Double Eggs Bound

[BokSylvan]

Our Sapphire Gem "Jasper" just started laying this week. Her first egg was normal: small, hard and brown. Her second was soft. Yesterday she didn't lay at all and today she had trouble. We ended up putting her in the bathtub with warm water and she finally had her... eggs. The larger one came out first and was hanging there, with her innards trying to come inside out. About 5 minutes later, she pushed the smaller one too. They're connected by a tube. Have you ever seen this? What are the implications? She's ok now, and we're working on getting her more calcium. There is unrest in the flock (8 hens, 1 rooster; four are laying) as they all learn how to lay, so I know she's under some sort of stress too. Any wisdom and identification of that egg would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Our Sapphire Gem "Jasper" just started laying this week. Her first egg was normal: small, hard and brown. Her second was soft. Yesterday she didn't lay at all and today she had trouble. We ended up putting her in the bathtub with warm water and she finally had her... eggs. The larger one came out first and was hanging there, with her innards trying to come inside out. About 5 minutes later, she pushed the smaller one too. They're connected by a tube. Have you ever seen this? What are the implications? She's ok now, and we're working on getting her more calcium. There is unrest in the flock (8 hens, 1 rooster; four are laying) as they all learn how to lay, so I know she's under some sort of stress too. Any wisdom and identification of that egg would be greatly appreciated.

Welcome To BYC

I'm sorry no one has answered your thread.

I hope she is still doing o.k.
New layers can have some laying glitches, it was good that you were able to help her pass the eggs.
If this is a one time thing, then glitch. If it's consistent, then my best guess would be shell gland disorder which, as far as I know, cannot really be corrected.

What do you feed?
Do you provide oyster shell free choice?

You mention there is unrest in the flock - what is causing the unrest?
You mention "hens" - how old - are they just now starting to lay eggs? They would be pullets.
You mention "rooster" - how old - if he's under a year, he would be a cockerel. Cockerels can be a pain for pullet of the same age - none are quite mature and they have some growing up to do.

If you have photos of your flock and housing you wish to share, that would be great!

 

[BokSylvan]

Welcome To BYC

I'm sorry no one has answered your thread.

I hope she is still doing o.k.
New layers can have some laying glitches, it was good that you were able to help her pass the eggs.
If this is a one time thing, then glitch. If it's consistent, then my best guess would be shell gland disorder which, as far as I know, cannot really be corrected.

What do you feed?
Do you provide oyster shell free choice?

You mention there is unrest in the flock - what is causing the unrest?
You mention "hens" - how old - are they just now starting to lay eggs? They would be pullets.
You mention "rooster" - how old - if he's under a year, he would be a cockerel. Cockerels can be a pain for pullet of the same age - none are quite mature and they have some growing up to do.

If you have photos of your flock and housing you wish to share, that would be great!

Wyorp Rock, thank you so much for responding with this information. Yes, then they are pullets (8 born about 3/15/20) and Jade is a cockerel (born about 3/21/20)... a little over 4 months old.

Opal: 1st layer, lays with moderate fuss in the coop nesting boxes
Sweet Pea: 2nd layer, troubled, only lays in the house, a tactic that wasn't my idea, but she's the chicken midwife, lol
Jasper: 3rd, first egg good on the coop floor, second soft/laid from roost bar/broke, third was the weird egg, today/two days later: another softy broken from roost bar
Olive: 4th, will only lay in the house (Sidebar: how will we convert this expectation?)

We've been weening them off starter feed and onto layer feed (non-medicated bags from the feed store) over the past month, and just this past week started giving them oyster shells and baked/crushed egg shells, both in their food and as a separate choice. Food scraps and foraging round out their diet. With three pullets laying hard eggs, I wouldn't think Jasper has a calcium deficiency, but I realize it still could be.

That leads us to the unrest. The intention was to begin them here and move them to a farm- a plan that is temporarily derailed by the pandemic. We have a small back yard with concrete patio, surrounded by a steep, wooded/bushed hillside.

I built them a 4x8 tractor and 4x8 run, and even though we let them roam around the yard and hillside, feel they are stressed over space, especially laying privacy. The two nesting boxes in the back corner of the coop are about 13wx12dx12h. There's a third standalone box by the house back door.

Jade 'disciplines' and mounts them regularly, although he also takes care of Opal while she lays. The less dominant ones (sometimes including Jasper) get disciplined by the other pullets. All the layers seem to pace stressfully, searching for something (a good place to lay) when it's time. Some of the others sometimes bother them, seemingly out of curiosity/concern unless we lock them out of the coop. The layers often pant during and after the process.

I gather that laying can be a stressful experience, and hope that once they all figure it out, things will settle down, (and they all lay outside!) Do you think it's possible Jasper was going to make a double yolk and it got twisted into two? Could the softness merely be from stress? She makes this desperate-sounding call way more than the others, especially when another is trying to lay: Ba-GOK! buk-buk-buk-buk-buk-buk-buk Ba-GOK!

I'll post some pics as soon as they transfer from my phone.

Thanks again for your time.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

We've been weening them off starter feed and onto layer feed (non-medicated bags from the feed store) over the past month, and just this past week started giving them oyster shells and baked/crushed egg shells, both in their food and as a separate choice. Food scraps and foraging round out their diet. With three pullets laying hard eggs, I wouldn't think Jasper has a calcium deficiency, but I realize it still could be.

I built them a 4x8 tractor and 4x8 run, and even though we let them roam around the yard and hillside, feel they are stressed over space, especially laying privacy.

All the layers seem to pace stressfully, searching for something (a good place to lay) when it's time. Some of the others sometimes bother them, seemingly out of curiosity/concern unless we lock them out of the coop. The layers often pant during and after the process.

She makes this desperate-sounding call way more than the others, especially when another is trying to lay: Ba-GOK! buk-buk-buk-buk-buk-buk-buk Ba-GOK!

I would also provide oyster shell free choice.

Chickens can be dramatic, what you are describing sounds fairly normal to me. Some really make a lot of noise, while others are fairly calm. The pacing and panting is also pretty normal for new layers, it seems they haven't quite figured out what's happening and yes, they are trying to find a spot to lay their egg. You can try putting some fake eggs or golf balls in your nesting boxes to see if that encourages them to lay in the boxes. Mine seem to prefer laying eggs underneath the boxes or in the darkest corner of the coop - so you may get some ideas from that tidbit. I don't really mind, I know where to find the eggs LOL

Even adult hens can act with the pacing and carrying on...I have a 3 yr old BR that has always paced and let's everyone know she's going to lay her egg and she makes sure they know when she finally did too. She can go on and on....she does get pecked at after a while, it's almost like the others are say "Shut Up Already and Lay That Egg!!!" The rooster even seems finally get weary of following her around and showing her different places to settle into! I just love these weirdos

I will say, I don't think I've ever seen 2 eggs attached with a tail like that, even in photos. To me, she had one already in shell gland getting it's coating, then another yolk arrived, this one somehow fit in there to get a partial membrane/coating as well, but the tail is interesting! Just my guess on that one LOL
You may find the article interesting and the video is worth watching, it does a great job of explaining the reproductive system and how an egg is "made".
https://www.yellowbirchhobbyfarm.com/weird-eggs-101-the-oddities-explained/

 

[Beachcomber]

Hey, just registered to ask this question after several months of lurking...
Pretty new to chicken raising and have a mixed flock of pullets that are 19 weeks old and one roo.
Most haven't started laying yet, but my 2 sapphire gem sex links started to lay exceptionally early at only 15 weeks and have laid several dozen perfect eggs so far...
Had a couple of "rubber" shell less eggs on the coop floor over the past few weeks, but nothing too worrisome since my flock is so young and just started laying.
This morning I saw one pullet in the nesting box and a few minutes later she hopped down and there was a normal egg with a hard shell. In fact I ate it for breakfast!
Just now about 12 hours later when I went to lock them in their coop, i saw something dangling from her behind and then she squatted and popped out TWO shell less eggs at the same time?! The 2 rubber eggs were attached by a thin membrane like cord.
She seems ok physically. She's bright and active and has a good appetite.
I've been feeding 16% protein growers crumbles and 20% protein all flock pellets with supplemental crushed oyster shell on the side. Plus soaked alfalfa cubes and perennial peanut hay as well as fresh garden treats like tomatoes and zucchini.
The other sapphire gem is laying perfect eggs with normal hard shells.
I didn't think it was possible to lay more than one egg in 24 hours let alone three total?! Do shell less eggs count and what could've caused it?
Thanks so much for any information!

Hi there,
I joined BYC a couple weeks ago so I could ask about the same thing that happened with my young sapphire gem pullet, Sparkle.
The consensus was that it's just a temporary glitch with a new young layer.
She laid at least one more softie after her strange double egg but everything has been good & normal since then. In fact she's my best layer so far!
Best of luck!

 

[Beachcomber]

Also, I didn't take a pic of my sapphire gem's double rubber egg, but it looked just like your pic.

 

[BokSylvan]

Welcome To BYC

I'm sorry no one has answered your thread.

I hope she is still doing o.k.
New layers can have some laying glitches, it was good that you were able to help her pass the eggs.
If this is a one time thing, then glitch. If it's consistent, then my best guess would be shell gland disorder which, as far as I know, cannot really be corrected.

What do you feed?
Do you provide oyster shell free choice?

You mention there is unrest in the flock - what is causing the unrest?
You mention "hens" - how old - are they just now starting to lay eggs? They would be pullets.
You mention "rooster" - how old - if he's under a year, he would be a cockerel. Cockerels can be a pain for pullet of the same age - none are quite mature and they have some growing up to do.

If you have photos of your flock and housing you wish to share, that would be great!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

They look lovely!
Do they seem to prefer the box with the covering and round opening? If they do, then try covering the ones in the coop like that (putting a front on the boxes). Having a bit of "privacy" can help.

 

[BokSylvan]

Thank you both for the coaching. Jasper is the stormcloud-black one in the run doorway. It seems to be a product of young/new layer and probably a bit of stress. I'll try to get them more privacy and steady calcium and we'll see. That video was educating; I've always wondered what those white things were hanging onto the yolk. A second yolk must have been released before the previous calcified and was laid.