# Eating the eggs?



## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Question why would the girls eat an egg?? Hubby saw them fighting over what looked like membrane??? Haven’t had this happen?


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## nannypattyrn (Aug 23, 2015)

If the egg gets stepped on and broken they will eat it. If they get too much fresh egg, they may start breaking and eating them, so just watch to make sure this isn't a regular thing.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Ok am waiting for Wilbur to come out of the coop. She was laying a few min ago. Will keep watch over the weekend.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Mine recognize me stepping on an egg and usually are at my feet before I can move. They have never intentionally broken one.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Ok will let y’all know what I find.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

One thing I have noticed is when a hen lays an egg,they get into a squat position and force the egg out.Sometimes the force is so hard,it breaks upon impact with another egg or breaks the egg in the nest.It's worse when I don't collect eggs often.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Oh ok. I went out after I saw everyone out of the coop and got all for the morning and they looked good. We normally don’t collect until the evening. No one home during the day to collect.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Sometimes someone lays a shell less egg. Easy to tear open. I used to put golf balls in the nests just in case. But yes I do occasionally find a broken half eaten egg.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Why golf balls? Haven’t heard that one??


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Golf balls. It has something to do with pecking and not getting rewarded.

With one hen, I spent days narrowing down a time frame that an egg got broken. I also checked beaks often to find some yolk. Sure enough, one hen came in to "inspect" the nest, and I snuck up behind her and scared the $hit out of her. Never did it again.

Now, I have 5 layers in the main flock and no eggs for a few months now. I've heard of slowing down, but none? I have checked every nook and cranny in the yard.


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## nannypattyrn (Aug 23, 2015)

I only got 1 egg yesterday out of 16 hens. I think molting and weather changes have something to do with it.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Ok if I se where this is going to be an issue I’ll use the golf ball trick or scare it! That made me chuckle .


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

I'm getting no eggs from 25 hens.Granted it's molting time but some molted early and have been done for some time.Now they're just freeloading.......


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

The only ones that are still laying regular are 1-3 silkies and one red hybrid brown egg layer. Ingrid


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Mine are old, I just want them to stop already.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

What about the chicks you were getting?Got 'em yet?I haven't gotten an egg in days out of 25 hens but the older Cochins are 4 and 5 y o and the 5 yo hasn't laid since a dog ripped off her back last Dec and that's ok.Most are in some stage of molt so I'm excusing it,for now.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Those chicks were rehomed as soon as Chicklett was done raising them. I'm out of chickens. Or almost after all these old farts die out. They've just surprised me by not going along with my plan for getting out.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

1/2 of mine are older farts. I also have 5 top hats and they seem to lay like crazy for about 4 months out of the year, then slow down and stop for the rest of the year. 

All of mine are molting and look terrible. Never had one this bad.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

I am still getting 4 to 5 a day. We have noticed that they are laying earlier, I guess that is normal?? We may have to get with the neighbors and make sure they aren't causing an issue. The racket she made was something else, and I heard it inside the house with the blinds closed. Sun sets around 630 now, and it's dark when I walk on the treadmill in the mornings around 545 or so.


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## dmkrieg (Jul 11, 2017)

Where are you all from? I wonder if it has to do with the weather in the region? Im new to chickens too. I haven’t noticed any real molting and I’m still getting an egg every day from each of my hens that have started laying


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## nannypattyrn (Aug 23, 2015)

The weather can influence laying along with many other factors. Mine have been in a deep molt plus, they're getting older for chickens.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

dmkrieg said:


> Where are you all from? I wonder if it has to do with the weather in the region? Im new to chickens too. I haven't noticed any real molting and I'm still getting an egg every day from each of my hens that have started laying


Most birds molt in the late fall, early Winter but there are those that molt in Spring. My two Hamburgs and one Silkie rooster are both late Spring/early Summer molters.

Your hens are young, they don't always follow the same rules as older hens. As the days shorten more you might start noticing a drop in the number of eggs.


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## Nm156 (May 16, 2015)

Chickens won't have their first molt till 18-20 months old.
The length of light effects egg laying more than anything else.
Most chickens wont lay any eggs if less there is than 11 hours of light.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Nm156 said:


> Chickens won't have their first molt till 18-20 months old.
> The length of light effects egg laying more than anything else.
> Most chickens wont lay any eggs if less there is than 11 hours of light.


Watch to see what your Silkie hen does. She just might surprise you.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

I haven't had an egg in days.All are in some stage of molt or are laying elsewhere because of the geese.I do get one from my Precious,she started laying in my laundry basket again last week.But the rest(23)are free-loaders.


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

love that, free-loaders...we are still getting 4 to 5 a day, well now will be 4....


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

I have 20 hens and today I got 2 eggs. (It's been raining all day). Yesterday I got 4 ,say before that 3... mine are ending molt and some are starting molt, plus lack if daylight isn't helping


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

Last night I found my hen,Precious,standing in the doorway and I just knew she was egg bound.She will only lay in my dirty laundry basket and I guess I didn't notice her wanting in but she'd already been in twice and wanted back out right away.Luckily bringing her in to the laundry basket worked and the egg passed without any help from me but she ended up being an overnight guest.I woke up to her whining.So spoiled!


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## Sara Silver (Nov 27, 2017)

seminolewind said:


> Golf balls. It has something to do with pecking and not getting rewarded.
> 
> With one hen, I spent days narrowing down a time frame that an egg got broken. I also checked beaks often to find some yolk. Sure enough, one hen came in to "inspect" the nest, and I snuck up behind her and scared the $hit out of her. Never did it again.
> 
> Now, I have 5 layers in the main flock and no eggs for a few months now. I've heard of slowing down, but none? I have checked every nook and cranny in the yard.


Yes. ^this. My girls will try to eat any and everything, it's just what foragers do I actually bought porcelain eggs made specifically to trick chickens into thinking eggs aren't edible. I put them in their nesting boxes and other areas of the coop before their feathers were even in and peck them they did, until they learned it was futile. Since they've started laying, I have never had them peck at the real eggs.

Should one break however, I suspect all bets would be off!


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

Haven't had any more issues since I first posted. We are getting 5 a day out of our 5 girls. I would have thought laying would have slowed down by now? Daylight hours have decrease??


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## Nm156 (May 16, 2015)

Are they still pullets?


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

I don't think so. Havent had their 1st molt though.


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## Nm156 (May 16, 2015)

Some will still lay.I still get 2-5 from 27 3-3 1/2 y/o. Their light is from 7:30-6 .This year's chicken are paying their rent for them.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

I've been getting 2-3 eggs a day from 25 hens.I'm assuming they are from the one year olds.It's enough to keep me in cooking/baking eggs so I'm happy.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

My hubs has had to buy eggs. None laid here. I think that young layers lay for longer seasons and those egg laying seasons get shorter and shorter as they age.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

I've been getting one egg a day for the last week from my boss hen.


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## Sara Silver (Nov 27, 2017)

Gah! I just read an article about abnormal eggs and this was a new one for me: the shell-less egg! Literally a membrane filled just like any other egg but with no outer protection.

The chapter this happens fairly often when hens are just starting to lay and when it does, it's rare to even find it because the chickens usually get to it and consume it first. I know my girls want to test EVERYTHING with a peck in hopes it's edible... So I have no doubt in my coop, that's exactly how it would play out. Are your hens young and just starting to lay? If so, a shell-less is actually pretty ?

The good news is, it's nothing to worry about, a pullets body is just still figuring it out. If an older hen turns out a shell-less, it can mean she didn't have enough calcium in her system at the time, which obviously is an easy fix!


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## Wilbur's Mom (Aug 10, 2017)

SS that may have been what happened back when they first started laying in August. Hubby noticed them fighting over a membrane. Hasn’t happened since then. Mine are 9mos old.


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