off white mass inside chicken

[Mojo]

Just slaughtered a healthy looking two year old hen. Her liver was more of an orangy red rather than red and there was also some white masses inside of her ...two about the size of a golf ball and some smaller. They were quite seperate masses from each other enclosed in ...sorry...the stomach? It was not in the crop. The enclosing membrane I guess was intestine. It had slight ridges on the inside layer. I have saved it to show someone but I don't think a photo would work. I can try. The masses were firm but not hard and when sliced, looked like they might have developed in layers. I guess you mgiht say they had the texture of a puff ball mushroom tho the mushroom has no layers. The layers were subtle. Any ideas? The bird is destined for the stew pot or dried as dog treats.

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

Sounds like she was an internal layer. The masses sound like eggs.

 

[speckledhen]

She was laying internally. Oviducts full of cooked egg material and solidified infection. Like this? Pulled this from one hen who died.

 

[Mojo]

OK. So, you think they were eggs? There were yolks inside her but not in the same membrane. Still think that is right? She is OK to eat, I take it, then?

 

[Mojo]

Oh yes, I did not scroll down far enough to see the photo. That is exactly it. Thanks. Still, would you eat her? She did seem healthy, other wise.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

I take my birds to a state certified processor. I was there the other day when a hen like that came throught for someone else and they said they were required by law to discard it and could not give it back to the owner.

 

[MrChicken207]

But sometimes the state law is too overly cautious.

Think about how many dogs get put down for biting someone who teased and beat the dog in the first place, or who were threatening the dog's human family member/members.

 

[emys]

As I understand it this is mostly a genetic problem with the hen. If you raised it, I see no reason to waste the meat. If it were me, I'd eat it.

I understand that processors have to follow their rules, but this is a home raised bird for home consumption.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

I agree, I was just passing on what little info I had on it.
I don't see how an organ/reproductive problem would affect the muscle tissue, but then again I don't know everything and perhaps it could.

 

[emys]

Well, my guess is that it might only have an impact on the meat if the bird had gotten to the point of dying from the condition, and then only in a general sort of way, as in muscle tissue not as firm sort of thing. Although I don't claim to be any sort of expert in the matter, I figure this one might go under the "What you don't know can't hurt you" clause. As in, if you hadn't seen it for yourself, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference in the meat.

Only a guess - no scientific reason for it at all.