Poor Egg Condition

[BobsRanchita]

I’ve run into an issue where about half of my eggs are of poor condition. They’re not aged out. This occurs even with 1-2 day old eggs.

When cracking them open the yolk will have zero structure, completely liquified. Sometimes the contents of the egg appear to be lumpy and often times there’s blood, sometimes a lot. I’ve noticed on some the yolk seems to be bound to the egg shell too, like it hangs on when cracking open.

I had three this morning and then remembered this forum. I’m posting a side by side pic of two eggs cracked into bowls for comparison. This one was not really bloody but liquified.

Thank you!!

 

[nuthatched]

Odd. What is your birds diet?

 

[WingItRanch]

Following this thread for information!

Are these problem eggs from older chickens?

 

[BobsRanchita]

Odd. What is your birds diet?

Producer’s Pride 16% Layer Feed in mini pellet form.

 

[BobsRanchita]

Following this thread for information!

Are these problem eggs from older chickens?

I think the oldest layers are maybe 2 yrs now. Some are 1 yr.

 

[alinas2010]

Hello, welcome to the site! I’m going to link an article for egg quality issues, there is a section for yolk issues at the end of the article.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/

Here is another one on “watery” eggs:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-watery-egg-what-it-is-and-what-causes-it.78026/

You will likely be able to find the causes of the odd egg quality in the above articles. But I also wanted to warn you that sometimes the things you’re describing can be seen in chickens with reproductive infections. Eggs with very watery albumin and yolks that are very fragile along with things like oddly shaped eggs, cracked and mended eggs and behavior from hens like going into the nest box and staying there for hours or leaving the nest without laying would be things to watch out for that could indicate a reproductive issue. This is not always the case, but sometimes these are the first signs that something is off.

What kind of chickens do you have that are laying?

 

[C Siena]

Producer’s Pride 16% Layer Feed in mini pellet form.

Our flock is on this pellet without problems. We do feed treats but make sure to keep the protein balanced to not diminish it with too many non protein treats.
We do not wash, store at room temp, which in our home is about 62 winter. They are not close to any heat source. We have eaten eggs 3 weeks old w/o yolks/whites compromised. We did have a 4 week old that was loose but not overly watery.
They free range all day, the oldest are just 2 years and youngest layers 1 year this month.

 

[Eggcessive]

Are you also providing some crushed oyster shell free choice for extra calcium? Have you always had these chickens their whole lives? Have you ever noticed any sneezing that lasted for a few weeks? The reason is, is that a respiratory virus called infectious bronchitis can which lasts a couple of weeks, later can cause different reproductive problems that may be noticed by unusual or soft egg shells. The link first link provided in post 6 has many examples of those shell issues. I had this virus in my flock years ago, and I saw many of the examples. I also had one hen who laid an egg with bright blood inside the egg. She did it occasionally at first, and then every egg had blood inside. She eventually stopped laying altogether within the year at age 2. If you ever lose a hen, I would have your state vet do a necropsy. They can look for a cause of death, and test for certain diseases.