[karlooben]

http://www.solwayfeeders.com/ProductsDetail1.asp?STOCK_CODE=1216F

my girls are eating the eggs again { not all though } and i was wandering has anyone on here brought one of these and if so are they good and does your girls lay in them ?

i doubt i would buy one but i need to do something 

[joyfull]

not sure if I read that grannie has one or if she is going to get one, perhaps she will let you know when she comes on 

[happychickens]

WOW you must have some eggs daily! My few girls have to put up with some wooden nest boxes filled with a bit of sawdust and louse powder

[too many girls]

you can buy the roll away inserts seperatley, i've seen some at poultry- heaven, i saw them in her kitchen but no doubt she will be listing them on e-bay at some time, i've never used one but it looks like it could work.

[karlooben]

well i got 22 girls in lay and within the next month or so i am hoping all 6 babies will lay to .

at the mo i am using royal mail post boxes} shhs dont tell anyone   they do make very good nest boxes and a hen can fit just perfectly in one but i want them to stop trending on the eggs or to stop eating them , normally i get 12 - 14 eggs a day { occassionally i get 16 } each day at least 12 are already sold an when i end up with 10 or less it drives me up the wall .

[karlooben]

i have seen them tmg £3.99 on a website cant remember what one , i was wandering how well they would just sit without moving or i could maybe board them in so they dont tip up

[hillfooter]

Hi Karlooben,

I suppose you've tried lots of different things to stop them already and asked for advice.  It does seem a pity that you have to resort to such methods but I suppose if it's deeply ingrained and you've done all the usual things.  This at least will solve it.

Regards

[IMOmimey]

I don't have enough eggs to justify one of these, but a friend of mine does, and she swears by hers...eggs are usually lovely and clean too, tho not ALL her girls will lay in them
                                               
                                               'Mimey

[karlooben]

i do still need to try the mustard one but that i can only do on the weekend , ok that mite work for my girls an stop them eating them but i know that when they all decide to try an lay in one box the eggs get trodden on and roll away boxes is the only thing i know that will stop that happening .

i can have 10 girls lay 10 eggs in one box  and they have 7 boxes to choose from .

[chickenlady]

I had all of my 6 just using 1 nest box even though i had 2, eggs also got squashed and eaten and there would be a right racket every morning too whilst they were all trying to lay! but i put some pot eggs into the nest box they didnt use and hay presto! they now use both nest boxes and all is quiet in the mornings and im getting 6 eggs from 6 girls every day 

[hillfooter]

Ok seems like your problem is that the eggs are getting broken due to so many hens using the same box.  When I've had problems it's usually to do with one or two hens developing the habit or thin shelled eggs being broken.  Sounds like the answer to your problem is collect more frequently or maybe the design of the box could be improved or have more bedding.  I've used pot eggs in the case of thin shells.  The pot eggs help to protect the laid eggs but Chicken lady's suggestion seems worth a try.  Is it just one or two boxes they always lay in or do they utilise all the boxes.  I've found the ribbon curtain across the nestbox has worked  for the casual pecker.   It darkens the box and discourages inquisitive hens from sticking their heads into every box and having a peck at what's there.

I've never tried the mustard idea either but I can't say it sounds very promising.  If it works at all it would seem to be only of use if you had one or two rogues eating the eggs deliberately.  Obviously an acidentally broken egg is going to be eaten by any of the hens and it's possible there maybe one laying a thin fragile egg ocassionally which gets broken and triggers the behaviour.
Best of luck
Regards

[GrannieAnnie]

Hi Looby, sorry I've only just got on here tonight!  Yes, we have the 10 hole nest box.  They are very good, but not cheap, but I treated us 2 years ago. the eggs keep lovely and clean as they roll down under the little flaps.  Just don't forget to put the perches up after they've finished laying, or they will sleep in the nest boxes and poop away at night.

Then you have to put them down again in the morning before they start laying or hey can't reach the nest box.  Brian told me to leave the perches down, so I still get messy boxes and pooped eggs!

I mainly got them to help stop the mites getting in the nest boxes, but the last time we had mites, they were still in between the meal and plastic by their trillions!

this is ours!  Brian built a new side to the shed to fit them.  But I have had them just screwed to the wall in the big house!

You can just buy the inserts and make your nest boxes sloping to fit, but the tray at the front or rear (ours are front mounted) would be open so they may still tread on them

[karlooben]

thanks grannie ,. i am in 2 minds as to  wether to buy one or not but as with the prob of getting red mite etc it mite be just as easy to buy the inserts an find a way of just placing them on the floor of the shed an blocking them in so they dont topple over as it will make cleaning them so much easier . hill footer i cant collect my eggs during the day that easy as i  work 7 am tell 2,30 pm if i get the chance i collect at 10 am as i get a 10 min teabreak and the girls are only over the road from work but apart from that a lot of the laying can be done after 10 . i will see what i can come up with over the weekend but all the guys i know who can help me i.e carpenters etc are all on hoilday 

[Sparkle]

Hi Karlooben
Good luck with your egg smashing/eating
I tried lining the nest boxes with carry mat to provide soft landing for eggs as the girls turfed out all the straw/shavings etc (this worked really well in reducing the number of eggs dinked at one end where tey hit the floor)
I have tried stone eggs (which are ok and are in the nest boxes all the time anyway)
I have tried mustard filled eggs
I have also tried a stern talking to
And unfortunately it has made no real difference - these habits seem to be too far ingrained 
But it does go in phases and if I am on it with the egg collection it doesn't happen so much and I have also noticed that some will eat it if it is already broken but others go in the hen house specifically to seek out egg from a particular hen (i think)
If I had the money and younger hens I would definitely go for one of these as they seem to work well
In the meantime I am getting my OH to consider sloping the floor of my nest boxes and putting bar and guttering type arrangement for collecting/protecting eggs

[karlooben]

hi there it sounds like your planning similar to me with the slopping floor , i can build most things i.e i built my run etc but making these nest boxes an sloping part of it has got me baffled  . so for me looks like i got to wait tell some guys i know are free and that could be a long wait .