INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[toodlesmom]

This weird chicken egg is blue because it has a virus

By Jess Zimmerman

Gmoose1
Do you like blue eggs and ham and infectious diseases? Then you will love these blue eggs, which get their weird color from a harmless retrovirus.
There are a few breeds of chicken that are known for their tendency to pop out the occasional blue egg – Araucanas in Chile and Dongxiang and Lushi chickens in China. (These breeds don’t show up often in the U.S., so you’re unlikely to find a blue egg at your local farmers market.) Among these particular chickens, there’s a high incidence of the EAV-HP retrovirus, a type of virus that slips its own manufactured DNA into the DNA of its hosts. EAV-HP inserts a gene called oocyan (which as far as I can tell literally means “blue egg”), which makes the eggshells absorb a pigment called biliverdin from the chicken’s uterus.

Julian Berry
EAV-HP isn’t harmful to humans, but frankly, “oh, the virus makes the egg absorb chicken uterus bile pigment, it’s perfectly safe,” doesn’t sound too appetizing to me. They look awfully pretty, though! Let’s get some Araucanas and have a labor-free Easter this year.

Source​

• Find A Blue Chicken Egg? Congrats, Your Chicken Has A Virus, Popular Science
• Why did the chicken lay a blue egg?, Boing Boing

Jess Zimmerman is the editor of Grist List.

 

[toodlesmom]

I would be more than happy to grow out a pair for you. Or if you would like to grow them out your self I will gladly take any extra you have even the roosters. Just let me know. I just placed my order yesterday. I wont be getting them until April though. I'm going to be getting 4 each of the Buckeyes and the New Hampshire's. I could have gotten them yet this year but it wouldn't have been until the end of November. A November shipment of chicks was really kinda scary to me. I was afraid they'd get stuck in a blizzard somewhere. Of course I suppose that could happen in April too, but maybe not as likely. I think I have a pretty good start on my dream flock.

How cool would it be to have a slide in your house. I bet the kids loved it.

I know there a lot of really awesome people on this thread. Everyone has always been very helpful and nice.

Just a quick update. My newly acquired chicks are doing great and growing everyday. My little broody bantam is still vigilantly sitting on her eggs. She has one more week to go and hopefully there will be more babies running around.

How exciting to have little chicks running around! And more to hatch, too! If you could grow out a pair of the German New Hampshire females for me, I'd be thrilled - and pay, of course! The only place I have to use as a brooder is a bathtub, because the bathroom is about the only place I could shut off from the cats. Starting them off in April would be great. We will be ready for them just when they are ready to move. Now I just need to track down Heirloom Barred Rocks and Rhode Island Reds. Then, maybe an Australorp or a Marans or a Wyandotte. There are so many wonderful chickens out there!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

That is a terrible article. People are already refusing blue and green eggs because they just seem weird. Now if they read the article, they'll refuse them because they are 'gross', and if they don't read the entire thing, they'll refuse them because 'oh my gosh, those eggs have a virus!' I'm already reading reports of this happening among our fellow chicken keepers.

The truth is, virus or not, the color is in the shell only and doesn't affect the interior in any way. If you were to crack open a blue egg and a brown egg laid by hens from the same flock, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. What affects the quality of the egg is what the bird eats. If she is fed only crumbles and not allowed to forage, her eggs will likely not be as rich as those from a hen who is allowed to free-range. Yolk color is usually darker in birds that free-range as well, though that is not a great indicator of a bird's ranging time as one can do something such as feed marigolds to a cage-raised flock and get the same dark yolks as those of a free-ranging hen.


Interestingly enough, I have seen this with my own eyes (not the marigold effect, but the difference between a ranging hen and a hen eating nothing but crumbles). I have a rescued silver Sebright named Francine whose previous owner debeaked her and did it so badly that she has almost no upper mandible. She can eat nothing but crumbles because she can't pick anything up while free-ranging. I can tell which eggs she laid by cracking them open. Her yolks are much paler than the other Sebrights' and in general they don't seem as firm or taste as rich.

This is Frannie, by the way. She is understandably human shy, but I think she's just beautiful and she has a home here no matter what.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

I appreciate the offer but you can just have one of mine lol. I really dont need any more roos. Ive found that the roos tend to have more of a bluish grey colored down. Their spots arent as symmetrical from what ive seen in other breeds like the rhodebars.

I have 2 with the blue gray down and at least one dark one. I posted the pictures on the CL thread. I just want the one dark one to be a girl.
With the boys should I only breed the light colored down ones or is a dark one ok for breeding too?

Here are some pictures of my non-black sumatra, currently in need of a name.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

This is Frannie, by the way. She is understandably human shy, but I think she's just beautiful and she has a home here no matter what.

lovely

Such a nice contrast in color.

 

[toodlesmom]

Well she did it, she pooped in the nest. On her kids. They are pretty clean, but I just removed broody poop with my hands. gross!!!

Greater love hath no mom than that she removeth broody poop bare-handed from her chicks!

 

[Webechickens]

Hey, everyone. We now have 6 baby chicks! Looked at the other two and they were undeveloped. I'll take 6! They are too cute. There was only 1 black one. Hope it doesn't get picked on. Nice to have peeping again, but I'm missing it being in the house. It will be cool, though, to have chicks raised by moms.

 

[kabhyper1]

Quote:
HA! When I post pics of them you will know why. They are so cute its ridiculous. So far 1 pure silver laced wyandotte, 2 bearded silkies with vaulted skulls; a blue and a white, and a pure black chick that is minorca x sl/w. I am so proud of my hen. She is so young and is such a good momma. she wont even leave her eggs to crap. lol. She lets me reach all over underneath her without too much fuss and has already show her babies how to eat from the feeder the is parked right in front of her for convenience lol. More updates later with pics. Still waiting on a few to hatch. 5 eggs left under her. We will see!!

 

[kabhyper1]

I don't know if I want to use an incubator now. I haven't experienced anything quite like watching a momma hen with her chicks before. It really is something special.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:
NO. That's a DQ.

Now you have your assignment. If you choose to take this assignment, photos will be required for proof. (This post WILL NOT self destruct in 60 seconds.)