my eggshells before giving them to my birds. I don't reuse egg shells that had obvious contamination (fecal matter). I let my egg shells air dry in an open egg carton and check for mold before crushing them in a bag.
My reasons for not cooking them are:
1) the shells become harder when cooked, which makes me more concerned about sharp edges.
2) it is an additional time expendature

Yes, you can give them boiled eggs with the shell. However, if you give them a food item that looks just like the eggs they laid, they are more likely to eat their own eggs.

I generally try to avoid giving my chickens raw eggs in case they make the connection to their own eggs. Accidents happen and sometimes eggs get crushed in the nesting box.
Oh! I know this yummy food!... Not good.

Some people may also be concerned to give birds raw eggs because of bacteria. I don't have this concern because I figure that if you feed them eggs that they laid, then they already have a certain tolerance to those bacteria.

 

[TooCheep]

People cook egg shells to kill any potential pathogens (bacteria/etc). That said, I do clean any dirty eggs before use, but don't bother with cooking.

I simply dry the shells and crush them and have never had problems. Some don't even crush them and throw out half shells and report no problems, but I crush just as a precaution to avoid them associating the shape with their own eggs.

After using the egg, I put the shell in a couple of old egg crates and let them dry for at least three days. Periodically, I crush the shells and store in a container.

Each day, I top off the girls calcium feeder with a mixture of oyster shell and crushed egg shell.

The level of effort you put in is up to you and your paranoia.

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As for hard boiled egg, I do periodically chop one up and feed it to them as a treat. It is excellent nutrition- the yolk can build an entire chick and the white is basically protein+water. They go nuts for it.

 

[KimbosKluckers]

Thank you both. I thought it might have something to do with bacteria. By raw egg, I meant when I crack the shell to cook it, could they get the raw shell? But now I see maybe better to at least boil. I don’t want to get crazy and spend time baking. Ha! I only ever give scrambled eggs so far, nothing that resembles their egg but waste so many shells. And I notice their oyster shell is not getting eaten much at all.

 

[TooCheep]

I find that some of the girls definitely prefer egg shell to oyster shell. That's why I've continued using both.

 

[Ridgerunner]

And I notice their oyster shell is not getting eaten much at all.

All chickens need calcium. That's why Starter, Grower, All-Flock, and such have around 1% calcium content. Laying hens need a lot more for eggshells so Layer has around 4% calcium content.

Chickens might get calcium from a lot of different sources other than their feed. Some plants they forage on contain calcium. Various creepy crawlies from hard-shelled bugs to mice or frogs contain calcium. Some of the natural rock they eat for grit can contain calcium.

If all they eat is an appropriate feed it is designed to have sufficient calcium in it. But if you feed them treats or they forage for a substantial portion of their food they may need additional calcium. That's why a lot of us offer oyster shell to the side. The ones that need it seem to know and eat enough. The ones that don't need it don't eat enough to harm themselves.

Some people feed back eggshells. If that were all the calcium they were eating it would not be enough for laying hens. They need some for body maintenance. Some is not digested and goes out the rear end. That's why compost made from chicken manure often is high in calcium content. If they are getting enough calcium from other sources such as certain plants, creepy crawlies, or limestone rocks they may not eat the oyster shells or eggshells. They don't need it and seem to know that. A bag of oyster shell can last a long time; it never goes bad. Or they may eat oyster shell or eggshells pretty quickly.

If your eggshells are OK then they are getting enough calcium from some source. Don't worry that they are not eating enough oyster shell. If your eggshells are OK they are getting all they need from some source.

 

[KimbosKluckers]

I find that some of the girls definitely prefer egg shell to oyster shell. That's why I've continued using both.

Thanks. I’m going to see if they like the boiled shells.

 

[KimbosKluckers]

All chickens need calcium. That's why Starter, Grower, All-Flock, and such have around 1% calcium content. Laying hens need a lot more for eggshells so Layer has around 4% calcium content.

Chickens might get calcium from a lot of different sources other than their feed. Some plants they forage on contain calcium. Various creepy crawlies from hard-shelled bugs to mice or frogs contain calcium. Some of the natural rock they eat for grit can contain calcium.

If all they eat is an appropriate feed it is designed to have sufficient calcium in it. But if you feed them treats or they forage for a substantial portion of their food they may need additional calcium. That's why a lot of us offer oyster shell to the side. The ones that need it seem to know and eat enough. The ones that don't need it don't eat enough to harm themselves.

Some people feed back eggshells. If that were all the calcium they were eating it would not be enough for laying hens. They need some for body maintenance. Some is not digested and goes out the rear end. That's why compost made from chicken manure often is high in calcium content. If they are getting enough calcium from other sources such as certain plants, creepy crawlies, or limestone rocks they may not eat the oyster shells or eggshells. They don't need it and seem to know that. A bag of oyster shell can last a long time; it never goes bad. Or they may eat oyster shell or eggshells pretty quickly.

If your eggshells are OK then they are getting enough calcium from some source. Don't worry that they are not eating enough oyster shell. If your eggshells are OK they are getting all they need from some source.

Thank you. Their eggs are perfect now besides the 2 wonky first ones we had. I’m going to offer some shell to see what they think. They do forage all day long for bugs, not much vegetation wise. I give them a small amount of treats once a week or so….they do steal pig grain on occasion