The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: Sharnoak on April 05, 2012, 10:55:27 pm
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Can anyone tell me how to stop this? I recently rehomed 6 Isas from what was supposed to be a 'free range' facility-not- and they have settled in well, now have new feathers and nice red combs, but I think they are destroying eggs, as I saw one do it in front of me the other morning. To start with all was fine, and had plenty of eggs, but now only 1 or 2 a day if I'm lucky :( They don't want to roost at night in the house with the others, but prefer the tree in the middle of their yard! Any advice gratefully taken!
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By 'destroying' do you mean they are eating them? Egg eaters are bad news. You can try mixing mustard into egg and leaving it in the shell for them to eat - it sometimes works - but actually, once an egg eater, always an egg eater and best got rid of.
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Sorry I can't help, But I can let you know you are not alone. I also have an egg eater and when I can 100% Identify her, she will be no more :(. There will be lots on here with great advice for you :chook:
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Only had egg eaters once. I put lemons in the nest boxes and it did stop pretty quickly and did not start again. Also you could try eggs filled with anything hot eg mustard, china eggs or even I am told golf balls. Try to collect eggs several times a day if possible.
Were these birds introduced to an existing flock? Are they afraid to go in? They may need a wired off section at first.
Have you checked the coop for red mite? This would make them reluctant to go in.
Often new birds have to be trained to go in at night. Go out at dusk and throw corn into the coop. If they are as friendly as my warren type hybrids you could just scoop them up and pop them in or shepherd them in.
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I filled a shell with mustard, did the trick for that hen here. Really hot Chilly or pottery eggs in the nesting box are supposed to be good, too. Good luck! :&>
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hi
we had a egg eater and they seem to teach others
we tried the 'really hot chilli and mustard and they loved it!!!! ::)
once an egg eater always an egg eater but we removed the 3 main culprits and let them free range with the pigs etc, they still eat their own if soft shelled or we are not quick enough, but at least we get them from the main flock now!!
not tried lemons or china ones
Mx
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Thanks for all the tips! I have a stone egg that I shall try-that will really give them a shock :o, if that fails, then the chilli and mustard trick! I managed to get one egg from 9 chooks today...the problem with picking the culprit (unless caught in the act) is that all the Isas look remarkably similar ::)
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I keep finding an eaten egg, it never used to happen but in the first lot of eggs was a delecate one that broke in the nest so the hens ran in to eat it, I tried to clear it up as fast as I could but it seems to have started them off...not sure who or how many eat them unless I sit and watch so I am going to have to collect the eggs at least 2 times a day!!
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Thanks for all the tips! I have a stone egg that I shall try-that will really give them a shock :o, if that fails, then the chilli and mustard trick! I managed to get one egg from 9 chooks today...the problem with picking the culprit (unless caught in the act) is that all the Isas look remarkably similar ::)
Are you finding the remaining bits of shell and some of the white and yolk? If not and you only find complete eggs the hens may not be the only culprits. I used to have eggs stolen by magpies and rats.
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Thanks for all the tips! I have a stone egg that I shall try-that will really give them a shock :o, if that fails, then the chilli and mustard trick! I managed to get one egg from 9 chooks today...the problem with picking the culprit (unless caught in the act) is that all the Isas look remarkably similar ::)
I agree with the others in that the longer it goes on the more difficult it will be to stop them. A friend had to let 2 lots of hens go for that reason - they had all come from the same place and probably brought the bad habit with them. We were probably lucky as ours started when she was broody and we caught her in the act showing her only surviving chick the nutritious snack when she had started laying again. She was still on her own so we did not have to find the culprit first. I still find that they all eat a soft shelled or broken egg if they can get hold of one but none seems to go for a proper egg now, all fingers crossed!
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[/quote]Are you finding the remaining bits of shell and some of the white and yolk? If not and you only find complete eggs the hens may not be the only culprits. I used to have eggs stolen by magpies and rats.
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Annie, with ours there was no evidence left at all, not the tiniest bit of shell or liquid - I knew because I had counted the eggs and watched her once in the act that it must have been her!
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No, no evidence apart from wet straw! Yes I think it's well possible that a rat might be involved as well >:( A friend told she had a similar problem with hers, and when she added extra grit to their diet, it stopped so I shall try that too.
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I keep forgetting to keep used egg shell to crush...I need to put a container next to the bin to save the shells to put around where the hens are!!! may help
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I was going to ask if they had plenty of grit. I found mine ate eggs when they were hungry, bored, or short of shell/grit. Whether they are pecking at them for the grit (testing to see if it's edible or crumbles?) or the shells are a little thin, break and then get eaten.
and I must remember to take that crushed eggshell to them.
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Do you have to bake the egg shell first and then crush?
A friend told me that you should pop them in a cooling oven to bake and then crush. Mine solidified on the baking sheet and was impossible to scrape off!
I took in a couple of warren type hybrids from a lady who could no longer keep them and one of these lays a huge soft shelled or without a shell egg. They free range and have had access to grit. Any ideas why? Tips?
I have plenty of eggs so it doesnt worry me that there is no egg to collect but think the broken egg may encourage egg eating. I collect as often as I can but often someone else has trampled and broken it before I get there. ::)
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Mine are not that keen on thier layers pellets at the moment and there is always some in thier feeder when I go to feed them, they eat it eventualy but the look forward to other bits that come thier way!!!
I would have popped them in the oven so now I know they will stick, I have lots of those cook in the oven bags so I will do that as grit is very expensive and you may well be spot on, just the soft shells!!!
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Do you have to bake the egg shell first and then crush?
A friend told me that you should pop them in a cooling oven to bake and then crush. Mine solidified on the baking sheet and was impossible to scrape off!
I rinse them then collect inan microwave dish, then bake the whole lot for 5 mins in the micro. Seems as lot of fuzz but they are so much easier to crush and mix with the other grit - make sure it's not visibly recognisable as eggshell, these birds are clever.....
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Forgive me if I have misread, but if there is no evidence not even wet straw, are you absolutely sure they are being eaten?
The last lot of ex batts I looked after laid loads of eggs, then all of a sudden just stopped whilst they regained proper condition. It took about 2 months before they started to lay again and it was about this time of year. How long have you had them?
If it IS egg eating, we have had success using pot eggs/egg shaped pebbles :wave:
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I have found that if there is a sudden drop in number of eggs and no other signs, wet straw bit s of shell etc, that the rats have got there before me. So I now keep my hens and ducks inside till gone 10, and lift any eggs at that point then check again midday and at bedtime. Getting 9 eggs daily from 11 hens, one of which I know doesn't lay at all or very infrequently, and 4 out of four duck eggs.
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I use old foil pie dishes / plates, luckily we have a rayburn, so put leave them in the bottom oven till I remember, at my parents we would put them in while the oven was cooling down,
They only need to dry off, not cook, or try oystershell rather than grit,
We had some calcified seaweed for the field, they seem happy with that.
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Increasing the Calcium levels in feed beyond 3% maximum can cause Kidney failure. I wouldn't advise crushing and feeding egg shell or using Oyster shell grit if you are already feeding them on layers pellets, which has the right amount.
Blown eggs with Chilli or Mustard are generally enjoyed by hens, but not by rodents. I would go for pot eggs in the nest box and curtains in the front made of slit rubber matting, plastic sheet or sacking or old curtains. This keeps the eggs out of sight. Roll-away nest boxes is next stage or failing that identifying the culprit(s) and despatching them -not all the hens may be egg eating at this stage.
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Increasing the Calcium levels in feed beyond 3% maximum can cause Kidney failure. I wouldn't advise crushing and feeding egg shell or using Oyster shell grit if you are already feeding them on layers pellets, which has the right amount.
mine are free range, forage out a lot and have a proportion of whole wheat, so are unlikely to get enough calcium from layers pellets, if shells are thin or soft I would guess at not enough calcium,
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Hi there, we have rehomed a couple of batches of barn eggs and they always have a couple of weeks of eating eggs before they settle down. They also lay eggs wherever they fancy. Just make sure they have access to good quality feed and lots of water and collect eggs regularly. We fluff up the nest boxes and put in 3 or 4 golf balls in each one ( they are on the floor in case they can't jump up at first). They see the golf balls and it seems to encourage them to lay there and also if they peck the ball they get a nasty shock so they soon stop eating the eggs. Good luck.
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Thanks chrismahon, never knew that one, we feed layers pellets and now no more egg eating, it was only the odd broken one they took, I infact broke one on collection and had to knock the hens out the way!!! my Labs watch but know not to steal any!!!!!! No more eaten eggs here thankfuly!!
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Golf balls is a good one! I have put 2 stone eggs in the nest, changed all the straw and bought a bag of grit, when I put down a couple of handfuls, they threw themselves on it so I'm thinking they were missing that in their diet. They have a large grassed enclosure which is well fenced against foxes, and they also get wheat, cracked corn and crushed lupins. Had a success yesterday-2 eggs ;D ;D not the 7 I have been used to, but a start!
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soft shelled eggs do happen even with plenty of grit....sometimes linked with re-start of laying after a break, weather or just because????
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Just wanted to thank you all for the input-the problem now appears to have been cracked (no pun intended!), and all the girls are back to laying-and I am back to trying to find uses for all the eggs!!! I have kept the stone eggs in the nesting boxes just in case ;)