Egg Quality of Very Young Goose

[jajeanpierre]

Fiona, a White Chinese, was hatched the end of July and began laying eggs in December before she turned 5 months old.

Her first eggs were very small and a few have had double yolks. The eggs are now what I think are normal sized (I've never had a goose before). She's laying about every three days. She still has a tendency to produce double yolks. The yolks seem consistently small for the size of egg.

The yolks are an extremely pale yellow. I've never seen a chicken egg so pale before. Fiona was raised on Manna Pro Geese/Duck Starter until she laid her first egg when I added oyster shells and ordered Mazuri Water Fowl Breeder. She travels with me between Texas and Wyoming which is probably why the early laying. She had access to fresh pasture until the first week of December when I drove back to Wyoming. She started laying a couple of weeks later.

The very pale yolk does not seem right to me. I would have thought she had a very good diet so her yolks should have been good color. I would appreciate the thoughts of more experienced geese keepers.

 

[The-White-Elephant]

Do you have some pics?

And all the best wishes to Fiona!

 

[jajeanpierre]

I think this is her first egg. Her current eggs are almost lemon yellow. This double-yolked egg looks almost normal colored but it was paler than expected. I scrambled all her eggs yesterday so don't have a current egg to show.

 

[Goosebaby]

Do the shells seem like they’re thin? Have you noticed any other abnormalities like wrinkles or anything else?

 

[jajeanpierre]

Do the shells seem like they’re thin? Have you noticed any other abnormalities like wrinkles or anything else?

No, shells are good with no wrinkles or deviations. Just pale yellow yolks and I think the yolks are small, i.e. more white than expected.

Her first egg were quite small but I would expect small eggs from a very young goose laying her first eggs.

 

[Goosebaby]

Some sources say that pale yolks are a result of lack of greens, corn, and bugs that can turn yolks orange but that it isn’t much of an issue.

I’ve also heard that pale yolks can be caused by nutrient deficiencies however.

I can’t say which is correct, but I don’t think it would hurt to add a vitamin supplement to her feed or water just in case.