Eggs taste horrible

[lilyaqha]

I have 2 year old barred rock chickens. The eggs taste horrible, like dirt or fish. Is there anything I can feed them to make them taste normal?

 

[scratch'n'peck]

Does the feed that you give them have fish meal? I think I might have heard something about an omega-3 enriched feed that made the eggs taste sort of fishy. Most plant based feeds should be okay.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

High omega feed can indeed make eggs taste off. Your hens might also be eating something out in the pasture that's flavoring the eggs, like wild onions or wild garlic. Or if you give them any scraps that contain onions or garlic, your eggs will taste funky.

 

[mtngrl812]

I feed the Layena with the omegas in it and the eggs taste find. I wonder if your birds didn't get into something else around the yard.... do you have any fertilizers they could get to? Maybe some you have put down around some yard plants or something? They got into something somewhere.... maybe you had a toad or frog go through the coop that they ate?

 

[lilyaqha]

I feed them the Rural king generic brand..country something.

 

[lilyaqha]

They're actually not on pasture, just in a coop and let out once a week to graze for an hour or 2. I live in a suburb. But i've noticed when they graze their eggs taste more gamey.

 

[lilyaqha]

Not sure, we will have to look at this and see I guess! I can't stand to eat them anymore they taste so bad.

 

[mtngrl812]

check your feed ingredients and see what it is made of. Maybe there are some fish byproducts in it. If you can try switching feeds and wait a week or two before you try another egg.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I would first try changing your feed to something like Purina Layena, although it's more expensive. I've never bought Rural King feed, but I'd bet it has really cheap ingredients, like all the other feeds they sell. I personally think that some animal by-products in feed give a nasty taste. Long before I had my own hens, I had the opportunity to buy backyard eggs from my boss, but I hated the way they tasted. Then she switched feeds, and the bad taste went away. Anyone else remember the old Dumor feed, before they reformulated it? Yuck.

 

[Smoochie]

I had a Seabright that layed eggs that tasted horrible to me but my mom loved them! I only eat eggs from a few hens in particular and give the rest away. If you have several breeds a blind taste test is interesting.