Egg laying outside

[Wendyhuckins]

Hey everyone! My girls have been laying outside, I just found a couple of different spots with eggs, I am assuming they’ve been there for a couple weeks. They’ve been protected from elements but it is also cold here, below freezing at night. I’m curious if these eggs would still be edible? No signs of breakage or freezing. I put them in water to try the float test and they don’t float however, I will refrigerate these eggs as they’ve been kept cold and now washed! Thanks! I appreciate the help!!

 

[azygous]

People usually toss such eggs because they don't know how long they've been sitting there or if they might even be partially incubated, and no one enjoys the experience of cracking an egg in a hot skilit to see a half formed chick fall into the pan.

If you're confident the eggs are only a couple weeks old, they are likely okay to eat.

More pertinent is what to do about stopping hens from this free lancing laying willy nilly. Confining the hens to the coop for a few days would help them rediscover the laying boxes where eggs are supposed to be laid.

 

[aart]

It's good that you washed and refrigerated them....but...
When in doubt....
Open eggs one at a time in a separate dish before adding to pan or recipe,
use your eyes, nose, and common sense to decide if egg is OK to eat.

More pertinent is what to do about stopping hens from this free lancing laying willy nilly. Confining the hens to the coop for a few days would help them rediscover the laying boxes where eggs are supposed to be laid.

Ditto Dat!

Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers. Leaving them locked in the coop/run for a week or so can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests. Fake eggs/golf balls in the nests can help 'show' them were to lay. They can be confined to coop and maybe run 24/7 for a few days to a week, provided you have adequate space and ventilation, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon. You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it. ..at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I suggest we always open our eggs in a separate bowl before we use them, even if they were laid the same day. You never know when one might have a meat spot, blood spot, or something else.

All that float test told you is that those eggs have not lost enough moisture to cause them to float. It doesn't say whether they are safe to eat or not. As Aart said, open them in a separate bowl and use your eyes and nose. Since they did not freeze enough to crack the egg shell they are probably safe to eat. Or just cook them up and feed them back to the chickens.

 

[Wendyhuckins]

People usually toss such eggs because they don't know how long they've been sitting there or if they might even be partially incubated, and no one enjoys the experience of cracking an egg in a hot skilit to see a half formed chick fall into the pan.

If you're confident the eggs are only a couple weeks old, they are likely okay to eat.

More pertinent is what to do about stopping hens from this free lancing laying willy nilly. Confining the hens to the coop for a few days would help them rediscover the laying boxes where eggs are supposed to be laid.

Thanks! Yes, they’re not incubated at all. That would be terrible! I had that happen with a duck egg once! As far as getting the girls to stay in the pen, I’m still trying to figure out how they’re escaping! And also returning themselves to the pen! Fully fenced, higher than I can reach . But now that I’m aware of it, I can be on the look out!