MASS EGG EATING

[TyRi]

What is the food you are currently feeding? What was the food you used for a short time? I know you feel like you should never change the food again, but it might be wise to use a higher protein food until their bodies catch up again.

Purina Layena is their feed and i tried I believe Producers Pride. Every day before work i throw out about a cup of scratch and before they go to bed about 1/2 cup-cup of mealworm/black soldier fly larvae. They also free range for a few hours every day in the evenings. Will pick up a higher protein feed to see if that helps!

 

[TyRi]

I feed my chicks 16% protein Kalmbach layer feed and never had a problem with my chickens nutritional needs.(They free range a couple hrs a day too) My chickens like wet layer feed better than eating it out of the feeder so I'll make them a mash every other day. I'll also break an egg or two sometimes and drop it on top of the mash so they eat the egg first.I never leave their eggs in the nest boxes .I gather them every day( sometimes twice)I wouldn't advise you to do this since yours are eating the eggs!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah thats why i was confused because the Purina Layena and the Producers Pride had almost exact same nutritional values but going to the Producers, they must not have been a fan!

 

[Toothpick]

Double the amount of fake eggs in the nests?

 

[McChooky]

I most certainly wont change their food ever again lol. I believe they got the habit during the food change and even though it was only about 2 weeks of different food before I changed it back.. they picked up a bad habit. I will be making a roll away box when we get back from vacation. I just put curtains up on the egg boxes so we will see if that helps any! We have caught 6 of them in the act and we put mustard in/on the eggs and these crazy birds ate the mustard clean off the already broken eggs! I will try dish soap tomorrow if we find more broken eggs. During the weekend it is fine because we can collect multiple times but we are both at work during the day! Seems like a best solution is the roll away boxes! Will be a fun build/modification!

I have occasionally felt bad and left eggs overnight .They've usually got broken and sometimes make a nasty mess.Sounds like you have a lot of chickens.I only have 12 hens and 4 of those are 4 yrs old so I only get 6-8 eggs a day

 

[McChooky]

I quit giving eggs away after millions of chickens were killed over bird flu. Now their eggs supplement their own diet and they're healthier

 

[FrostRanger]

Purina Layena is their feed and i tried I believe Producers Pride. Every day before work i throw out about a cup of scratch and before they go to bed about 1/2 cup-cup of mealworm/black soldier fly larvae. They also free range for a few hours every day in the evenings. Will pick up a higher protein feed to see if that helps!

Ik you said that you don't want to switch feeds, but switching to a higher protein feed (18-20%) can be helpful and I would cut out all treats, especially the scratch as that's only reducing the overall amount of protein they're getting

Between that, the curtains and perhaps the rollaway nest boxes that should hopefully get them to stop

 

[McChooky]

Ik you said that you don't want to switch feeds, but switching to a higher protein feed (18-20%) can be helpful and I would cut out all treats, especially the scratch as that's only reducing the overall amount of protein they're getting

Between that, the curtains and perhaps the rollaway nest boxes that should hopefully get them to stop

Btw I love your profile picture! She's a cutie!

 

[FrostRanger]

Btw I love your profile picture! She's a cutie!

Thx! That's my late easter egger Sage who sadly passed from wet fowl pox in 23. She always looked and sounded annoyed even when she wasn't and she hated getting pet and would lecture me if I find pick her up. I also hate physical contact so I found her relateable and thus used s picture of her as my profile pic

 

[RojoMarz]

Purina Layena is their feed and i tried I believe Producers Pride. Every day before work i throw out about a cup of scratch and before they go to bed about 1/2 cup-cup of mealworm/black soldier fly larvae. They also free range for a few hours every day in the evenings. Will pick up a higher protein feed to see if that helps!

How many chickens do you have? 1 and 1/2 cups of scratch & larvae daily seems like a lot. I'd stop the treats as it could be interfering with the actual nutrition.

 

[TyRi]

How many chickens do you have? 1 and 1/2 cups of scratch & larvae daily seems like a lot. I'd stop the treats as it could be interfering with the actual nutrition.

Currently just over 20 with 12 more in a brooder! A 1/2 cup - cup might have been a little exaggerated but I will cut the snacks out as much as you guys have suggested! Thought it was helping not hurting!