Are you new to raising chickens?! If that is you, here's a little tip that can save you money and also be good for your chickens!
Eggs are made up of mostly calcium carbonate. Which means that a chicken needs a good amount of calcium in their diet to produce eggs with hard shells--which is what you want!
Without adequate calcium, the egg shells can become soft. This is a big problem because the egg can break as the chicken is laying it, causing you to have less eggs! And we want all the eggs we can get right now!
This could kill chicken or if the egg cracks in the nest, your chicken could get a taste for their own eggs and start to eat them. You don't want them eating the eggs because that is your job!
If your chickens are cooped up in a run the majority of the time, it’s especially important that you’re supplementing them with additional calcium in their diet. Here comes your tip!
Here's a budget friendly way to do it!: I keep a bowl for my eggshells on my kitchen counter. Pop them into the oven for around 10 minutes at 350 degrees. This dries out any of the membranes that might still be moist.
Once the eggshells have cooled, I throw them into a ziploc bag. A quick roll over with my rolling pin makes them crunched up and ready for the chickens!