Egg eater

[spodski]

Has anyone any ideas on how to spot an egg eater. Every day I have eggs that are sticky and covered in what appears to be yoke. There is no shell left but I suspect one of the girls is eating her egg. Short of catching one in the act I am a loss as to how to catch the culprit!
Regards,
Lynn

[pottymoo]

I get that I presume as it's tha battie's coop that one of them is laying shell less egg
I have had in the past had an egg eater/amber a blackrock but I had to do the unthinkable and do the deed because I tried everything and nothing worked, she was intent on eating every egg. Hopefully you won't have to go that far. I doubt it's anything to worry about unless you find shell and see for sure. I tried isolating her in a cage, she wouldn't eat her own egg and when let out after everyone had layed
would go into the coop every few minutes looking. I tried mustard and I mean hot didn't work, tried chicken poo, didn't work. I trapped her by planting an egg and she went straight to it. Once a chickens starts to eat eggs it's a very hard thing to break. moo x

[spodski]

Thanks for that. I seem to have it in both coops at the moment. I went out with afternoon treats and there was a lovely egg in first coop. Thought I would collect it on way back. Came back 2 minutes later and it was gone! There was yolk under the straw and they have all had a go at licking it up. I put 2 rescued chooks in there a couple of days ago and thought it was one of them. I filled a shell with mustard and put it in the nest box. One of my Old English Pheasant Fowl immediately stood on it and ate it. Again they all joined in and the mustard didn't seem to bother them! Just watching as another one in nest box!
Regards,
Lynn

[MEGAN]

just a thought how about spraying an egg with nettex anti pecking spray it stopped my lot plucking each other feathers. Maybe worth a try.
I have a girl who lays soft shelled eggs and they all join in eating it after she has laid one, fortunately they have never tried it with hard shelled eggs.

[pottymoo]

I discovered that apperently chickens do not have many taste buds so no matter how much mustard you use and how hot it won't bother them, my chickens have eaten their own poo too as I tried that idea. You are just going to have to collect the eggs more often and ctch the culprit that way. I tried everything to stop amber from eating the eggs but nothing worked . What I did was a last resort. I often feed the girls scrambled eggs to stop them eating their own I do hope you sot it soon moo x

[Littlechick]

Good luck Lynn, sounds like it's one of those problems that are best caught early before they become habit. If they are eating a soft egg, that would be OK wouldn't it (although I think respiratory diseases can be spread in the eggs), but it is if they start on the hard shelled eggs taht the problems start. What about rats?

[spodski]

Yes I did wonder about rats but I think they would probably take several. I do have a girl who lays very thin shelled eggs. I will spend some time in the run with them and see if I can get tot he bottom of it.
Regards,
Lynn