Strange Egg

[speedy]

One of my chickens stopped laying about 6 weeks ago. She seemed to have a problem with her crop, as if something was stuck in there. She layed an egg without a shell and then nothing for 6 weeks until today. We found an egg that was under her perch ( not in the nest box) that was very dark red in colour. ( see photo ). Does anyone know what this means?

 

[chickenbythesea]

no idea but very strange indeed, interesting colour

 

[babyrabbitjones]

whoa.
that. is. crazy.
questions:
-what color were her eggs before this episode?
-is she showing any other symptoms of affliction like lethargy, watery poo?

i see an occasional shell-less egg (i call 'em jelly eggs), but never one that has changed color.
I hope someone responds with an explanation for you, I'm quite interested as well.......

 

[speedy]

@babyrabbitjones

Her eggs before were the normal light brown color. Watery poo is negative, lethargy is maybe. She seems less energetic than the other chicken and also is a bit more picky about her food. But, she eats OK and chases the occaisional fly around the coop.

 

[babyrabbitjones]

I have been searching the forums for "weird eggs" b/c one of my chickens is laying eggs that are deformed/textured. this gal explains quite a bit on her blog that might be of help to you,
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/01/how-hen-makes-egg-egg-oddities.html

 

[DangerChickenHouse]

That's a crazy egg! I hope you get answers!

 

[terryg]

If an egg gets stuck at the end of the oviduct, it will get more of the egg pigment laid onto it. I wonder if that's what happened to this one. You can read about how eggs get their color on my blogpost here:
http://hencam.com/henblog/2012/02/brown-green-blue-white-chicken-egg-color-the-real-story/
As far as egg-laying difficulties go, and why she's having laying problems, it can be caused by many things, including age, obesity, diet, infection, stress... the list goes on.

 

[lindseyloo]

Looks like it stayed in the oven a little too long...

 

[ADozenGirlz]

Thanks for sharing, babyrabbitjones. Since she hadn't laid an egg in some time, my thought is that this one likely stayed in the very end of the oviduct for several days, getting more than its fair share of pigment applied to it. Brown eggshells contain the pigment protoporphyrin, ( a by-product of hemoglobin) which is applied in formation of the last layer of the egg (aka: the bloom or cuticle).

I wonder about her diet and whether she is getting enough calcium in particular, which is required for the uterus to contract and push the egg out of the vent. Is she on commercial layer feed with a calcium source such as oyster shell being offered free-choice? If so, does she get fed lots of treats, table scraps or other snacks? Sometimes we can love our chickens too much and by feeding them extras, we interfere with the balanced diet their bodies need to function properly. The most common cause of eggbinding (which is what we call an egg getting stuck in the oviduct) is a calcium deficiency. I'd look at her diet carefully first, before looking to other explanations for this amazing egg color. I'd hang onto it and blow it out to preserve it. I doubt you'll ever see a darker egg! Here are DIY instructions for egg-blowing if you're interested:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2011/10/egg-blowing-101-and-how-to-decorate.html

I have been searching the forums for "weird eggs" b/c one of my chickens is laying eggs that are deformed/textured. this gal explains quite a bit on her blog that might be of help to you,
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/01/how-hen-makes-egg-egg-oddities.html