Eggs are great, poop is not!

[DAT]

OK, here's a question: how do people deal with eggs that have chicken poop on them? Just throw them out?

I have a nest box that's big enough, and kept clean, and it's up off the floor. Nonetheless, about a third of the eggs have some bits of poop on them. Is there something wrong with the chickens? Is this just the way it goes, and I shouldn't worry about it?

I'm reluctant to just wash them off, because I read that they won't stay fresh very long if you do that, and that you can actually push bit of poop into the pores of the eggshell and make a bad situation worse. So I end up throwing away a lot of eggs.

I feed them organic layer pellets, and they get scratch once in a while. They have clean water and a pan of grit too.

Any ideas?

 

[Indychick]

Personally, I just brush it off. You can wash, and wash, and rewash your eggs and they would still be fresher than what you get at the grocery store. Even if you do wash the egg, you're probably going to eat it in a reasonable time. Eggs don't last long in our house.

 

[pkeeler]

I feed them to the dog.

 

[digginchicks]

I was em and put them in the fridge

 

[JennsPeeps]

I wash the truly offensive ones. Since my eggs only are in the fridge for a week or so I don't need to worry about them lasting or going "bad" because I removed the bloom. It doesn't make a difference in the short-term like this.

 

[ChickieKeeta]

Google;
Washing fresh chicken eggs.
Lots of info there.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

If the poop has dried you can try & scrape it off, I keep a few old plastic spoons near the nest boxes to clean those kind of eggs before I put them in the basket. You can also use sandpaper (I buy packs at the dollar store) to remove any residue.

You can also just wash the eggs in hot water without concern about bacteria getting into the egg pores. There's something about osmosis, I can't remember exactly, but if the water is warmer than the contents of the egg the germs won't go inside.

You're right that eggs are porous, but it's not like a sieve or a colander, you needn't worry about pushing actual bits of poop into the eggs. The pores are very very tiny, to allow exchange of air to the developing chick. Bacteria could get through, but not poop.

I clean & use all but the most awfully messy ones. And I'm a cheapskate & an egg lover, so I won't let many go to waste. And you're buying organic feed too, your hens' eggs are extra precious!

 

[cointoss]

My girls don't usually poop in the egg box -- except the last two weeks when they've been trying to lay on them all night, pretending to be broody... When there is some poop on the egg, I just wipe it off. Not like you're eating the shell, after all.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Just wash them in water about 20 degrees hotter than the egg before you put it in the fridge (to make sure that nothing gets forced into the pores of the egg). Unscented detergent if you want. A dip in dilute bleach water if you want. Think about this--all commercial eggs are washed. They still last 45+ days.

Yes, you wash the bloom off the egg. But the egg will still last 45+ days in the fridge. You're gonna eat it, not hatch it. Eat them first if you're worried about it. Make sure that you're cooking them well and don't eat raw cookie dough if you're worried about it.

Feeding poopy eggs to the dog or throwing them away is a bit extreme.