What did she lay? Please help!

[ExpatChickensinBrazil]

I just started raising chickens for the first time in January of this year. We currently have 5 hens (that we bought full grown) and 9 chicks that are currently trying to work their way into the coop. Yay! Today, I found this broken soft shell egg with this in it. I didn't get a picture until I had scooped it out onto the ground. It was surrounded by the white mucus of the egg and laying on top of what should have been the shell. Can anyone tell me what this could be?? We were getting 4-5 consistently eggs, but one quit laying about 3 weeks ago. I am not positive which hen laid this, but know that we have had 4 identical eggs for 2 weeks, so this is from the one that has not laid in a while. Any thoughts or insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Do you know old your full grown girls are or how many molts they've had? Do you know what breed? Or how many molts they've had?

I suspect it might be a weird lash egg and/or that she is beginning to have reproductive issues. And I agree that it came from your recent non layer.

Chickens will hide symptom of anything they can just as long as possible to avoid becoming easy prey or being ostracized by their own flock. Sometimes by the time we notice symptoms it is too late.

Hope she defies the odds!

 

[ExpatChickensinBrazil]

If it is the one that I suspect, she was born 12/2016, but she has never laid eggs consistently. What do you mean by reproductive issues? Is it life threatening? Thanks!

 

[aart]

Wow, that is a weird one, don't think I've seen that before.
Looks like some large chunk of tissue in there....
...did you dissect it at all, cut it in half to see more.
I zoomed and lightened to see better.

 

[cavemanrich]

Wow, that is a weird one, don't think I've seen that before.
Looks like some large chunk of tissue in there....
...did you dissect it at all, cut it in half to see more.
I zoomed and lightened to see better.
View attachment 1347172

What crossed my mind,,, and many things cross my mind,, is that it was deposited by a different animal, rather than a chicken. Thinking of maybe a snake??????? or other transient reptile???
Thing can happen in coincidence.

 

[RatchetRev]

No clue at all and it looks almost alien like. I would give extra calcium to everyone tho to try and help with shell development. 2 years old is still rather young so I hope it's nothing bad.

 

[sawilliams]

I was thinking a lash egg (internal infection) but they are usually a yellowish color and do not have a membrane or egg whites to them. I'm thinking if your hen laided that the issue is far deeper inside then a lash egg or yolk infection. If they just stop laying they probably could live relitively normal lives but as long as her body is trying to produce she might always have issues and they will likely get worse. That's a really strange color and for a lash egg and the membrane?

How big was it? Like before you tried to pick it up? Was it about the size of a chicken egg? Only reason i ask is I have 1 with a calcium issue she lays a good, a few weak shells, then a shell-less. It's almost like clock work but her shell-less are relatively close in size to hers and others eggs, well except this last that was a shell-less yolk-less.

It's not uncommon for chickens to pass some internal tissue with out in an egg, but that's like the tiny red flakes you ususlly find when you crack it. What you have is possibly a lot of internal tissue