chickens pecking eggs

You need one of those Nerf guns mentioned on the trending thread TriciaF

Ok the hens - yes magpies can get into the nesting boxes. They just fly into the henhouse (or poultry house, we've got 2 cockerels as well). Then hop into the nesting boxes which are adjoined. I've seen them go in - as soon as I open the kitchen window to yell at them they see me and fly off. Must have eyes at the back of their heads.

DD and SIL call them chooks .....
I was being polite when I called them 'hens'

That's interesting about the magpies, I wouldn't have thought they would steal hen's eggs. I know they always devastate the blackbirds' nests in our garden, we see the evidence left on the ground. horrible birds.

Magpies!!! Do they get into the laying boxes?

Our last lot were peckers, I had a collection of alabaster and marble, china and wooden eggs, so put a couple of those into the boxes and it cured it. It didn't do my egg collection much good though. Oddly, it has only ever occurred with hybrids, the pure breeds have always been kept in separate pens and I have never had a problem with it from them, has anyone else noticed this or am I just lucky?

I am so pleased that you all call them what they are - HENS !!!
I get so annoyed when they are called chickens as chickens do not lay eggs - they are much too young.
Chickens are children, pullets are teenagers and hens are adults.

I am on 'hen-duty' for my neighbours 4 hens this week and of course they have all chosen to go off lay. Ungrateful lot.

Thanks for the replies.
We now think that it's magpies to blame. We used to get a lot, and I've seen film on youtube showing a magpie actually stealing an egg, in his beak!
We haven't had so many lately, I think our neighbour shoots them.

DD and SIL keep hens (and his parents did before him - and his grandparents!)
The hens eat vegetable peelings and vegetable leftovers but they never give them eggshells - they say that including eggshells in their food encourages them to peck the eggs.
They get plenty of grit; they are let out for a few hours each day.

My DM always used to say 'they're not getting enough grit' if the eggshells were weak.

TriciaF:

Just a quickie;

My mother used to keep hens. One lot for the table and the other breed for eggs. The culprit was a cockerel. She blew the egg, then using a straw she blew down about a teaspoon of runny Coleman's mustard into it. Iit worked.

My maternal granny about 80-90 years ago apparently used to stick an old feather through the nostrils of an offending bird. It worked but is considered cruel nowadays.

Good luck.

We had some bantams in the back garden when I was little. I remember something about grit. Now, if a Waitrose egg cracks in the boiling pan, I always think "They don't give them enough grit these days". . #whatdoiknow

Yes we must give them more grit, and we're saving eggshells (don't laugh Jings!)
Weve had hens for over 12 years and have never had this problem before.

Flip me! . The information that Gransnetters can come up with!

Yes, they need grit- and we used to also bake egg shells to sterelise them and then crush them and put in the pen for them.

I think some hens can become habitual egg peckers, it'll stop if you paint a few eggs with diluted mustard powder.

I had this problem years ago and it worked.

Make sure they have plenty of grit in their run, Tricia. You can buy it in your feed supply shop. Ours free range so pick up all the grit they need from goodness knows where but they will peck at eggshells if they can't get out.