Egg eating is a seriously bad habit in chickens, and once it starts it can be hard to break. And, like broodiness, it can also spread throughout your entire flock. If a chicken sees one hen egg eating she’ll think she should do it too. So, why do chickens eat their eggs? And how do you stop chickens from eating eggs?
Our Egg Eating Chickens: A Tale of Two Sussexes
We recently had two chickens eating eggs, and it wasn’t pretty. Both of them are Speckled Sussexes, the same two who went broody last fall, and the same two who destroyed all my Calendula growing in the garden last weekend (one big downside of letting your chickens free range).
I caught one of the Sussex hens eating eggs a few days ago. She’d laid a pretty peach egg in the nesting box and I happened to show up in the coop right as she was pecking it open to eat it. I stood there, dumbfounded, while I watched her tear into that egg like it was all-you-can-eat steak night at Ponderosa. I know the other Sussex has followed her lead because I discovered the remnants of an eaten egg yesterday after she left the nest. I also saw bright yellow yolk on her beak.
Those two. If it’s not one thing it’s something else with them. If they weren’t so pretty I probably would have culled them by now. But don’t think I’m not tempted.
Why Do Chickens Eat Their Eggs?
There are several reasons why chickens eat their eggs.
1. Poor Diet
A chicken might eat her own eggs if she’s not getting enough protein or calcium. Eggs are high in both, which means they’re a perfect food for chicken.
2. Accidental Discovery
Some chickens eat their eggs because of an accidental discovery. For example, a chicken might accidentally crush an egg when she’s entering or leaving the nesting box. As the white and yolk spill out, she takes a peck at it to see what it is. And as soon as she tastes that deliciousness of that egg, all is lost. She’ll eat it all up, including the shell, and hunger for more.
Signs Chickens Are Eating Eggs
So, how do you know that your have some chickens eating eggs? Look for these signs:
1. Decrease in Egg Production
If you’re getting fewer eggs every day, your hens could be eating them. Keep in mind that if your hens free range they might be hiding them. My hens do this ALL. THE. TIME. If your hens free range and you’re not getting any eggs, or egg production has gone down, check for hiding spots before you assume they’re eating them.
Another sign of egg eating is that the eggs you do collect have sticky yolk on the shells.
2. Nesting Boxes Are Dirty
You go to collect eggs out of the nesting boxes and suddenly feel some sticky goo in there. It’s not poop…but the bedding is moist and a bit slimy.
This a big indication that you have an egg eater in your flock. When a hen eats an egg she will eat every bit of it, leaving only a sticky moist residue in the nesting box.
3. Yolk On Their Face and Beak
If you notice bright yellow yolk on their face or beak, they’re guilty as charged. Egg eaters often can’t hide this level of evidence, so if your hens have dirty faces it’s time to take action.
How to Prevent Chickens Eating Eggs
This is another situation where, to quote Mr. Benjamin Franklin, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” It’s far easier to prevent egg eating than to stop it once it starts.
If you’re chickens aren’t currently eating their eggs, make sure they don’t start!
1. Feed Hens a High Quality Diet
Make sure your chickens are getting enough protein and calcium. Laying hens need layer feed, which has 16% to 18% protein, as well as extra calcium.
Even though we feed our hens high quality layer feed, I also put out a bowl of Manna Pro crushed oyster shells for them to peck at as they need it. Oyster shells are high in calcium and will help your hens lay eggs with thick, strong shells. You can also give your chickens quality, nutritious treats to increase their consumption of protein and calcium.
However, don’t ever give your chickens raw eggs to eat. You can give them egg shells, but crush them up first so the hens won’t recognize what they’re eating.
2. Collect Eggs Throughout the Day
If possible, try to collect eggs several times throughout the day. Eggs that sit in the nesting box most of the day are prime targets for curious hens looking for a little snack.
3. Invest In Nesting Boxes with a Roll Down Tray
If you can’t collect eggs throughout the day, consider investing in nesting boxes with a roll down tray. These nesting boxes have an angled floor so that when the hens lay an egg, it gently rolls to the back of the box, where it’s kept safe in a covered egg tray.
Yes, these nesting boxes are expensive but they’re well worth the investment if you’re consistently losing eggs to a problem eater. These nesting boxes will also help keep the eggs clean once they’re laid, and help ensure they don’t get cracked from other hens entering and leaving the nesting box.
4. Avoid Overcrowding
Another way to prevent egg eating is to avoid overcrowding. If you keep your hens penned, make sure you’re providing enough space for all of them. At minimum, your chickens need 2 to 3 feet per chicken inside the coop, and 8 to 10 feet per chicken in the outside run.
Chickens that don’t have enough space get bored and anxious, and they can quickly start pecking at eggs just for something new to do. If your hens free range, overcrowding won’t be an issue.
5. Install Enough Nesting Boxes
Overcrowding can also apply to nesting boxes. In general, you need 1 nesting box for every 4 chickens, and it’s often better to strive for a 1 to 3 ratio, especially if you’re caring for a broody chicken who’s taking up a nest for the next several weeks.
Make sure you have enough nesting boxes so your girls don’t get anxious or frustrated (which can lead to egg eating.) If you think you’re short on nesting boxes, consider some quick and inexpensive nests like using 5 gallon buckets or milk crates. These DIY nesting boxes can quickly solve shortage, and your hens might end up like them better than a commercially made box.
6. Clean Up Broken Eggs Quickly
If you notice a hen has broken an egg in the nesting box, clean it up quickly. You don’t want any of your chickens investigating the mess, taking a bite, and deciding to eat more. So, clean out the bedding or throw out the nesting pad as soon as you can.
How to Stop Chickens From Eating Eggs
As I mentioned before, stopping a chicken from eating eggs is difficult to say the least. Many experts say that culling is the only sure-fire way to stop this bad habit from spreading throughout the entire flock. However, before you take that drastic step there are some strategies you can try.
1. Fool Them With Ceramic Eggs
One strategy is to fool your egg eater with some ceramic eggs.
Here’s what you do. Collect eggs during the day as quickly as they’re laid. You might want to wait and do this on the weekend or your days off so that you’re at home to stay on top of things. After all the eggs have been laid for the day, put several ceramic eggs in the nesting boxes and leave them there overnight.
Your egg eater will try and try to break those ceramic eggs, but she’ll be foiled. If you can do this for several days in a row, she might stop trying to eat the eggs entirely.
2. Isolate the Egg Eater
Hopefully, you already know which chicken is eating eggs. If so, you need to isolate her from the rest of the hens so she doesn’t spread this bad habit. If you have a small dog crate or separate coop or chicken tractor, put her in there for a few days with fresh water and food and see if the change of scenery breaks the habit.
3. Block the Nesting Boxes
Another strategy is to block off the nesting box where the offender is eating the eggs. Most hens like to use the same nesting box every day, so if you know which hen is egg eating you simply block access to her favorite nesting box and force her to lay somewhere else.
Forcing her to lay somewhere else disrupts her routine, and sometimes this can be enough to stop the bad behavior. This is the strategy I tried first with our Sussexs and it worked. I blocked off their favorite nest in the coop and they started laying eggs in our abandoned barn instead. While I don’t want them laying in the barn, they did stop egg eating once they were forced to find a new nest.
4. Put Up Curtains
You can also try putting up curtains in the nesting box to make it as dark as possible. Chickens can’t see well in the dark, and if the nesting box is very dim they won’t be able to see the egg enough to be interested. You should also try to keep the coop as dark as possible to discourage egg eating.
5. Use Mustard and Soap
This great idea comes from Deanna at Homestead and Chill. She suggests using mustard and dish soap to stop egg eating.
To try this, take an egg and gently poke a small hole in the bottom with a needle. Poke another small hole at the top of the egg, and gently blow out the white and yolk into a bowl. Next, fill the empty eggshell with dish soap and mustard, and then place it gently back into the nest where your egg eater usually eats eggs. Once taste of that soap and mustard concoction and she’ll be turned off from eating eggs!
Last Word
When it comes to egg eating, I’ll say it again: prevention is the best strategy! Once this bad habit starts it can be really hard to stop, and some chicken keepers end up culling the egg eater just to make sure that the other flock members don’t start doing the same thing.
I’d love to hear back from you. Have you ever had an egg eater in your flock? Were you able to get her to stop? If so, what worked?