My chickens first egg had no shell !!!!!

[Debsbro]

One of my chickens has been laying for about a week, all eggs fine and lovely.

Today I got our usually egg from our laying chicken but have just found an egg in the garden, perfect shape but no shell !! It had the membrane and when I cut it open it was a perfect yoke etc.

Is this normal???

 

[Fred's Hens]

Yup, pretty normal, at first. She'll add the shell next time, perhaps.

I'd "train" them to lay in the nests provided for awhile. Letting them loose only in the late afternoons and evening, when laying is typically over for the day.
I rather dislike hunting for eggs.

 

[Debsbro]

Thanks for that. We have three chickens, one lays an egg every day and every one of them have been small but perfect. I'm guessing this is another one now started to lay. The third chicken showing no sign yet, face, comb etc are still quite pink.

 

[Debsbro]

Another egg with no shell today

 

[beausonge]

When my New Hampshire Red started laying last year, she had shellless eggs off and on for about a month. all the other ones had normal shells.

I leave a plastic egg on every nest I want my chickens to use. It works really well.

 

[Debsbro]

Hi beausonge. Thanks for your comment.

I left the fake egg in the nesting box over night. This morning my little lady that's been laying for about a week had moved it was was sat on it but didn't lay an egg of her own. Do you think the fake egg might have put her off?

New to keeping chicken!!!!!!!!

 

[Raskal311]

One of my hen did the same thing with her first two eggs but all were normall after that. Even got an extra larg double yolk from here five eggs later.

 

[Debsbro]

Thanks Raskal311. It's just hard knowing what's normal when your new to all this!!!!!

 

[beausonge]

The fake eggs act as a sort of marker for the chickens. It tells them that is an area for egg laying and needs to stay clean. Even my pullets and roosters won't sit on or foul a nest with an "egg" in it. My hens will move the fake eggs around to sort of nestle them under them. When chickens brood, they do not actually start setting on them to hatch until they have several. Most likely it just wasn't your hen's day to lay.