stained duck eggs???

[jjohan15]

so i have had my ducks for awhile and they were laying great until winter hit and days got shorter. they completly stopped and my chickens slowed down so i put up lights to get them laying again. the ducks have started again, but the eggs are stained black! i've been getting more eggs now but all them are stained black. the first one i got i washed off and it just turned slightly purple, as if i had dyed it for easter. we used it though and it was still good. what is wrong?!

 

[zooweemama]

so i have had my ducks for awhile and they were laying great until winter hit and days got shorter. they completly stopped and my chickens slowed down so i put up lights to get them laying again. the ducks have started again, but the eggs are stained black! i've been getting more eggs now but all them are stained black. the first one i got i washed off and it just turned slightly purple, as if i had dyed it for easter. we used it though and it was still good. what is wrong?!

What breeds of duck do you have? Cayuga lay eggs that color. Otherwise I am not entirely sure why you have eggs that color. I have many breeds and I do have some layers that lay a slightly green tinted egg.

Make sure the lay box bedding is fresh and clean a couple days a week to help remove poop and other things that can cause staining. But honestly that just looks like a Cayuga egg. They lighten up as their laying season progresses.

 

[jjohan15]

i do have cayugas! do you know why the eggs are stained like that? or why it just washes off?

 

[gryeyes]

I have Cayugas, too, and mine go through their laying cycles by starting with nearly black eggs. The color gets lighter as that hen lays more eggs. After a break in laying, when they start up again, the eggs will be dark then progress to lighter eggs.

I don't know WHY - I just know that's the way it is. Ducks often lay eggs in puddles, near puddles, or next to their kiddie pools or ponds. I find a dry egg loses less of the darker tint.

 

[kellypepperk]

awww - we have Cayuga and our eggs have been light from the beginning... I'm hoping for some of the darker eggs soon! Winter hit hard here and we're not getting any eggs now.