My chickens are eating their feathers and eggs

Protein and mineral boost for my chickens. I've been noticing my hen's feathers being pecked and eaten and they've also been eating some of their eggs, so they're obviously looking for some missing nutrients in their food.
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[@dollyperry3020]

Pete, These are things that happen often to chickens that are in runs permanently. I had the issue of egg eating happen to me. I want to tell you that what worked for me was curtains on the nesting boxes. It sounds crazy...but it completely cured it. Also, they need an activity that entertains them. So don't put those mealworms in a dish...scatter them and make them work to find them. I like to hang a cabbage head on a string and make them jump to get a bite. Boredom is bad news in a chicken run!

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you 👍

[@davelawson2564]

LOL ! Great Ideas ! Maybe egg eating also indicates calcium/grit deficiency

[@dollyperry3020]

@Helena Van Mulders Excellent points! I'm not familiar with a "Feeder Ball" Can you tell me where you get them?

[@davelawson2564]

@Helena Van Mulders Agree. But did you see AI always throwing feed on the ground with the poop. what I find amazing that his chickens have not fallen sick yet ! Is ACV saving them ?

[@iloveamerica8541]

I don't think it is because they can't free range. Mine are in a chickenrun too exactly like the chickens of my uncle. His bird had the same problem althoug they had more space than mine. His birds were the same age and breed like mine. The difference was the food. He bought food from a farmer wich was lower in protein.

[@Gwalker0220]

I just commented in another video about feeding egg shells.... It gets them eatting eggs. Chickens are simple birds. Dont over think it. As a kid or chickens were lucky to get a hand full of corn yet we always had eggs and chicks every spring and all summer.. This chicken craze started alot of companys trying to cash in on it... I've had chickens all my life. I'm 53... Mine get layer crumble 20% protein mixed 50/50 with cracked corn.... They have a bust bath with sand, wood ash and DE mixed.... Once a year I give them a bunch of smashed up pumpkins which keeps worms away... That and fresh water... I hatched our around 300 chicks last summer from just ten hens... I get 9-10 eggs every day even all winter with no heat in the coop at 50 below.... Just an LED light 14 hours a day as we have very short day light hours here in Alaska.... I've never lost a bird, never had an egg eater.... The ones up here I see having issues try everything they read, from heated coops, to every special food out there.... Keep it simple...

[@azaleaacres]

A good protein feed. Kitchens scraps that include animal protein. Weeds. My girls looove weeds. Every couple days I walk around the property and gather a huge hand full of weeds. They eat what they like out of it. I’ve been told that ‘catfish’ pellets is a great source of extra protein for chickens. My girls love fish too. I boil, dehydrate and crush their egg shells and feed it back to them for calcium. 👍🏼

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Yep, I do the same with all the weeds from around the yard. Thanks for the ideas. 👍

[@michellebarbour5777]

So useful to see this. I don't feel such a failure! I'm on the South coast of the U.K. Just watched my dominant chicken peck and eat the feathers of another bird a couple of days ago. I raised the protein in their feed but have now decided to put the 'feather eater' in a dog crate for a week to bring her down a peg or two. When protien and space is fine, sometimes it's just havinng a 'difficult' girl - well, I'm hoping this will work!

[@johnwahalla5049]

Great video Pete, you're a good hard working American man, God Bless!!

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you ☺

[@suzykomar2343]

So glad to here you say sprouts. That's what me and my husband are going to do. We have started using sprouts for our selves and it's so easy to do. Raising your ounce black soldier fly larva this summer then freezing them for winter use might be an option for you also. Love that rooster.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Great ideas, thank you 👍

[@beverlymichael5830]

I had the same issue. I got some chick starter non medicated and give them a scoop two or three times a week as a supplement. They stopped picking feathers and eating eggs. I also rake up the grass clippings after mowing. I dry in the sun and store in loft. I give them a basket of grass few times a week. No chemicals sprayed on yard. They have dried grasses year round. Also in fall I gather all the leaves I can find and out several feet of leaves in the run. They love them. By spring all composted and I dig up a lot for the garden for best soil. Full circle for waste. Hens now look great. Been doing this for two years now.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

👍

[@MrSpinnerbug]

Pete, give them Feather fixer, fermented. They will love it and be healthy. I use mealworms as a treat too. Make sure they have oyster shells for extra calcium.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Fermented, that sounds great and full of probiotics for them........Thank you 👍

[@anneharrington7951]

I ferment all my feed.

[@sqwrrl]

Hi Pete, beautiful flock. Do you ever give them a huge heap of raked leaves to encourage scratching on the run floor? It would bring in bugs for them. I made a play area for my chickens beyond their run. I don’t say they’re free range but rather pastured. It’s a designated area with electric poultry netting, about half of it has wildlife netting overhead and several low flat top structures that they can run under in case of aerial danger, and coop door stays open while they’re out. This, while I’m out working in the garden that I can watch them. Out there is where I have my compost pile and when I open their door they make a beeline for it. I sprinkle scratch grain on it and they invariably leave some worked in, which results in green sprouts too, besides the crickets, beetles, pill bugs and worms they love the kitchen trimmings. Puppy kibbles for protein, fed as a treat they like also.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

You have some great ideas. I'm planning to build either a chicken tractor or a large fenced and netted area as you have. I wouldn't feed them dog food because we've done our research and the stuff is toxic and causes cancer in dogs. We feed our dogs raw meat mixed with rice and all their health issues are gone.

[@spoolsandbobbins]

@@petebeasttexashomesteading is it any kind of raw meat for dogs? And what about cats? Great videos and discussions.

[@growingtexas1772]

Pete - When it's time to buy more feed, try giving them chick starter/grower or an all flock feed. Most are 18% protein or more. I've never fed mine layer, since the protein is so low. If you give them treats, this also lowers the total protein they get. Are you raising chicks from your chickens? If not, you could consider getting rid of your rooster. It looks like he's rubbing the feathers from several of your hens, so you may have more hens that end up like you bad one. Roosters can cause a lot of stress in a flock, and are really unneeded unless you plan on raising chicks or if you free range them all day. Even if you free range them, there is usually a hen or two that takes up the "watchman" job that a rooster does. Chicken aprons might help your hens, at least until the feathers grow back. Good luck!

[@donniewillis2926]

I had to get rid of all of my roosters for that very reason.

[@MKultrapdx]

My rooster protects the flock from cats, raccoons, and even a hawk. But when he decides he's going to beat on a hen, I put on a hen saddle, and no damage is done to her and he loses interest within a day or two.

[@ShannasCountryCreek]

Hey Pete, I always feed 20% protein, and usually never had picking issues. I did watch your video why you don't free range. I used to, and they stayed safe, cause they know to return to coop before dark. The main issue was they wanted on our patio etc and we just ain't having it. Lol So now a start over since moving we r building a bigger run. I'm still struggling not letting them out when full grown ( they're a week old in brooder) cause they do get board confined, and get extra protein eating bugs. Ugh so it's stressn me out on what to do. Lol we r on 89 acres now vs 2 acres where we moved from and have the same predators in Tyler County east Texas. Another suggestion maybe would be let the roo out in the day to give the girls a break. He will return to coop b4 dark. I was always able to train mine to Do that anyway. Either way you're doing a great job and hubby and I enjoy learning from your channel. 😊 keep the vids coming🙌💃🏻 One more thing, feed them Boiled eggs. Mom & I do this. Boil a dozen or so...put in food processor shell and all and chop fine...they get protein from the eggs and calcium from the shell😊

[@cindyhebberd7352]

That is what I have been doing when mine started showing signs for lack of protein. They are going through a soft to moderate molt. The only difference is I did mine as scrambled eggs and took a potatoe masher and made it into crumbles. The chickens loved it and they got the benefits from the egg and the shells that they provided.

[@timryan7198]

@@cindyhebberd7352 Same here👍🐓

[@guillermojlopezcardalda6897]

Hi, I usually dont comment in videos but I notice that you read the comments. Sorry for my English not a native speaker. My mom had the same problem they needed protein and also shells pieces for calcium as supplement. ****Another thing is chickens need very small rocks to do digestion. Cant explain correctly because I dont understand it correctly but people forget about that and maybe that could part of the problem. ****In summer mosquitoes are the other problem they can be affected the hens with smallpox. Solution iodo in affected areas. ****Remember of deworming Good choice with meal worms it works for me. As suggested in the comments use the egg shell and feed it back to the hen. Remember wash it after you broke so you prevent disease or anything that could be produced by egg white when storing them before giving them back to the girls. Mix the shell with theyre food or the shredded egg shells You may remove the swings they dont used it happened to me XD. You can use some branch and attach it to some parts of your chicken run like this one Pet Parrot Wooden Stand Wood Toys search for that. Iam likely to produce my own meal worms in the future. See some videos on youtube they will help.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you

[@ronaldbequeath2307]

I really like your chicken house and run. It might help to have two or more runs so that when they eat down one run you can always rotate them onto fresh greens. It does sound like a deficiency, for my hens what i use is for the egg shell eating I give them oyster shells. For the protein and other nutrients i give them non gmo cracked corn for nutrients and fat, steel cut oats, rolled barley, sorgham, non gmo roasted cracked soybeans, wheat, peanut hearts ( protein), buckwheat, and black oil sunflower seeds. I feed them this over the winter in the summer i give them a 21% protein egg layer mash from the feed store along with my scratch formula. Also give them dried grass clippings from the lawn and/or hay in the winter. I hope you fine out what the problem is, keep use posted. Have a great day from PA.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you, I need to check some feed stores around my area for that 21% egg layer mash but It would be nice to find organic.

[@HeritageFarmsTexas]

Nice chicken coop.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you

[@HamiltonvilleFarm]

I learn a lot when I watch your videos 👍🏻

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you, 👍 I'm definitely learning too.

[@kencornelius9584]

We just have our local feed mill mix and grind ours at 20% plus we give them access to our compost yard. The local feed mill cost is $15 per 50lb, $275 per 500lb and $250 per 1000lb. Way better and less costly than name brands.

[@ruthieschicks434]

Feeding them their own eggs are very healthy but they must be cooked first to prevent them from aquireing a taste for them raw.

[@williamlewis3965]

I give mine some scratch feed and some dry cat and dog food

[@ritabrunetti381]

My daughter's hens are all being pecked. Not by a rooster, but by each other. I'm recommending the feed you're adding to their regular feed. Hoping for luck. We did buy some hen saddles to help. They've been wearing them for about 5 days now. It looks like they are doing well with wearing them.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

👍

[@fredflintstone1547]

i used to breed mealworms so that i could train and bond with my chickens and aquarium fish. super easy to breed. The drawback of no true freerange is the lack of dietary variety, but that can be supplemented if they live in a run on a farm. calcium like crushed cuttlebone or crushed oyster shell along with grit like little pebbles for their gizzard is all mandatory too if they cant freerange. throw a sccratch blend all around every day. eventually they will start growing because the chickens miss some

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

👍

[@petrosstefanis6234]

Subscribed today. Thanks Pete awesome channel. I relate to what you are saying. I have had egg eaters too. Python chook stealers. Brooders, huge monitor lizard egg stealers, and other problems. I lock them up too.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you 👍☺

[@robynbrown4627]

You could try introducing them to raw bones with scrap meat on, such as beef. Tinned tuna (in spring water) or very well cooked pigs liver is great for them too. Liver is full of so much goodness. They are omnivores after all so all different types of meat is good for them. Another thing I do is put 7 to 9 large paving slabs down in their run, and water them everyday. Each day I flip one and let them get all the bugs. Lovely chicky babies by the way x

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thanks for the info. even though they say they are omnivores, they are more of a foraging bird eating mostly grass, seeds and bugs. I like the paver idea. 👍

[@marliem.5575]

Along with providing free-access to layer pellets, I throw out any kind of cooked leftovers from the kitchen that isn't bad and molded. Especially meats. I know it feels like I am using them as a disposal, but I haven't had issues in doing so with my year-old flock. There'd be loose feathers in the pen and rarely I see egg and feather-eating. Since you're striving for organic, you could start a worm farm and raise your own meal worms. live ones would be higher in protein than the dried bagged worms. I'm thinking of raising red earth worms from my compost and let them reproduce in a small rubbermaid tub filled with pete moss.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Yep, they'll pretty much eat anything and kitchen scraps are great. We do the same with our kitchen scraps.

[@robinstout1748]

Chickens like meat. I give mine leftover meat scraps and also a can of tuna in water occasionally. I also feed them scrambled eggs as well occasionally. Lots of good protein.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

👍

[@hazel555]

Feeding your bird their own eggs is an awful idea.

[@Wilk853]

Try floating fish food hi protein and they eat it good

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

I'll look into that, thanks

[@paulsoutbackgardenaustrali7674]

Is that australorp Rooster???

[@rickycaruana8925]

Wow thanks for the video i all so found meal worms is great give theam there proteins

[@judyhowell7075]

Put some chicken scratch in a bottle and drill holes in them, make them work for the treats. It’s fun to watch them keeps them busy

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Great idea, thank you 👍

[@nashwaran473]

Hello Pete Our heans picked up some bad habbits picking feathers of other hens and cokeral mostly when they all dust bath on open space as well as normal time Please help

[@Meglenger]

Cat food is super high in protein, sprinkle some around as treats should help without needing to mix all that up all the time

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Unfortunately commercial dog and cat food is toxic and we don't even give it to our dogs any more because of all the health issues they had.

[@PopleBackyardFarm]

yes lack of protein when they feather pick -- egg eaters is different if you get a egg buster they will keep doing it hard to break the habit . - Ruthie

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thanks, yeah I hope they stop the egg eating.

[@dodge7679]

Hey Pete hope this cures the problem...what I do at molten time is instead of buying mealworms I put meat(road kill or R.I.P Chicken or Rooster in a bucket with 3 or 4 holes drilled cover with hay/straw(stop smells) hang it up ....tasty maggots...sometimes a mix high protein dog or calf nuts with there food making sure no molasses in either....also to stop hens breaken eggs insert roll away egg boxes or check for eggs regularly...also if you have feathers from cull...put the smaller ones in run...let them eat them...replaces what they lose...I cook the egg shells and add it in there feed too...

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thanks

[@noemierollindedebeaumont1130]

Hi Pete ! I noticed the soil of the pen is starting to get muddy, are you gonna put woodchips again soon or will you wait for the start of the summer ? Do you give to your chickens anything like sand or small gravel for their digestion ? I can't remember if you showed/said it 😣

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Yep, I just ordered wood chips the other day and I'll be putting that in the run, but it's been raining a lot and the ground is so muddy and wet here. I do have oyster shells in the coop that also act as small rocks for them but yeah I could throw some small gravel in their run too.

[@noemierollindedebeaumont1130]

Pete B. Where did you ordered your woodchips ? You once said they are quite pricey in your area. Have you ever heard of Chip Drop ?

[@craftingwithnathalie74]

Check this KZbinr out Appalachia's Homestead with Patara she gives them eggs for protein which sounds weird to do. She talks about what she feeds her chicken. She also uses black oil sunflowers which have 26% protein.

[@smilingdog54]

My hens refuse to eat pellets. They waste it. Any ideas how to convert them from crumbles to pellets?

[@danakarloz5845]

I have a lot of seeds to grow flowers that mine will enjoy and I have alfalfa to grow and dry for the winter. You could offer them a high quality puppy food with good protein in it. I won’t give mine kitty food because they usually contain chicken...I’m not trying to raise cannibals

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

The seeds and alfalfa wold be great for them but I know some people use puppy or cat food but I don't even give my dogs commercial dog food because it's toxic and will cause cancer. Now that I've had my chickens for a while I see that they have to eat what they eat in nature which is greens, seeds and bugs.

[@danakarloz5845]

Pete B. I’ve only been giving them organic Vick feed and contemplating the thought of a high quality puppy chow. I’m ok with giving them table scraps because we actually eat very clean and grass fed beef and bison. But it’s so tasty that they might not get much from the table 🤓😂

[@ruthieschicks434]

The chicken will eat their eggs if they are left too long after laying so i try to be there asap.

[@onedazinn998]

Thanks for the tip. ;) Question for you: Do the birds use the swings? And did you create that wooden feeder they were eating from in the last shots? Love the run you built.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thanks, they do use the swings but rarely 🙁 Here's the video link to my chicken feeder build. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qn2zlYKLe9t-m6s

[@onedazinn998]

thanks :) @@petebeasttexashomesteading

[@iarellano27]

Is that a black Australorp rooster? An amazing breed.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

He's a blue Andalusian. Great rooster but the hens are not good egg layers. 🙁

[@allencallender2205]

Those dried meal worms are expensive. Look up on KZbin how to grow your own and get yours start at the local pet store. 50 lbs of rolled oats and some kitchen trimmings will keep you in meal worms for a year.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thank you

[@theresamaebaroy8761]

hi pete good afternoon just want to ask why the feathers of my chickens go dry. what is the cause of this.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

If their feathers are dry or brittle, it could be a mineral deficiency. Get feather fixer at Tractor Supply and also make sure they are getting greens and bugs to eat. www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/nutrena-naturewise-feather-fixer-40-lb

[@lilasdavis102]

Did your u make your feeder ? Interested....

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Yes I did and here's the link to the video, Thanks. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qn2zlYKLe9t-m6s

[@biddibee3526]

Or just throw them some steak scraps and give them some cooked scrambled eggs.

[@Mushling4]

I have 4 hens, and one is eating her egg, and I didn't know why, and now I know thank you. and mine are backyard chickens, they have .25 of an acre to roam. But I always try and feed the same feed, bc I switched one time and I have one hen get a sour crop and the next was egg bound, and so I will never switch there feed again. I was also wonder on what breed your rooster is, and how is he so great with you in the coop, I got a RIR Rooster and we had to butcher him bc I couldn't even step outside without getting attack. and I want a rooster but I guess im not to sure on how about getting a good one, (I picked the RIR Rooster bc my hens are RIR)

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

My rooster is a Blue Andalusian and he's a great rooster. But the hens of the same breed are not good egg layers. 🙁

[@Mushling4]

@@petebeasttexashomesteading How old is he, My rooster started crowing at 5 months and we butchered at a year, we thought it was something he would grow out of but never did.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

He's a year and two months old now.

[@Mushling4]

@@petebeasttexashomesteading Do you think your Roosters temperament has to do with his breed or his upbringing or a mixture of both?

[@davelawson2564]

@@Mushling4 Mixture of breed/gene/personality trait.

[@susankoch1319]

Chickens love meat!

[@ricardogallegos6706]

Throw some grass in there.