eggs

[brickey]

How do you clean the eggs before putting in the fridge? Also how long can the chickens stay in the coop if you were to go on vacation?

 

[valentinebaby]

I rarely clean my eggs - that would remove the bloom and the bloom is what keeps all the bad stuff out. The only time I clean eggs is when they're really dirty (usually from mud) and then you want to use hot water and I add a lil soap. Sometimes, if they're mildly dirty, I'll wait until right before I crack them to clean them. There are several posts on this site regarding how others clean their eggs, but I'm convinced mother nature had a reason for covering an egg with "bloom".

 

[gsim]

We let them sit in a mild organic soap solution for a short while and rinse them before refrigerating them. We go through ours fast enough that we have no reason to leave the bloom on them.

 

[Andi]

I have more than 1 egg carton in my frig. 1 is marked "soiled" and that's where I put eggs with soiled shells. I leave the bloom and any soiling on the shell until just before use. I've read that when washing them to use warm water so that any bacteria that may be in the "soiling" doesn't get sucked into the egg through the shell. I use plain water. Never gotten sick.

The ones that I collect with clean shells go into other cartons and I keep track of which ones are the oldest. That way if I end up with enough "clean" eggs to present to anyone I'll have them ready and will be assured the bloom is intact so they will stay fresher longer. Just as a side note, I thought it was interesting when someone from Australia posted that they don't store eggs in the frig there. The stores even have them for sale, non-refrigerated, in the isle next to the sugar and flour.

Here's a link to an article written by Mother Earth News. They conducted a quite lengthy study about egg storage. It gave some perspective to me, so hopefully it will help you also.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

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I forgot to add that the eggs that I collect with clean shells I don't wash at all. They're fine as is.

I almost missed the second part of your post about leaving chickens while on vacation. Your biggest limiting factor will be fresh water. Your chickens need fresh water all of the time. Food usually won't be an issue as long as its in a dispenser that will hold enough food and stays dry (out of rain). Providing several water dispensers in areas where they can't get knocked over, perched on (poo), or have stuff scratched into them will be the trick. Keeping it out of the sun might not be a bad idea as well.

Personally, train someone on what to look for and have them come and replace water daily. That way if anything does go wrong it can be dealt with.

Oh! Most importantly! Welcome to BYC!

 

[valentinebaby]

I left my girls for 4 days in the run, but made sure they had lots of water and food. No problems when I got home. If I was going to be gone longer than that, I would definitely have a friend check on supplies.

 

[patandchickens]

I don't wash my eggs (the rare super-pooey one goes into compost, slightly pooey ones are eaten right away); I don't even always refrigerate them, they don't really need it except in hot weather or for longer storage.

For vacation, there are sort of two questions, one is "what can you sometimes get away with" and the other is "what gives you good insurance against problems".

In terms of a smart plan that makes tragedies or lingering unmanageable problems unlikely to arise, you'd want someone to check on the chickens once a day and collect the eggs.

In terms of what can you sometimes get away with, <shrug>. The two most important issues involved are:

--egg eating developing as uncollected eggs pile up. Egg eating cannot always be cured (except by the stewpot) once it has become a habit.

--waterer or feeder getting spilled/emptied. Just a day without water will seriously affect chickens' health; more than that, and you will probably not have a flock to come home to. Running out of food is not as dire but the less food, the more chance of cannibalism, which even the cutest friendliest chickens have no reservations about engaging in.

and there is also:

--if nobody is checking, then nobody will notice and FIX IT if a predator starts to dig/gnaw a hole into the run or coop, or the coop/run get damaged in some fashion that creates a weak point for predators to get in or chickens to get out.

--if an injury or illness occurs, nobody will be there to treat or isolate the victim and it can progress into a far more serious situation -- a common scenario woudl be a hen getting pecked or partially prolapsed, which is eminently curable if you catch it right away but if you leave her in with her flockmates for several days they are pretty likely to kill her gruesomely.

It is not like checking on the chickens is a complcated thing -- if you have large waterers and feeders, probably all your "chicken sitter" has to do is collect eggs once a day and make sure nothing has gone wrong, although obviously you should leave instructions on how to deal with any problems that might arise -- so personally I do not think it is fair to the chickens, nor prudent as a chicken-owner, to leave them untended for longer than a day. Your mileage may vary of course.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[brickey]

thanks for the info. I do have a sitter so the chickens will be alright. Someone posted chickens being pecked?happened to one of mine but the flock stopped,don't know why they started?

 

[spamee34]

It's an egg wash it put it up it's gonna be ok !!!!!

 

[mikecnorthwest]

I clean them with a little soap and water. All of them.

 

[B'villechicken]

I only wash my eggs when I sell or give them to family. I figure not everyone would be as tolerant of a little poo on eggs. We rarely refrigerate our eggs. I tend to sell them to people my wife works with or give them to family. When I do wash them, it's in warm water with only a few drops of dish soap in it.