Weird egg.

[Hend6475]

I have 6 hens. 2 wyandottes, 2 barred rocks and 2 Australia. They are 6 months old and have been laying for about a month. Today I found a weird egg. It is small and slightly darker with a rough texture at one end. The shell pigment is uneven. The yolk is very large with a proportionally small amount of egg white around it. The membrane within the shell is abnormally thick and strong. Should I be concerned? The picture are from after I broke the shell open. It was a normal shape.

 

[Jessi.Smith]

I have this page bookmarked for when mine start laying. Maybe it can help you with yours.

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

 

[ChickenLeg]

I wouldnt be too worried if the chicken seems fine, could be as simple as needing some oyster shell made available. They will eat it if they need it. Here's a link to an egg deformity chart:

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/0b/7f/46/0b7f46b2f8a38e8a883e0ef5884db977.jpg

 

[NoFlyBackFarm]

Give them Oyster Shell for Calcium!

 

[Eggcessive]

You may see these odd eggs with a group of hens. Smaller eggs are sometimes called fart or wind eggs. Many times they have a yolk and albumen, but sometimes no yolk. The rough shell is due to mineral deposits. In the chart in post 2, you will learn what causes many of those odd eggs are due to. I would not be too concerned.

 

[Hend6475]

Thanks for the replies. Now something else has happened. A shellless egg laying under where they are roosting. But my 2 roosters were above it. I'm totally freaked out because the articles say that these problems could be either because they're young layers, or because they are diseased or have parasites. So it could be bad or it could be totally fine. They have what looks like dry fowl pox (for about a month now) but are acting happy and are eating well. They have been laying well up until now. I do not know who is having the problem because I can never tell who layed what egg. I have considered that at least one of them hadn't yet started laying and just can't get the hang of it.

The other thing to mention is that I am afraid they are being overbred by the roosters. What I have read says you should have at least 4 per rooster but I only have 3. They were all supposed to be hens but you get what you get. Now I'm wondering if this is causing a problem.

Also, they have a very large coop and run but I still let them free range a couple of times per week and in afraid they could've gotten hookworms or roundworms from racoon or skunk droppings. They seem to like to eat anything and everything.

 

[Farm life101]

3 is okay for a rooster but it also depends on the rooster. If he is constantly jumping on them and harassing them then you should get more however the quality of their eggs are not affected by the rooster. What do you feed them? The odd eggs you have been getting are normal for new layers but it helps A LOT if you feed them a couple of their eggs every week. You should also be putting some chick grit in a separate feeder for the to eat freely as it will help with their digestion. Have you dewormed them yet?

 

[Hend6475]

I'm mixing in some dewormer in their food as I write this. I dont think the dominant rooster bothers them after his morning jollies. The less dominant rooster is very docile and ia barely allowed any fun.

I'm deworming with Diatomaceous earth. Will I need to throw away their eggs while doing this?