Strange Egg?!?!

[Hannah2]

We only started getting eggs about a month ago, and we still only get an average of 5/week (we have 7 "laying" hens that are 7 months old)

Yesterday we got 2 eggs! (TWO!) but one of them was strange, and I'm just wondering if anyone else has seen this?

One of them was really dark, and when I went to wash it started peeling! Once it was all clean, I gently set it on the counter to clean the next one, and it shattered.

 

[aart]

Dark eggs are 'painted' rather than colored thru and thru, so yes the pigment can be scrubbed off.

New layers take a while to get the equipment tuned in so odd eggs are the norm.
What are you feeding them, good to provide hens oyster shell offered off to the side of even eating layer mash.

Curious too, what breed hen?

 

[Granny Hatchet]

is the hen a wellsumer? and how hard did you scrub the egg?

 

[Happy Chooks]

Dark eggs are 'painted' rather than colored thru and thru, so yes the pigment can be scrubbed off.

New layers take a while to get the equipment tuned in so odd eggs are the norm.
What are you feeding them, good to provide hens oyster shell offered off to the side of even eating layer mash.

Curious too, what breed hen?

Yup. Likely a Marans hen.

 

[aart]

Yup. Likely a Marans hen.

I'm thinking the same...not sure of any other breeds that lay that dark other than BCM.

 

[Hannah2]

They are Rhode Island Red. Didnt scrub hard... (its an egg people, gentle, lol) Im feeding them layer pellets and wont be changing (Ive been given a lot of slack for the pellets) they waist A LOT less that way. Im going to look into oyster shells.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

That's a really dark egg. I'd bet that her "spray paint" process worked overtime on that one, and that subsequent eggs won't be as dark. There are often mistakes in the egglaying process when pullets start laying.

The coating on my Marans eggs is really delicate. I can't scrub at all, and even handling them much while wet can cause the dark brown to wash off. I wonder how many of my customers think I dye them or something...

 

[aart]

They are Rhode Island Red. Didnt scrub hard... (its an egg people, gentle, lol) Im feeding them layer pellets and wont be changing (Ive been given a lot of slack for the pellets) they waist A LOT less that way. Im going to look into oyster shells.

WOW, that is interesting!

 

[Granny Hatchet]

can you tell me what kind of roo that is on your avater? i have one such as this but it is the smallest bantam in my flook

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

can you tell me what kind of roo that is on your avater? i have one such as this but it is the smallest bantam in my flook

Do you mean me? That's a Lemon Blue Cuckoo Marans, someone's color project. He is a BIG boy--must weigh over eight pounds.