Disapointing egg size (jersey Giants)

[L&Schickens]

Will the eggs get to be extra large? That is what I really care about. That is why I got them.

 

[hinkjc]

If they're anything like my orps, the eggs seem to grow about 50% bigger every year. The size improves dramatically over time. The factor is time and large birds take a lot of it for full maturity.

 

[L&Schickens]

Are they worthy of being fed for 2 years before they start giving up the good eggs? I don't know, but when I see them at shows and they are just the biggest most amazing birds there, it makes me want them. So I guess I will try and make mine work.
Thanks for the info.

 

[Blisschick]

Mine didn't start laying whoppers until around 2 years. They lay some extra large jumbos now.

 

[pipermark]

You have to remember this breed was created to replace small turkeys in the roaster. In other words for meat, so breeding emphasis wasn't placed on egg production.

line breeding creates smaller egg producers. If your breed function was duel purpose or egg production , it would be proper to cull for egg production as well as conformity to the physical characteristics (though hardly anyone does in the US). However, in a bird that main function is to be a meat producer, then the physical characteristics become the paramount culling criteria.

Both the NJG and the Marans I have (all under 1 year old) , do not lay anywhere near the size and with the consistency of my friends ISA browns, of the same age.

If I keep the Marans, this is something I will have to try and work on, their breed function is more of an egg producer than a meat bird, and so I am disappointed in their egg size.

 

[L&Schickens]

Some of the Marans eggs I got for hatching were HUGE. Some were average. So I don't know how big the eggs will be out of my future Marans, but I hope good sized. They do grow fast though. My Wellies that are just 5 days behind the Marans are tiny in compairison to the Marans.

My JG are still not all that big yet, so I guess I should be happy to get eggs at all. My roos are tall, but not heavy yet. They are only 4 or 5 months old though.

 

[birdsofparadise]

Is it just me or is the ratio of white to yolk different in JG eggs? When I scramble a few, the yolks just seem to dominate the whites. And yes, after almost a year, my eggs are still unusually small.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

My BJG are hatchery birds. I do love them. They are pretty and quiet girls. That large dark eye is so becoming!

Anywho, they started laying last Nov. and I can tell a difference in egg size already. I'm a weirdo that weighs the actual egg once a month to see if they are getting larger or I am losing my eyesight. One girl is up to a 3 oz egg every time she lays. Once it even was 3.58 and I got excited thinking we were going to get 4 oz soon but ...no, we aren't getting them that big.

I am willing to wait til next spring for monster eggs. My customers will flip!

 

[pascopol]

Quote:
Egg size does not necessary correspond to the bird size.
If you want jumbo eggs fast, get Sex Links or perhaps even better Delawares.

 

[Tailfeathers]

Hi Shellie,

It looks like everything has pretty much been covered already. All good comments. I was just gonna say the same thing that pascopol just did.

I have kept one BJG and she's right at a year old. I get a pretty nice egg from her. A "large" I would say. She's not one of the top producers either but like Pipermark says, the BJG was not created to be a production egg layer.

How is the color on your eggs? Mine lays an egg that is often very similar to the purplish egg I get from my one EE.

God Bless,