33 Eggs Due to Hatch Oct 25 (Hatch Complete)

[speckledhen]

These ladies dont get pushed around by anyone (they are somewhere in the middle of the pecking order, I'd say) and I recently have added some Game Bird breeder crumble, as well as now have 22% layer in their feeders due to so many molting right now. Just not sure why so many quitters with my BR eggs. Maybe things will be better in the spring.

 

[Laney]

Yup, I'd say wait for spring. I think we've covered everything that could specifically involved. So in spring at some point in time you'll put in a full or half bator of these eggs and see what's up. In the meantime these girls will take their winter break and do the low volume laying.

Question about my Delawares. Do you think it's possible the girls won't start laying? I'm in Eastern Central NC. Right on Route 64. We're having a cold snap this week in the mid 50s but it will go back into the 70's for a few days next week then consistent 60's for a while. They are just about 18 weeks now. I don't think they are laying, unless their eggs resemble cochins a lot? I have been consistently getting the # of eggs I expect so no extras that would tell me I'm getting Dellie eggs. Also all the eggs are solidly small-med. At this point in the season is it possible they will wait for spring to lay?

Laney

 

[speckledhen]

I bet they will not wait for spring to start. Delaware eggs are often a deep peachy tan color and some are almost pink-looking, though some are lighter. Here is Phoebe's first egg:

BTW, I'm about 7 miles from Hwy 64 myself.

 

[Laney]

Hmmm it looks almost identical to a Cochin egg, except size probably. Cochins will lay an egg that looks very similar. It can be a dark cream color to a very light tan. It's roundish like that instead of pointy on the end...well here is a pic the cochin eggs are the two in the middle...

They way out at 1 3/4 oz on my scale, but it only weighs out to the quarter ounce so I'll have to get a better egg scale. Best it can tell me is what size category the egg falls into peewee/small/medium/large/jumbo.

Now that I look at my egg I can see the cochins are a bit more pointy on the bottom.

How quickly will the Delawares lay the full size large egg?

Laney

 

[speckledhen]

Mine started laying at 18 weeks and the last holdout started at 21 weeks. They are about 32 weeks old now, I think, and a couple of the eggs are still on the medium size, but are getting larger. Kira's are jumbo usually, but she is over a year old. They really are a different shade than a cochin egg to my eyes, more "opaque" and rounder. I just have a banty Cochin, though, and her eggs are a pearly cream color.

 

[Laney]

You know I got so excited reading that, I pulled all my eggs out of the fridge, and lined them up looking at them trying to see if one of them might just be a delaware. Then I realized, the girls combs are still awfully light pink instead of red. I don't think they are laying yet.

Laney

 

[speckledhen]

One of my girls lays a very dark tan egg, really pretty. One lays eggs with speckles. All of them are pretty eggs, different from all my other brown egglayers.

 

[speckledhen]

I took a couple pics of the Del eggs I'm collecting to start a hatch this coming week. Sorry it's grainy, but my camera does that in low light and my house is rather dark right now:

 

[Laney]

Your eggs are so clean! Do you wash them when you take them in? I read that you should leave them dirty until ready to eat? That way the bloom can keep the bacteria out? I just leave mine dirty until right before we use them.

Or are your Hens just naturally clean?

Went and had to look over my eggs.... I couldn't resist. I lined up all the eggs I currently had by date, matching together like eggs...and took pics.... Do any of them look like delaware eggs???

Laney

 

[speckledhen]

The one on the bottom left looks most like a Delaware egg to me.

My Del eggs are usually very clean. I just take the eggs out of the nests and rarely have to wipe anything off. Not so in my main flock with some older hens, who seem to give a glob of poop with every egg.