powder/dust covered egg

[roguefoxfarm]

I have a hen separated from the group (she was attacked by a hawk, broke her leg and is in recovery). She's been isolated for at least a week. We took her outside yesterday to walk around in her reduced "cast" which she thoroughly enjoyed (no idea if this relates, but i thought i'd toss it in just in case). The following morning, she laid an egg.

She hasn't been consistent in her egg laying since the incident. We get one about every third day lately. This egg, though, was covered in a powder or dust of some sort.

Now, normally our girls lay eggs with small bumps on the shell and maybe a very thin pale coating (which you can only tell exists if they scratched some of it off with their nails), but this egg had chunks of this powder stuck to the sides. It washed off as though someone had just stuck flour to it somehow, but I'm worried it means she's not okay. I know sometimes they just lay weird eggs, but I still thought I'd check if this was an indicator of anything. I couldn't find anything online about it.

So, final questions: is the bird sick (if so, with what) and is the egg still edible? thanks!

 

[Ema]

Interesting...I found one yesterday, not really sure what it is so I was just coming on to search the forum for the answer. Hopefully someone else will see this and will know what it is. If I find something I will post the link here.

I have had my chickens for 9 months now so this is the first time I found a chicken egg with all that powdery stuff on it. Kind of looks like calcium build up to be honest, but I am not 100 percent sure so, will keep on looking.

 

[Ema]

BTW in case I didn't catch your intro...a very warm welcome from cold Northern Ontario Canada

 

[roguefoxfarm]

Thank you for the welcome.

My chickens are about 9-12 months old as well. The calcium thing is a good thought. But, in isolation she doesn't have the oyster shell to pick at, and she's (hopefully) regrowing bone right now...so I wouldn't think there would be an excess of that much calcium. But who knows? I'll be looking forward to more commentary.

 

[Laigaie]

If she's regrowing bone, you do want to give her access to shell. She'll need the calcium, especially if she's still laying in her injured state.

 

[roguefoxfarm]

Okay, i added the oyster shell and a little bonus kelp for her. I was worried that too much calcium might make bone spurs grow during the "reconstruction" process. Thanks for letting me know otherwise!

 

[roguefoxfarm]

Well, she's been acting normal for a bit since she laid the egg, so I'm guessing she's just fine but I'm still curious about what the powder was. Love to hear any additional thoughts on the matter!

 

[pips&peeps]

It's just thick "bloom".

 

[sunnyvera]

Kale and spinach (dark greens) are fantastic sources of organic calcium and minerals. Readily usable too. Good treats for her and healing bones. Just a thought.

 

[roguefoxfarm]

Thank you!