Cuckoo Maran Pullet Egg - tell me about this color coating thing

[wild chick]

My Cuckoo Maran Pullet has laid several eggs from the roost with no shell, which I think is a youngster thing, as she has been in and out of the nest boxes acting like she wants to do things correctly and yesterday she finally did! The shell was thin though and the tip broke when I was gently picking off a piece of straw... I'm told the dark color is laid on. Is this dark sandpaper-like spots what Marans first eggs look like before they "get it all together"? Hoping for a dark egg, just wondering if Marans have to lay a few before the coating gets right? The other pullets, all different breeds of the same age, that have started laying have hard shells.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It can take a bit for some to get it right. Make sure you have a separate bowl of oyster shells for the calcium needs. I only had one cuckoo marans. Her eggs were similar to your in that the darker pigment was speckled on top of a medium brown egg. The distribution of the speckled will change and increase and decrease.

 

[ChickNanny13]

2x oldhenlikesdogs on the Oyster Shells in a separate dish, even when feeding layer ... What are you feeding? If she continues to lay outside of the nest, you could put a fake egg or plastic egg or golf ball in the nest so she gets the message. As for the color, it too is a new layer thing, give her time. How old is she?

 

[wild chick]

@ChickNanny13 - Purina Layer feed, plus free range, Oyster Shell always on the side. The only eggs laid from the roost had no shell at all, so I'm happy she didn't make that mess in a nest! The one she laid with shell (pictured) was in a nest. All the nests have a fake egg. She is 28 weeks. My main concern - not even concern, just a question - is about the color of the shell as I've never had a Marans.

 

[aart]

My main concern - not even concern, just a question - is about the color of the shell as I've never had a Marans.

Some lay darker than others, like all dark layer breeds it can depend on the 'line' of birds and if they were bred to enhance the egg color.
The color can vary from day to day and also when they first start laying.
Generally the eggs will get lighter as the laying cycle goes on.

My one BCMarans hen came back into lay in mid Dec, her first few eggs were lighter than the subsequent ones. In the past most her eggs were fairly light(disappointingly), often with darker speckles(which was cool)...but almost always significantly torpedo shaped(not great for hatching).
Here's a pic from the first week, today's egg was much darker(no pic tho)

Give her some time, and you'll see what she'll give you.

 

[wild chick]

Patience is such a virtue... Here is her egg from this morning, less than 48 hours from the 1st one. Looks like it just took one egg to get it right (not counting the no-shell ones on the floor under the roost)!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Patience is such a virtue... Here is her egg from this morning, less than 48 hours from the 1st one. Looks like it just took one egg to get it right (not counting the no-shell ones on the floor under the roost)!

View attachment 1631209

Boy was I wrong about keeping the speckles. Nice looking egg.

 

[wild chick]

@oldhenlikesdogs - of course I'm just assuming that she got it right and it will stay that way, but who knows, the next egg could be back to square one. But yeah, I went from "oh crumbs, this isn't pretty" to "oh boy! this is great!". Now I'm waiting to see my EE's first egg, any day now & holding my breath for blue or green! I never get tired of the chickens!

 

[PouleChick]

That is a lovely colour! I can't wait for my 2 Marans to start laying