Changing egg shape

[ksguy]

Hi there, I've been getting eggs from my 3 EE girls for about a month now. Two of them lay an egg early each morning like clockwork, 6 days a week, but one of them has been a little slower to get into the rhythm. Lately I've noticed she's dropping eggs that vary in shape widely from one lay to another. The first few she laid were quite small, then they were more of a normal size and shape - as expected - and then this. The first one was nearly spherical, then a bit more thin and oblong, then a torpedo shape with some flatness to the sides. Do I have anything to worry about here, or is this just part of the fun of having backyard chickens? Shell strength is excellent. They're being fed 16% layer feed, and lately I've been tossing some scratch grains into the coop right before bed to give them something to metabolize and help stay warm during our cold nights (several single digit overnights lately).

 

[azygous]

All else being normal, shape is of little concern.

 

[ksguy]

Thanks! I figured that was the case, but wanted to be sure.

 

[aart]

Interesting tho....shape usually stays pretty much the same, tho maybe she's still 'tuning the machine'.
Are you positive that those 3 eggs are from the same pullet?

Have to note, scratch is good for quick energy, protein takes longer to digest and thus provides more 'warmth' in the long run.
....and you don't want to dilute your layer feeds minimal 16% protein with too much scratch.

 

[azygous]

I have been able to match eggs to my layers about 75% of the time, and I've seen some occasional significant shape deviations. One time I got an egg that looked a lot like a potato. Another time I got one that was long and pointy on both ends like a torpedo.

The hens that laid them behaved normally and their subsequent eggs were normal.

Wouldn't it be cool to shrink down like in the documentary, "The Fantastic Voyage", and go for a cruise along the egg canal of a hen to watch the progress of an egg developing?

 

[aart]

I have been able to match eggs to my layers about 75% of the time, and I've seen some occasional significant shape deviations. One time I got an egg that looked a lot like a potato. Another time I got one that was long and pointy on both ends like a torpedo.

The hens that laid them behaved normally and their subsequent eggs were normal.

Wouldn't it be cool to shrink down like in the documentary, "The Fantastic Voyage", and go for a cruise along the egg canal of a hen to watch the progress of an egg developing?

I've seen some shape changes as glitches, but not long term.

This video might be even better than a "The Fantastic Voyage"( I loved that movie!)
Egg Formation Video

 

[azygous]

Way cool! Thanks for the link!

 

[ksguy]

Interesting tho....shape usually stays pretty much the same, tho maybe she's still 'tuning the machine'.
Are you positive that those 3 eggs are from the same pullet?

Have to note, scratch is good for quick energy, protein takes longer to digest and thus provides more 'warmth' in the long run.
....and you don't want to dilute your layer feeds minimal 16% protein with too much scratch.

90% sure? I have 4 BOs and 3 EEs. Two of the EEs lay a blue egg, and one lays a more greenish/olive tinted egg (this picture doesn't do the color justice, it looks more green than they are in real life). One of the blue ones is a consistently USDA small egg (so far), the green one has turned to a consistent USDA large, and then we have these. What I don't know is which hen produces which egg. Meaning, I could fairly reliably put them into 3 piles that were each from their original hen, but I wouldn't be able to match each pile to the bird. All of that said, I hope it's still just a "dialing in the machine" thing.

As for scratch proportion, I fill a small size solo cup (8 fl oz size) about 2/3 full and throw that into the run for the 7 girls to share. Maybe I have the digestive thing backwards - I thought that corn and raw grain was harder to digest and resulted in a longer duration of metabolic activity than digesting their layer feed?

I have been able to match eggs to my layers about 75% of the time, and I've seen some occasional significant shape deviations. One time I got an egg that looked a lot like a potato. Another time I got one that was long and pointy on both ends like a torpedo.

The hens that laid them behaved normally and their subsequent eggs were normal.

Wouldn't it be cool to shrink down like in the documentary, "The Fantastic Voyage", and go for a cruise along the egg canal of a hen to watch the progress of an egg developing?

Honestly the shape deviation is kind of fun. My 3 year old is very fascinated and gets much entertainment out of guessing quantity, and color every day. This is just one more dimension of fun, while it lasts.