It’s been rather egg-y around The Prairie Homestead lately. We’ve talked about whether or not to wash farm fresh eggs and how to go about freezing them for later.
Another egg-related question that has recently come up is: What to do with with leftover eggshells?
Composting them is definitely one option, but did you know you can feed them back to your chicken flock?
Like anything else, there seems to be lots of different opinions about feeding eggshells back to the chickens who laid them. However, one thing that everyone agrees on is that laying hens need a lot of calcium. Every single egg that is laid contains an enormous amount of calcium. If the hen is not being provided with an extra source of it, then the rest of her body will suffer.
Being calcium deficient is not only extremely hard on the hen, but it also results in less-than-desirable eggs. While I have yet to personally have a shell-less egg, there have been plenty of times where I’ve poked a finger through a paper-thin shell while gathering the day’s eggs… A sure fire sign of low calcium.
Your local feedstore probably carries oyster shell or limestone as a calcium supplement for your flock. Buuuuut, if you are weird like me (and I know many of you are…), then you prefer to figure a more sustainable (did I mention frugal?) source of calcium for your girls.
Homesteading folk have been feeding eggshells to their chickens for hundreds of years. It makes sense. Why throw away such an easily accessible source of the very nutrient that your chickens need most?
If you are feeding your chickens a pre-mixed ration, then there is a chance that there is enough calcium already in the feed. However, why not offer them an additional free-choice option as well? And if you are more of the free-ranging, kitchen-scrap feeding, whatever-is-available type of chicken feeder, then I would highly recommend having calcium available for your hens.
But will it teach them to eat their eggs?
It could, but it’s unlikely. (Follow the tips below if you are really worried about this.) I have had a couple of egg eaters in the past, but in my experience, feeding them eggshells didn’t cause the problem. If anything, I think providing the shells has helped to decrease it. Sometimes chickens will eat their eggs because their body is craving calcium. Of course, every flock is different, so I’m sure you could have that crazy hen who has her first taste of egg shells and then becomes a rabid egg-eater for the rest of her days… It’s highly unlikely, but that’s my disclaimer! 😉
How to Feed Eggshells
This can be as simple or as complicated as you would like. If you want, you can just toss the used shells into your scraps bucket and head out the door. I choose to be a little more in-depth with my method as you’ll see, but that’s what works for me. It’s not rocket science.
A few tips:
- As I use my eggs, I collect the shells in a bucket that I keep underneath my sink. I smash the shells down a little as I go to make room for more, but that’s it.
- Spread your collection of half crushed shells on a baking sheet and bake until the shells become brittle. (Any temp and any time period can work. If you need a baseline, try 350 degrees for 5 to 10 minutes). Some people say you should bake the shells to kill bacteria. I’m not so worried about that. Instead, I toast the shells to dry out the membrane and make them easier to crush into small pieces. (Try it once with fresh, unbaked shells. You’ll see what I mean.)
- Crush the toasted shells into “bite-sized” pieces. No need to whip out the ruler and measure them, just eye-ball it. ;). Some people use their blender or food processor to grind the shells into a fine powder. I find that plain ol’ crushing works just fine for me.
- The reason I crush the shells is to make them unrecognizable as eggs. In the past, I’ve seen my chickens make a beeline for “egg shaped objects” (ESO’s). I think that crushing the shells prevents them from thinking that whole eggs are a part of their every-day-diet. Again, this might not be necessary with your flock. Experiment a little.
- You can either mix your eggshell supplement with your chicken’s regular feed, or you can provide it free-choice in a separate feeder. I prefer the free-choice method. In the past when I’ve mixed it with their feed, they seem to ignore the shells and throw them out on the floor. I think they can tell when they need it. Let them choose.
UPDATE:
I no longer bake the eggshells before crushing them. I just smash them a bit before tossing them into my chicken scrap bucket and feed them that way. It saves a step, and I haven’t noticed any problems from this change of method.
If I happen to have any storebought egg shells, I try to avoid feeding them to my chickens. It’s not a huge deal– more of a peace-of-mind thing for me since I have no idea of the health status of the flock where the store eggs came from. I would hate to transfer some kind of unwanted bacteria to my healthy home-grown girls. You can always toss the store-bought shells into your compost pile if you like.
And here’s a fun little fact: did you know that many people eat egg shells themselves as a calcium supplement?
I had never heard of this until recently when Donna this comment on the Washing Eggs post sharing how she prepares her eggshells. I’ve since done some searching around on the topic and found out that it’s far more popular than I thought. Neat idea, huh? I just might have to try that someday. Thanks Donna!
Do you feed eggshells to your chickens? Have you ever eaten eggshells yourself?
A few more posts from the coop:
I didn’t know people nor fowl ate eggshells. I love all the info I get from your blog. By the time we are ready to have our own flock, i’ll be very well versed, thank you 🙂
I’ve never eaten the shells myself, but I regularly line the coffee filter with washed, crushed eggshell before putting the coffee in to drip-perk my coffee. I find it neutralizes the acid enough to keep acid-reflux at bay.
I have a question. I have been microwave eggshells about 1.5 to2 minutes. They dry well and I figured bacteria if any would be killed. Thoughts??
I put mine in the microwave, but mainly to dry them out, so they don’t start to smell and I only crush them to make room in the container. My girls love the shells.
My hens like the shells if they are freshly crushed by hand and still moist. Each hen will eat a whole crushed shell and have no idea that it was an egg. So you don’t have to fear that they will learn to peck unbroken eggs. They learn THAT from a broken open egg laid by an older hen laying thin shelled eggs. Once a hen learns that eggs can be broken and eaten she will never repent and must be removed from the flock.
I’ve always feed the eggshells back to our chickens. Everyone tells me it will teach them to eat their eggs but I’ve never had a problem with it.
I throw the eggshells into the scrap pail and they get feed daily to the chickens when the scrap pail goes out.
We live near Monroe MI and this has been one of our coldest 2 weeks, breaking records of not being over 10 for over a week. Problem is the chickens are not using their hen house which has a heat lamp. They are sleeping outside at night. Their coop is protected top and 3/4 of the sides from the weather. They have been eating their eggs for some reason although they have plenty of food/water. I have 25 chickens with branches going from side to side so they don’t have to be on the ground. They are spoiled with oatmeal and scrambled eggs on the weekend. Any advice would be appreciated.
Pat
Egg shells yes, but I wouldn’t give them scrambled eggs. That’s cannibalism for the chicken. Maybe that’s why their eating their eggs??? But also in my experience, giving chickens uncooked egg shells makes them want to eat their eggs.
Hey Brooke, although you have a point, there is a tiny embryo in the egg. But the yolk is actually what the chick eats while growing inside the shell
The yolk is the embryo, they eat the egg whites
The yolk is the Source of food that the embryo uses as it develops. It is not the embryo itself. The Germinal disk (the small white disk On the yolk) is what forms into an embryo and then a full grown chick.
Further on what I said earlier: a hen that lays thin shelled eggs should also be removed from the flock before her younger sisters discover one of her broken open thin shelled eggs and learn that eggs have yummy insides.
Ray Bradley
I feed my hens any egg that is cracked or frozen, to give them more protein. I do not perceive this as cannibalism, but wise management. I add garlic, oregano, and cayenne powders also.
Morning all, I have been crushing and feeding the girls eggshells for a while now and it seems as if the eggshells are thinner …. Am I loosing my mind ?
Thanxs
I gave eggshells to my chickens and have had nothing but problems since with my girls eating their eggs. I’ve resorted to blowing out eggs and refilling them with the yolk mixed with pepper, pick no more, vinegar, hot sauce, mustard, anything I can think of to break the habit. I don’t want to kill them as they are my pets; i just want them to quit eating their eggs. Help!!!
Buy the fake eggs and
Diligently try for a week to get the eggs laid out of the box as soon as possible. Leave the fake eggs in the box. Works every time..
So I’m pretty sure that I’m going to learn something new every day on your blog! 🙂
Thanks for your sweet comment in response to mine that I left for you yesterday. The reason for my visit today is to let you know that I did reference you in a post that I wrote (on soup!) and I just wanted to make you aware!
Looking forward to learning so much more…like why I shouldn’t wash my eggs…we buy our eggs (brown) from the butcher in town…and I’ve often thought they looked a bit “dirty” 🙂 or that I could crush them up and feed them to the chickens…or myself apparently!
Take care,
Valerie
I know of a family whom had lots of osteoporosis run in there family.
There mother would put eggshells into powder and blend into mashed potatoes, as well as mixing it into milk!
Don’t know if it helped prevent osteoporosis but they did have beautiful White teeth??
Wow, how cool! We are gearing up to start raising chickens, and I had heard that one of the best foods for them is bone meal. But that’s cause it’s made of calcium, which made me think, “Couldn’t you just give them back their egg shells, then?” since they are made of the same thing? Well, I guess you sure can!! Very good to know.
I was also wondering — can I also make my own bone meal out of used broth bones? Any tips on that process? I’d like to use them up completely if I can, rather than tossing them out!
I tried this with my used broth bones. I cooked them long enough that they became crumbly (some of them, anyway), then had my 6-year-old smash them against a rock with a hammer til they were powder. Kind of a lot of work but if you can find some cheap labor it might work. I also read you can bury them deep in your garden for a long-term release of calcium since it takes forever for them to break down. Can’t vouch for it but it seems like it should work. I’d love to hear ideas – I hate to waste anything, even broth bones!
I used to eat egg shell when I was 12 years old I ate them for about five years and he’s very good I blend it really well And put a little bit of cinnamon and a little bit of sugar and that was it
My husband grew up in Central America and they were very poor. My mother-in-law used to bake then grind up the egg shells into a fine powder & put it in food for the kids because she couldn’t afford vitamins. Despite her being barely 5 ft. tall, all the kids ended up quite tall (hubby is 6’2″ & his shortest sister is 5’6″).
Great story … ! To bad my paternal grandma didn’t know that egg trick…my Dad was almost turned down for a police job…yeah…he was only 5’8″ tall !!! But alas, he did get the job and stayed in it for 30 years…yeah we are Italian AND have hard heads, besides being rather short. !! Thanks for sharing ur nice story…
I have a flock of laying hens right now and am using the oyster shells. I put them in a bowl and it takes them about a month to eat the little dish. (10 chickens) Awhile ago I had a flock of laying hens and fed them their eggs, for the reasons mentioned above, and they ended up being the egg-eaters. It started with one and then the entire flock was eating their eggs! I never got another egg after that. Since then I have been afraid to use their own eggs.
I was just thinking about feeding my chickens their eggs and wasn’t sure on how to go about it! Thought I would do a search online, but alas I read your blog first. Thanks for a great post Jill 🙂
We’ve had chickens for many years. When we add layers to our flock of retirees, we are suddenly inundated with eggs. I often scramble eggs for them, adding some fresh mint or other greens, and crushed eggs shells. I do this when a hen is feeling under the weather, too. We’ve never had a problem with our hens eating their eggs. I think it’s a characteristic and not a given. The odd girl may eat her eggs, but giving them cooked eggs has never led to our hens eating their eggs. Frankly, chickens aren’t smart enough to connect the dots from cooked egg to freshly laid egg.
Good idea
I feed my hen their eggshells as well. I toast them lightly and them pulverize them with a mortar and pestle. I’ve found that after they lay the egg, they like to give it a little poke. If they don’t have enough calcium in their diet the egg breaks and they become eggeaters. But if the shell is hard enough they can’t crack it. Because oysters sit int he sediment of rivers and oceans, they absorb lead from the water, this means the lead transfers into their shells. The chickens eat the oyster shells and then they have lead in their diet which transfers to the eggs. For this reason, I prefer giving them their own egg shells even though the worms in the compost bin would love them.
Indio,
I had never heard that about oysters and lead. How interesting. I’ve found that my chickens seem to prefer the eggshells over the oyster shell. They always waste a lot of the oyster shell on the ground. Have you noticed that at all?
Yes, Jill, my hens love flipping the food and oyster shells all over the place. There is word for this behavior, but I can’t recall the correct spelling of it. That’s why most of the chicken feeders have a slightly curled under edge that keeps the food from coming out easily. I mix the eggshells into a cup of raw oatmeal, as a treat, and they get their daily fix of calcium at the same time as getting some much needed protein. I’ve found that the 4% calcium level in the Blue Seal organic feed I give them isn’t enough.
I made some cheese recently and had a gallon of whey leftover. I cooked the oatmeal in the whey and mixed the eggshells into it and they were squawking in delight. Healthy hens lay delicious eggs.
Oh yes, mine LOVE leftover whey and botched cheese batches too. Love your idea of using oatmeal with the eggshells.
My chickens will eat oyster shells IF I am out of crushed eggshells. They do a little better with the flaked oyster shell, but only as a last resort .
I feed my chickens eggshells every chance I get. I don’t have enough to have a continuous supply like in your picture. The eggs I get from my chickens are very yellow and very hard. I think they are getting enough calcium. I’ve not had one yet eat an egg that wasn’t given to them. I make sure they are crushed up so they don’t look like eggs.
I’ve tried feeding egg shells to my hens, but they really aren’t interested. Instead of baking them, I just put them on a plate and let them air dry for a few days. maybe baking them makes them taste better?
Your hens might just not be needing the calcium right now. They seem to self-regulate pretty well.
We simply put ours in a container on top of a hot water radiator next to our stove, it naturally dries them, this summer we will have to try the oven, but our chickens just started laying in December so this has worked for now… we’ve had 2 soft shell eggs, but that’s it, we gave them a bowl of shells when we discovered the 2nd egg like that and haven’t seen any since, I plan to offer them the crushed egg shells periodically to help prevent any issues, I also believe that they’ll know if they need it!
We have always boiled the eggshells and then I use an immersion blender to crush them to tiny little bits. We put this in with the compost. The chickens go about eating little bits of this and that and also eat the eggshell. They seem to enjoy picking out the tiny bits. We boil them and crush them only to discourage egg pecking. They get a taste for egg and its hard to get them to stop. Boiled and mixed with kitchen green waste seems to disguise the taste enough so they don’t get into the egg pecking.
Of course I don’t really know if chickens can “taste”, but I know there are greens they will eat and some they will not.
When I raised chickens we always fed them the egg shells it would have been a shame to waste such a valuable resource that was free. B
Yes! We feed our shells right back to our chickens. I do not bake mine, I have but it is not my normal routine. I have a pot that sits on the counter that all scraps go into. When we cook eggs (daily) I put the shells crushed down right at that moment into the pot. When I go out in the afternoons for the feeding I just give a stir to what is in the pot and toss it in to the girls. In the course of one day I may not have enough to take out, so it is there under the lid until the next day! Thanks for a great post. (never eaten them.. gonna go read about that now!)
We feed our chickens egg shells too. In the summer i dry them out and make them easy to crush in the hot sun. In the winter (which seems to be 9 months long in Michigan 🙂
we throw them in the oven when we are already pre-heating the oven for baking. The pre-heating time seems to be perfect. Then smash and throw them in the coop. Our chickens seem to prefer them thrown out into the grassy meadow. They look like they’re having a lot of fun pecking around trying to find them. Thank you for the post! I love it that I’m not the only one pondering questions like this.
Eating eggshells, not yet, but we ‘drink’ them. Egg shells boiled in water. The calcium rich water is used in cooking, and added to animals water bucket. I throw eggshells in the stock pot too to add more nutrients.
Can you also store the egg shells in the freezer until ready to use? My first flock is not laying yet but I have been saving the shells for this very purpose. The eggs come from a trusted farmer at the farmer’s market. I just don’t want the shells to rot for the next month or two.
Hi Amy,
I’m thinking you could probably freeze the eggshells without any problem.
However, if you only need them to keep for a month or two, I bet if you made sure they were thoroughly dry, they would keep just fine outside of the freezer, too.
I wash them and sun dry. Can keep many months like that
We dry the morning eggshells under the kitchen counter lights and the next morning we crush them between paper plates, then reduce them to a coarse powder in a coffee bean grinder. That powder is later used to fertilize plants and young trees.
It’s easy to bake them, whole, throw them im a ziplock bag and stomp them to crush them. Just keep a bag of crushed shells, they don’t go bad.
Hi! Thanks for the post. We just tried this for the first time today, so we’ll see how it goes. 🙂
Hi Jill,
Just wandered in from squidoo! I know that this is an oldish post but we also feed our chooks leftover shells. I simply roll my big knife over them a few times which makes them really tiny and then mix it in with the leftover food scraps that I top up the chooks rations with.
I must admit I would love to get a ‘professional’ opinion on how the chickens digestive system deals with crushed shells though, and how much calcium they can ‘recover’ from the shells.
Be a shame to do it all these years only to find out that they pass it straight through lol!
Stay well
Ian
I agree Ian- it would be interesting to know. However, my gut instinct says that they probably are able to digest a decent amount, since they are so naturally interested in eating those shells. And since other wild birds also eat shells, I’m betting it definitely serves a purpose. Glad you found me! 🙂
🙂 Like they say Jill, look to the past! If the ‘old hands’ were feeding shells to their chooks, there must be some wisdom in it.
Take care
Can u feed bone meal for calcium
Oops, sorry Jill wasn’t squidoo, I was googling “homemade chicken disinfectant” and found you that way.
One of these days I am going to get lost in here and not find my way home 😉
Ian
It didn’t cause my chickens to eat their eggs, but it did cause the guineas to peck the chicken eggs. I had to separate the guinea’s for a while.
My mother always put her shells in the oven until brittle, crushed them and fed them to the chickens. I do the same thing.
Hi there have just included a link to this entry in my blog. Glad to see that baking the eggshells is a good thing to do. Will do it on our return to Oz too.
I heat the shells and then grind them in a Vitamix to a fine powder. I find it PREVENTS egg eating rather than causes it.
Whatever happened to the custom of putting a couple of egg shells in the pot of boiling coffee? Good way for you ladies to get some additional calicum.
I’ve been using oyster shell with my chickens for years. It’s inexpensive and a small amount lasts a long time. I just keep a rabbit feeder full at all times, and still have an occasional shell-less egg. I also save egg shells for use in the garden for site specific calcium supplement. I bake them dry whenever I am next using the oven and store in a old coffee can. When the can is smashed full of shells, I then take a rolling pin to it for a final grind effect, and store in a large zip-loc until growing season.
I had heard that baking them changed how the hens associated with fresh eggs – changed the smell or something. I too feed mine back backed and crackled to bite size pieces, I just toss them in the straw in the chicken house and they scratch around and find the pieces and eat them. As for humans eating, it is easily absorbed (not true of all supplements). Adding Vit C at the same time increases the absorption rate. So here is how we do egg shells at my house: Take a quart jar and place eggs in it carefully (with the shell on). Fill the jar, but leave enough room to put the lid on securely. Now pour lemon juice over the eggs to the top. Close the jar tightly. Put in the fridge for 24 hours, occasionally moving upside down and right side up to shift the eggs and lemon – slow and careful – don’t break the eggs. When the 24 hours are up – GENTLY remove the eggs – some may be very soft. The citric acid in the lemon juice eats off the shell into a powdered egg shell lemon juice. If you only kept it for 24 hours, the eggs are still edible – longer and they tend to break too easy and taste lemony. Now put the jar in the fridge and shake when you need some lemon juice. Add a tablespoon a day to your tea and you have a healthy dosage of calcium and the Vit C from the lemon juice to help absorb it!
Great tips Michelinda! thanks so much for sharing!
You just put the broken shells in a dehydrator for 1 or 2 hrs. make them dry n little hard. Make the powder in a mixer & make small balls or any shape with little water, let them dry in a dehydrator or in a oven or naturally. Store them and use as ready to eat ,
thanks for that guidence
My Dad always put his egg shells in the oven to bake for a few minutes, crushed the shells and feed the eggshells back to his chickens….He had the best eggs…Healthtly chickens with good strong egg shells…Also made boiled eggs easy and clean peel…DAD always had his chickens around and we always had good fresh eggs! His rosters would let Dad pick them up and he would hold them under one arm and the would fall off to sleep! I can still see those rosters up under his arm….
Sounds like your Dad was quite the Chicken Whisperer. 🙂 I love it! 😉
We have 27 hens & it’s the kids job to collect & sell the eggs. They collect them daily & label each dozen with the date collected. My question is…how long can u keep eggs before they need to be used (or sold)? We store them in egg cartons (unwashed) & on a shelve, until they sell & then wash them off before giving them out. I’ve always heard that if you wash them, you need to store in frig. Is this true? Thank you for your blog…I’m learning allot!
Yes, I would agree about storing in the fridge if you are washing them. As far as how long they keep– I don’t have an exact time frame, but I know it’s quite a while! I’ve had cartons in my fridge for months sometimes.
@Stacy
Shelf life of eggs: my friend runs an organic egg and vegetable farm, he told us one day that even though eggs sold in shops “expire” in 2-3 weeks, eggs have longer shelf life than that! If stored in the fridge (4degC) it can last for 2-3 months with no problem. Do not wash your eggs as the layer of natural “bloom” on the shell surface protects it from external pathogens.
I read more about this online, Mother Earth News did a little home experiment and their conclusion for best storage is unwashed eggs in sealed container, at 2-4degC.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx?page=4#axzz2Q2tjoPL6
Wiki Answers said well-stored eggs keep for 6-7 months. Also suggested to avoid storage in paper cartons over long periods, to prevent eggs from drying out. Sounds sensible to me!
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_shelf_life_of_eggs
Hi,
I just found your website and I’m really enjoying it!! We live way out in the country in a small town in Arkansas. We recently IMPULSE bought 5 chickens and 4 goats ( a momma two babies and a young male) lol. We have a ton of acres for them to roam, so why not right?! All of our neighbors are my husbands family so if they go to far it wouldn’t be SO bad But we do keep them in a fence a lot too. I was wondering what you’re feeding your chickens? Do you buy any feed or just all scraps. I’m so new to all this I just don’t have a clue!! I read that if you don’t feed them layer feed they will not get what they need you MUST buy a commercial feed!!! But then I think yeah but they also say if you don’t vaccinate your children they will probably GET SICK AND DIE!! Lol well that’s what they imply anyways. Yet I choose to eat healthy and not vaccinate. 😉 so I’m wondering is it the same with chickens? Could I feed them majority scraps and give eggshells and maybe just some feed sometimes? Or is there a non gmo organic type of feed I could get? I bought mine at orschelins and its layer feed, in a red bag. Can’t think of the brand. You sound a lot like me! I guess that’s why I’ve enjoyed this website so much. Only you are more experienced!! Please let me know what you’re feeding them!! Also what type of goats do you milk? I think ours are pigmy goats. I was wanting to milk her after the babies are big enough to wean but I don’t know anything about that!!
Well, good question! I have also been scared to try anything but commercial laying feed until now (I also came across those scary warnings…) However, I’ve been chatting with local folks and it seems like many of them simply free-range their flock, and then supplement with a little bit of organically grown wheat and kitchen scraps. Their flocks are thriving– so I want to do a bit more research and then I might give it a try. You have to wonder how folks kept chickens for hundreds of years before the fancy feed was invented! 😉
And we have Nubian goats. 🙂
So enjoying your website and I reference it in my workshops I present
Cheers Annie
I love you very imformative blog I was wondering your thoughts on my chickens, I have black austrolops and they have been on layer feed since four months old and are free range. They are now six and half months old and have not started laying. I have tried leaving them in their coop for a few days and still no eggs. I did have one idea this morning that their coop is close to the house and thought maybe the AC unit noise could be distrubing them, or am I am just too anxiuous. Please help!!! Thanks Jennifer
Hmmmm… I would try giving them a little more time. I bet they’ll start laying soon! 🙂
I dry and crush my eggshells and feed them back to the chickens as well. My Mom even brings her shells back to me! It still amazes me, how once you start thinking more logically about how you do things, instead of just assuming you have to always buy what you need, it changes the way you look at EVERYTHING you do.
I totally agree Karin! I think our society has been conditioned to think that something is only good if it comes from a store. 😉
Hello jill.
Thanks so much i have really enjoy reading your blog on eggshell.
Jill. What is the important of eggshell to snail because i have some snail at home that am taking care.
From what I hear– snails don’t like to crawl over the broken shells. 🙂
Hi there! I realize your comment is 3 years old (almost 4), but thought I’d write in the chance you were notified. I also have pet snails, and they need to have calcium daily. So what I do is rub the inside membrane out of the shells, then either bake, boil, or microwave them until they’re brittle, then grind them into a powder in a clean coffee grinder that I only use for this purpose. Then I put it into their dish and mist with water to keep it moist and easier for them to eat. I am online tonight looking up Oyster Shell powder because I hear it’s even better than eggshells for snails. I hope your snails are still alive (as they live around 5 years or so), and if not, that you’ve decided to get more. They really are an easy pet to take care of, and have their own little personalities. Mine love to be held. Well, I hope you get this, and if not, maybe someone else someday will find your post through Google while looking up calcium for snails (like I did), and see this reply to you and it will help them. 🙂
While doing an experiment on raising chickens on the cheap I discovered that chickens love crushed clam shells from along the banks of the river and lakes. I fed my chickens on scraps and spilled grain I had salvaged. They can survive on what they can catch and what they find in the yard but do much better with some grain to help.
How cool is that?! I bet the crushed shells are a good source of calcium, too.
Just put the broken egg shells in a dehydrator for 1/2 hrs. They will become little hard, then put it in a mixer & make powder of it. Make small balls with a little water, again dry them in a dehydrator or oven or naturally. Store them in a dry place. You can use them as instant food any time.
If you intend on using your chickens eggs to birth more chickens it is best to not feed them their shells. What happens is the shells get too thick and the baby chicks can’t break out. Tried this once, but even in trying to help them along they still died. If you feed you chickens egg shells then be sure you are eating the eggs!
I loved everything I read tonight! Thank you so much for all the info. I really did learn alot and enjoyed reading and learning from you! Keep it up! =)
~Andrea
I just randomly found our blog and im super excited to read more of your articles! I have always added eggshells to my tomato plants and have heard about giving them to chickens too, but i never knew the best way to go about it. im so glad I read this i have a few gallon sized zip lock bags full of crushed egg shells, im going give my ladies some shells tomorrow!
I share mine between the chickens and the dogs. With the chooks I just hand crush and throw it into their scraps and with the dogs I bake them and blend them into a powder and add to their other vitamins as a calcium supplement.
Yes, I do. I have a jar of powdered egg shells that i had collected a couple years ago, air dried several days and then powdered in my vitamix. i was planning on sprinkling it on my garden. never got around to that, so now i am adding a couple tablespoons of it to my chickens mashed potatoes – yes i am making mashed potatoes for my chickens in these cold months. it’s easy to add little things to it, like flax seeds, beef tallow, egg shells.
My brother suggested I would possibly like this website. He used to be entirely right. This submit truly made my day. You can not consider just how so much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!
HI, THIS MAY SOUND FUNNY FROM A CITY GIRL BUT—I HAVE FED A FEW CHICKENS IN MY DAY. MOST FARMERS IN THE DAY NEVER WASTED A SHELL. THEY ALWAYS MASHED THEM UP & FED THEM BACK & ALSO ASKED THEIR CUSTOMERS FOR SHELLS TOO WHICH THEY WERE HAPPY TO GIVE THE. NO CHICKENS DO EAT MEAT & LOVE TO EAT OTHER CHICKENS. NOTHING WAS WASTED ON THE FARM BACK IN THE DAY. WHEN THE OLD UNCLES GOT THRU WITH CHICKEN DINNER THE BONES WENT TO THE CHICKEN YARD & THEY LOVED IT. ANYTHING FROM THE BIRD THEY CUT OFF THAT THEY DID NOT COOK WENT BACK TO THE YARD THEY GIRLS LOVED IT. YES THE UNCLE WOULD WASH THE EGGS GENTLY BEFORE HE SOLD THEM. THE BIRDS POOP ON THEM. NO THEY SHOULD NOT EAT ROTTEN FOOD. YES THEY LOVE GREENS. ROTTEN STUFF IS COMPOST!!!!!. WANT TO HAVE FUN ONE DAY. COOK EXTRA PASTA & LEAVE IN THE FRIDGE FOR A DAY SO IT GET ALL RUBBEREY. TAKE IT OUT TO THE CHICKEN YARD & START THROWING IT AROUND IT BOUNCES & THEY CHASE IT. ITS A RIOT. LOL.
Hi Jill,
I’m just curious…do you rinse the eggshells before you toss them under the sink and before you heat them, or just crack em and toss? I have a bunch I’ve been saving in the refrigerator, unwashed, to break up and put in and on the garden. Getting my baby chicks soon, so in a few months I’ll be wanting to give the shells to them.
Thanks!
Margo
Nope– I usually don’t rinse mine. 🙂
OOPs….I had a second question! Re: whey, I usually get 1/2 cup full or more from my homemade yogurt weekly, and am wondering how long it will stay good in the fridge? I recently tossed some out where the compost pile is going to go, but not sure what else I can do with it! Any info or suggestions would be appreciated…I have already learned SO much from you!!
Margo
Quick question, I had about a dozen egg shells that I put on the counter for a few days. They were dry and then I ground them up and fed them to the chickens, in powder form. My question is, I didn’t bake them. Should it be ok? They were dry and ground really small. Thanks so much
Has anyone ever had tough yokes? My girls lay some eggs with tough yokes, they don’t want to scramble. Do you know what causes that?
I heard if you feed shells to the chickens, they will start to peck at each and eat them
I’ve never had any problems with that happening. 🙂
After I make eggs in my cast iron skillet for breakfast, I throw the shells in the empty, (still hot) skillet and turn off the heat. They toast up nicely as the pan cools, with no extra work or pans or heating of the oven. By the time breakfast is over I have a treat to crush up for my hens.
GREAT tip!
I absolutely love the information you provide! Have 5 girls and they teach me something nearly every day. Should have chosen chicken farming over nursing! Thanks so much.
I have had chickens for 40 years but need help with a problem. One of my hens is consistently laying eggs with shells that are so thin that they crush under her. She has free access to 2 quality types of complete layer feeds….which she does not like and barely eats. She has a bowl full of oyster shells which she will not eat. I noticed that the newer oyster shells are not the same shape as they used to be. They are now huge and shaped like gravel. I have tried to hammer them into a smaller size but that isn’t working either. This hen laid eggs nearly daily throughout our nasty winter and I’m wondering if she depleted her body of most of it’s calcium. She has access to a chicken yard outside and can eat bugs, grass and worms etc. and will readily eat ANY other food but her laying mash and oyster shell. I have even crushed up my calcium pills and put them on the mash. Besides the crushed eggs shells, does anybody have any suggestions? I have to wash this hen’s underside every time she squashes an egg, because egg yolk etc. attracts flies which lay eggs and then maggots will begin eating the hen.
Hmmmm… is she an older hen?
Re: my hen with the VERY thin eggs shells. She is just two and a half and lays an egg every day. I think she must be depleting her calcium and I can’t seem to replenish it.
We just throw the egg shells in w/ the rest of the kitchen scraps and dump them on the ground. My 21 layers and 7 pullets clean up everything but the orange peels and the coffee filters. The only time they eat eggs is if I drop one while collecting. No other problems, except when one or two get broody and I don’t have a rooster (’cause I like to sleep nights). How do you get them un-broody, or is it a nature runs its course thing??
Rent a rooster talk to someone with one and ask for stud services
Wow this is great . I have learnt so much here . I was also happy to find out I can feed crushed eggshells (powdered ) to my dogs for calcium supplements . Puddy has just had the babies (puppies) 2 days back .Thanks for the info guys.
This is great! I’ve just started with chickens and want to set up a bath for them. From what I’ve read about chicken baths they recommend diatomaceous earth among other ingredients. Diatomaceous earth is expensive where I am. I like your use of egg shells and would like to use them in the bath as an inexpensive alternative. What do you think? Thanks for the tips.
I use egg shells in my gardens as a sub for diatomaceous earth its great there.
Unfortunately, I don’t think the egg shells would have quite the same result as DE. You can always just use dry soil and/or sand for your chicken bath, though.
I have been feeding my egg shells to my chickens for years. It’s a treat for them! I always thought it was for their digestive system though. I know they eat dirt for the same reason too. Glad to know it also builds their calcium!
I thought grandma did this-putting egg shells in her coffee pot! Actually I think (i was a little gal at the time) the church ladies would crack an egg in the coffee pot but I could be wrong on this one.) I forgot about this now I know why. Thanks for the info. Its been really interesting & I sure love the idea of crushing those shells & using them for the chickens, & and apparently for myself as well.
Do you rinse the shells before feeding them to the chickens?
nope
Before my mom tossed the eggshells into the bucket, she would wipe the fluid, or egg white contained in a membrane in the shell, on our clean faces. A great pore tightening facial mask. Something passed down from her grandmother.
Hey! Great info and a lots of good methods of how to feed the shells to the chickens. I have one more use for you for crushed egg shells: slug repellant in your garden. Growing up my mom had a great big raspberry patch and we always saved the eggs shells, washed the egg and membranes out and when they were dry, crushed them to about a 1/4 inch. We kept them in a bucket under the sink and would periodically put them around th base of the raspberry plants and it kept the slugs from getting to the plants.
Great post!!! thanks for sharing
VIBRATING FEEDER MANUFACTURER
When you were baking the shells and crushing them, how long did you let the shells sit in a bucket under the sink? Did you wash them or do anything before you put them in the bucket?
I have a gallon mason jar that I have been collecting the shells for my girls and waiting until I had a large amount to bake and grind a bunch at once but the smell in that jar is terrible after just a week or two.
My grandmother always did that too. It is very natural because if something breaks the egg by accident, they will naturally each the egg shells. It is a great source of calcium for them. Some people eat their placenta after birth for the nutrients, just sayin!
Hi, I am novice when it comes to raising chickens. I got two of the girls last summer and they have been doing pretty well. There are only two of them, they have large coup and backyard. They are super peaceful and do not have any pecking/bulling issues. I feed them food from Tractor supply company, most of the time I choose organic/non GMO feed. I add oyster shells for them to pick and I also have scratch/grain available. For the last two months one of them been dropping/producing very soft eggs, that are sometimes just found broken. Two days ago I had a scare, but I was able to safe egg bound chicken. They do not have any signs of bronchitis, so I am at total loss with the reason for this issue. I started giving booster, added dry bugs.. Any advise will be much appreciated, they are our baby chicks and I just worry about underlying issue that I might be missing.
Terri, perhaps. You could try tightening your mind, and maybe that would help reverse any loosing that may have occurred. If you were asking if you were “losing” your mind, I don’t think so.
I totally agree to not needing to heat the shells. A needless use on energy.
I just leave the cracked shell out to dry on a ceramic dish on top of my toaster oven. Maybe a little heat coming off of that helps to dry them but air drying is perfectly adequate. Once dry, I then crumble in a glass jar until they are in bite sized pieces — about the size of a sunflower seed.
Keep a jar in the coop and I feed in a small hanging dish up where they perch at night, and I also keep a small hanging dish near the floor.
Along with the chicken skin powder, I give the leftover bone meal powder
I keep a small metal bucket next to my compost bucket for egg shells. After I bake bread I can throw the bucket into the oven to dry them for free using residual heat.
Once they build up, I run them through the blender and either sprinkle them in plants, compost or feed to the chickens.
That’s a great way to do it!