Chickens eating their own eggs is a common occurrence that puzzles many backyard chicken keepers. While it may seem odd, there are several key reasons why chickens engage in oophagy, the act of eating their own eggs. Understanding the root causes can help chicken owners prevent this behavior and protect their egg supply.
Why Would a Chicken Eat Its Own Eggs?
There are four main theories as to why chickens peck and eat their own eggs:
- Nutritional deficiency – A lack of protein, calcium or other nutrients can trigger a chicken to eat its eggs to compensate.
- Stress or boredom – Chickens confined for long periods without adequate space or stimulation may turn to egg eating out of stress or boredom.
- Establishing dominance – Dominant hens may eat eggs to show their status over more submissive chickens.
- Exploratory pecking – Chickens are highly curious and their pecking instinct can lead them to investigate and puncture eggs.
Often, a combination of factors leads chickens to develop egg eating habits. Understanding the specific triggers can help owners pinpoint solutions.
Nutritional Deficiencies
Eggs are a rich source of protein, fat, vitamins and minerals. A chicken that lacks adequate nutrition from its feed may turn to eating eggs to fulfill those needs. Some common deficiencies that can prompt egg eating include:
- Protein – Crucial for egg production and overall health. Older or lower quality feed may be deficient.
- Calcium – Needed for proper egg shell formation. Lack of oyster shell supplement can cause deficiency.
- Sodium – Important for various bodily functions. Too little salt in the diet could trigger cravings.
Correcting dietary deficiencies through improved feed quality and free choice supplements like oyster shell is key to stopping nutritional egg eating.
Stress and Boredom
Chickens are highly intelligent, social animals. When confined for long periods without adequate space or enrichment, they can develop neurotic behaviors like egg eating to cope with stress or boredom. Possible stressors include:
- Overcrowding – Too many chickens and not enough space leads to conflict.
- Predators – Constant fear of predators is stressful.
- Extreme weather – Heat and cold extremes create discomfort.
- Poor ventilation – Ammonia buildup from poor coop ventilation irritates chickens.
- Changes – Alterations to the flock or coop causes instability.
- Loneliness – Social chickens isolated from the flock feel stressed.
Preventing stress and boredom through proper space requirements, predator protection, climate control, sanitation and entertainment reduces egg eating from behavioral causes.
Establishing Dominance
The pecking order is real with chickens. Dominant boss hens will sometimes eat eggs to show their high status over more submissive chickens. This most often occurs when:
- A new hen is introduced to the flock
- Chickens reach maturity and try to move up the pecking order
- Loss of the former top hen leaves a power vacuum
Disrupting the pecking order triggers competition for dominance. Keeping the flock stable without introducing new chickens reduces this behavior.
Exploratory Pecking
Chickens use their beaks to interact with the world around them. Their strong pecking instinct and innate curiosity mean they peck at anything new or different in their environment. This can lead them to accidentally damage eggs. Risk factors include:
- Boredom – Chickens confined without enrichment peck more.
- Stress – Nervous chickens peck excessively.
- Bright eggs – White or light colored eggs attract more attention.
- Novel items – New eggs may pique their curiosity.
Preventing boredom, reducing stress and avoiding abnormal eggs reduces exploratory pecking damage.
Which Chickens Are Most Likely to Eat Eggs?
While any chicken may eat eggs under the right circumstances, certain types exhibit the behavior more often. Typical egg eating suspects include:
- Dominant hens – Bossy chickens cement their status by consuming eggs.
- Bored chickens – Those confined without enrichment eat eggs from monotony.
- Stressed chickens – Chickens facing overcrowding, weather extremes or instability eat more eggs.
- Deficient chickens – Malnourished hens eat eggs to get missing nutrients.
- Sick chickens – Disease causes odd behavior changes like egg eating.
- Young chickens – Pullets exploring the pecking order may eat eggs.
Targeting at-risk chickens for intervention is key to stopping egg predation.
How to Prevent Chickens From Eating Eggs
Stopping egg eating requires addressing the underlying causes. Key prevention strategies include:
- Improve nutrition with quality feed and free choice calcium supplement.
- Reduce stress and boredom through proper space, enrichment and climate control.
- Discourage exploratory pecking by providing dummy eggs.
- Collect eggs frequently to limit opportunity.
- Retire bossy chickens disrupting the pecking order.
- Isolate chronic egg eaters until the habit resolves.
- Mask egg flavor by rubbing eggs with unappealing substances.
A combination of optimizing the environment, discouraging the behavior and protecting eggs is most effective at solving the problem.
How to Stop Chickens Currently Eating Eggs
If egg eating already exists in the flock, swift action is needed to break the habit before it spreads. Recommended techniques to stop current egg eaters include:
- Increase egg collecting frequency – Gather eggs at least twice daily.
- Use decoy eggs – Golf balls, wooden eggs or empty shells discourage pecking.
- Apply unpleasant tastes – Coat shells with hot sauce or cologne to deter eating.
- Separate offenders – Isolate chronic eating chickens until the habit ceases.
- Use an egg eater trap – These devices catch hens in the act and end the behavior.
- Reduce stress triggers – Eliminate crowding, predation, climate extremes.
- Entertain bored hens – Give chickens more space, scratch grains and greens.
- Establish a routine – Consistent feeding and lighting prevents unstable conditions.
It takes diligence to break egg eating habits once established. But being vigilant to stop the behavior quickly prevents it spreading through the entire flock.
The Consequences of Egg Eating
Allowing chickens to eat eggs has several adverse consequences:
- Lost egg production – Each eaten egg represents lost profit or food.
- Reduced nutrients – Chickens gain fewer nutrients from scrambled eggs.
- Increased egg eating – Habit spreads once established in the flock.
- Bored, stressed chickens – Underlying issues won’t be addressed.
- Pecking order conflicts – Dominance displays continue.
- Greater chicken culling – Severe eaters may need to be culled.
Letting chickens dine on their own eggs enables bad habits. Cracking down on egg eating as soon as it starts is critical.
The Bottom Line
Chickens aren’t cracking and whipping up their own eggs for the sheer joy of it. Eating their eggs signals an underlying problem that needs addressed. By troubleshooting nutritional shortfalls, environmental stress, exploratory pecking and dominance conflicts, owners can get to the root of the behavior and protect their flock’s egg output.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do hens eat their own eggs?
Hens eat their eggs for several reasons including nutritional deficiencies, stress or boredom, establishing dominance, and exploratory pecking instinct. Finding the specific triggers is key to stopping egg predation.
What nutrient deficiency causes chickens to eat eggs?
Common nutritional deficiencies that cause egg eating include low protein, inadequate calcium for proper shell formation, and lack of salt. Improving diet through quality feed and free-choice oyster shell supplement helps.
Do chickens eat eggs because they are bored?
Yes, chickens confined without adequate space, enrichment and socialization often eat eggs out of boredom and monotony. Increased exercise area and entertainment reduces stress and boredom egg eating.
Why do chickens eat eggs after laying them?
Egg eating after laying happens when hens explore eggs as new objects in the nesting area. Quickly removing eggs post-laying and providing dummy eggs reduces this exploratory pecking behavior.
How do you identify a chicken that is eating eggs?
Look for chickens hanging around the nesting boxes excessively, caught in the act eating eggs, with egg yolk staining around their beak, and feather staining from egg contents. Isolate offenders.
What breed of chicken eats their own eggs?
Egg eating can occur in any breed, though Mediterranean breeds like Leghorns and Sicilian Buttercups are more prone to egg eating. Focus on addressing underlying causes rather than blaming chicken breeds.
In Summary
Chickens eating their own eggs is an alarming problem for poultry keepers. But this behavior always stems from underlying issues like nutritional deficiencies, lack of enrichment and boredom, changes in the pecking order, or simple curiosity. Targeting the root causes through improved diet, reduced stress, increased stimulation, and protecting eggs allows owners to stop egg predation and keep their chickens healthy and productive.