Having found cracked eggs and broken shells in the hen house, do not rush to look for the culprit from the outside, the layers themselves could have done so. Why did this happen, what is the reason and how to prevent such a nuisance - we'll talk about this in this article.
Possible causes of the phenomenon
The reasons for this behavior of chickens can be:
- not enough of certain nutrients, such as Ca and vitamin D, but also a small percentage of protein in the diet;
- conditions of detention: limited and not sufficiently spacious yard for walking, improperly organized chicken coop or nest for hatching, as well as lack of lighting.
It is worth paying attention to the need to act immediately in case of detection of the first beaten eggs, since others may follow the example of one hen, and then it will be much more difficult to prevent eggs from biting.
Malnutrition
Chickens may begin to peck eggs when there is a shortage in the diet:
- vitamins, in particular, vitamin D, which they do not receive due to lack of sunlight;
- mineral substances;
- protein;
- calcium.
Also the hen feed should be of good quality.
Learn more about the best breeds of laying hens, rules of keeping, how to breed laying hens, how to feed laying hens, what vitamins are needed for laying hens.
Sometimes farmers decide to put eggshells in feed for chickens. Many layers of this may be to taste, and they will independently begin to get this delicacy for themselves. 
Correctly inject the shell into the ration, having performed the following manipulations with it: wash it, dry it, chop it well, turn it into flour and add to the mash.
Did you know? Egg and egg-meat breeds of chickens are more likely than broilers to bite their own eggs.
Bad conditions of detention
Factors affecting the behavior of the hen and its psyche may be as follows:
- nest location: too close to each other or very high;
- the nest should be soft and comfortable;
- too bright lighting of the room (it is better that the light is muffled);
- very small and small room of a barn or chicken coop;
- the inability to move freely, to graze on the grass in the summer;
- non-compliance with temperature conditions.
Character traits
The nature of laying hens has its own characteristics, so if the birds' nests are too close to each other, one of the neighbors will definitely want to visit. So she can trample, and then eat someone else's egg.
However, it is not uncommon for the “rogue” hens, who prefer, for whatever reasons given above or because of their nature, to peck their own and other people's eggs. If one of the chickens began to engage in this business, most likely others will begin to repeat it, because the treat will be enjoyed by many.
Familiarize yourself with the peculiarities of keeping such breeds of chickens as Bilefelder, Foxy Chik, Kuban Red, Pavlovsk Ornamental, Golosheyky, Hayseks, Hubbard, Amrox, Maran, Master Gray, Dominant, Loman Brown, Redbro, Wyandot, Sussex, Faerol, Rhode Island, Minorca, Russian White, Kuchinskaya Jubilee, Zagorsky salmon chickens. "
To prevent this, it is necessary to immediately isolate this individual from others and try to eliminate the cause of its behavior.
How to adjust behavior: adjust the power
Finding eggs pecked in the hen house, you should immediately pay attention to the diet of the hens. 
This is one of the main reasons for this strange behavior of birds. To do this, it is necessary to enrich the daily diet of chickens with both natural food and special vitamin supplements.
What natural products should be added to the diet
In the cool season, and especially in winter, the host should intervene in the process of providing the hens with essential vitamins and minerals. Indeed, during this period, chickens no longer spend much time in the fresh air and cannot pinch weed and search for various insects, thereby enriching their diet with essential nutrients.
In winter, birds can suffer from protein deficiency. Receiving it from plant foods, they cannot fully replenish their reserves and they also need animal protein. To solve this problem, you can use fish or meat and bone meal, add low-fat cottage cheese and vitamins.
To compensate for the lack of calcium should be added to the feed shell rock, calcium gluconate, slaked lime. 
You can also feed eggs to eggshells.however, it must be thoroughly washed, dried and crushed. Experienced farmers advise to add it to the mixed feed so that the birds do not want to hunt the shell on their own.
Also, do not be amiss to organize in the hen house a small corner with sand and gravel.
Chickens must be provided with either green grass or a sufficient number of boiled vegetables, among which may be carrots, beets, cabbage, potatoes.
It will also be useful for you to learn how to properly ovoskopirovat eggs, how to grow chickens in the incubator, why chickens do not carry eggs, why you can not keep chickens in cages.
We use ready-made additives
In order to eliminate the deficiency of vitamins and minerals in a shorter time, you can use specially designed balanced feed that work effectively in practice. 
Feed must be of good quality and reliable manufacturer.
The most popular are such dressings as "Ryabushka" and "Mouth".
Important! With a shortage of water, a sharp change of feed and its poor quality, pecking eggs can begin.
How to influence the behavior of chickens, changing the conditions of
In order to correct the behavior of the hens and to prevent the eggs from pecking, you should know some rules for organizing comfortable conditions for the birds. By following them you will surely be able to create the perfect housing for the hens and they will stop behaving so aggressively.
Requirements for the size of the coop
The residence of the hens should be spacious enough, which in terms of numbers means at least 1m² for 2-3 hens. If you have only 2 chicken, then not less than 3m ². 
What should be roost
The roost is a rounded wooden pole, which is made of 5x6 cm timber. They are set horizontally, raising them above the floor level by about half a meter.
Establishing several perches, it should be remembered that the distance between them should be at least 25-35 cm, and also high levels should be avoided to preserve peace and quiet in the hen house.
Learn how to make a roost with your own hands.
The struggle for the upper floors may adversely affect the relationship of birds, in addition, the hens sitting on top will relieve the need for those sitting below.
Since the chickens spend most of the day on the perch, the number of seats should be calculated, assigning less than 25 cm to each bird. 
Optimal temperature
For good egg production, chickens require special temperature conditions. These are heat-loving birds and they need a temperature of at least + 12-15 12C for comfort. For the arrangement of the chicken coop for the winter, it is necessary to carry out a number of works so that the chickens can well be carried.
So the floor is covered with a layer of slaked lime, then with a layer (10 cm) of straw or sawdust. This layer can be easily updated by removing the sawdust and using them later for fertilizer.
It should take care of the walls, ceiling, doors, to exclude the presence of cracks. For these purposes, in the chicken coop, you can use mineral wool, foam, roofing felt and other building materials.
It should be noted that the waste products of chickens emit methane gas, due to which the room will warm up a little more. But to remove the emitted ammonia, it is necessary to organize good ventilation and fresh air. 
Amount of light
Optimal lighting in the hen house is natural light entering the room from the south side. When there is insufficient lighting, chickens become lethargic, do not want to move a lot and may get worse.
For good productivity of chickens, it is necessary to provide light day long at 15-17 hours per day. When organizing artificial lighting, it should be borne in mind that the light may be brighter in the area of the feeder, drinker and perch, but more muffled near the nests, where the eggs directly hatch.
Lighting should be calculated according to the size of the room, but not less than 5 W for 2-3 m².
Territory for walking
Aviary should be protected net, in order to protect the birds from predators, as well as take care that they do not run away. Its size should be at least 2-3 m² per bird. So she will be able to feel more comfortable and move quite a lot, which will benefit her egg production. 
It is best to build a henhouse on the south side so that the entrance to the chicken coop is not blown heavily by the wind.
Important! Free-range has a significant impact on the prevention of biting, even in the presence of other adverse factors.
How to deal with the clown "from nothing to do"
There are cases when laying hens peck eggs for no apparent reason, showing their character, "for nothing to do." Here are some tips from experienced farmers on how to stop the birds from doing dirty tricks.
Egg replacement
There are many options for replacing a real egg with a dummy; here are the most popular ones:
- a light stone or a wooden model of a round form;
- balls from table tennis;
- replace the egg stuffing: remove the egg contents through a small hole and pour liquid soap, a mixture of pepper, mustard and vinegar back and close it;
- Knead the stiff dough in salted water and shape it into eggs, dry it out and place it in the nest.
Insulation
If aggressive chicken is detected, it should be isolated from the flock for 2 weeks, paying attention to its diet and conditions.
If she continues her work on returning to the hen house, she will have to be let out for meat, since the probability that others will start to repeat after her is very high.
Did you know? Chicken needs about a day to form one egg. And in one year, a hen can carry about 250 eggs.
Beak trimming
This procedure has a special name - debeting. It is carried out as a preventive measure at an early age: at 6-12 days or from 35-70 days. For this purpose, a special, expensive device is used, so most often the procedure is carried out for birds at poultry farms or large farms. 
The debuting process should only be carried out by an expert with extreme caution; if the result is unfortunate, the hen may have problems with drinking and eating.
Timely elimination of the cause of slander eggs, whether it is problems in the diet, improper housing conditions or the aggressive nature of the hens, will help prevent mass extermination of eggs and restore order in the hen house.
Feedback from network users
