egg eating

the culprit!----------->

today, and a few days ago, i have found broken egg shells with all the yoke and egg white missing, and i realized that one of my chickens was eating the eggs! so if you find you have this same problem, here are some ways of how to fix it:

-collect eggs asap after the hens have laid
-find the culprit (mine in this case is Charlotte), you can tell if the chicken has egg on her beak, or you will see her

-make sure your chickens have enough calcium and protein and vitamin D for their diet, you can buy supplements such as oyster shells for calcium, or grind their egg shells into a powder and put in in your chickens' feed bowl, this will make the egg shells harder
-darken the nesting boxes or coop if it is too light, so they cant see the eggs as well
-make sure the chickens have enough things (food) to occupy them throughout the day so they dont get bored and get into trouble
-make sure you have at least one nesting box for every 2-3 chickens

-if an egg cracks or gets trampled clean up all the egg asap
-make sure there is enough nest litter in the box (hay, wood shavings)

-collect the eggs, and replace them with two wood eggs or golf balls, so if your chicken tries to peck them they wont be able to break them so hopefully the chicken will eventually give up

so those are all the tips i have, hope they help!

more new girls!

i got new chickens! a black jersey giant, around 7 months, we named her opal (because she's opalescent). and we got a buff orpington, around a year old, named Charlotte. they're pretty skittish but want to be included and are very curious. so now i have a total of seven girls. i know i explained how to introduce the new girls into the flock the right way, but i have learned and experienced more things and that are to their benefit and health.

one, make sure the hens you get are the same size and close in age when you get them. you don't want to mix a 2 month old with a 5 year old hen (etc), because the older hen is stronger, more dominant and likely to seriously hurt the younger, and the younger hen is more susceptible to diseases the flock might be caring, and visa versa.

two, make sure the new hens you get are buddies and get along. opal is more attracted to the flock and wants to be around them because she most likely didnt have any "friends", which is good for her; but charlotte most likely had a buddy, and now she is depressed and not wanting to be with the flock-which equals less eggs, and a poor immune system. so when you pick up the birds, be sure to ask the owner if the girls you get are "buddies", or just choose two (or more) that you see hanging around close each other. chickens do become very depressed if their buddy is seperated in any way from them; they are just as emotional (in their chicken way) and caring about their pals as people are.

three, take your time to check the birds to see if they look healthy or if they have anything wrong with them. check the home they are in and see if it is kept well and clean (ig they are able to have fresh air, and protection from weather, and are being given plenty of good food, etc). the lady i got opal and charlotte from had a good life, but i wasnt able to stick around to do all these things, so there is always a risk in getting new chickens to add to your flock, as it is with all animals.
a wonderful book i recommned to all chicken owners is "chicken health handbook", which talks about all the diseases chickens can get and how to prevent them from getting diseases, maintaining a low stress level in the flock.