White Ring on Brown Shell?

[ClareScifi]

Yesterday it was hot and one of my hens went in the coop to try to lay an egg a few times but had no success. She didn't seem distressed, though, and free-ranged in the afternoon and her energy seemed good.

This morning I found an egg in the coop when I let them out at 6 a.m. I'm assuming it is hers, but it could be her sister's, as I didn't see who laid it. Her sister laid a perfect egg yesterday. Her sister has been known to lay 2 eggs in one day, but not recently. They are both 16 month old Barred Rocks.

This egg I found this morning is odd looking. It has a large white ring on it. The egg is a dark brown. I checked out the eggshell defects site but saw nothing like this. What do you think would have caused the white ring?

I have read that it's harder for chickens to lay eggs in hot weather. I have been trying hard to keep them hydrated.

 

[ClareScifi]

I forgot to add that the white ring is on one side of the egg only, on a long side, not circling the diameter of the egg. It's not raised. It is a defect in the color of the shell. It's as if pigment is missing, but it is the ring-shape that really has me puzzled?

 

[ClareScifi]

I did some research, and I read that if you find an egg in the coop first thing in the morning it is probably a result of Egg Drop Syndrome. Chalkiness of the shell ties in with that. Something new to worry about.

 

[ClareScifi]

I got this response from an expert:

If you continue to get this type of eggshell from the same hen, it is an indication that the oviduct (part of the composite reproductive sytem where eggs are formed) has been damaged by disease or trauma.

 

[christineavatar]

Good luck with the chicken and thank you for all your research.

 

[sandykopandy]

I just searched this and found your post. I have had a similar experience. My hen is a production red- excellent layer up until just recently most likely due to three digit temperatures. (We're in Austin, TX.) She went a couple days without laying and then today her egg had a white ring on the side of the shell, exactly as you describe! I know you said it may be related to an oviduct problem, but I'm going to assume that it's heat related, especially since you also mentioned the heat. (And heat sounds more curable too... at least in a couple months!)

 

[Ole rooster]

Be careful. A large brown one with a white ring can mean only one of two things. She has taken up with a skunk or either a coon. Watch her very carefully. She may have been recruited as an undercover chicken. A real chicken terrorist. Does she know how to open the gate?

 

[zippitydooda]

Quote:

 

[sandykopandy]

HAHAHHAAAAAAAA!!!!! That is a pretty great image you just created. If any hen would do such a thing, this one would. She's quite a character!

 

[PrepperChick]

I recently found rings on my brown eggs and have been trying to find out what caused them. I have two Americaunas, two Australorps, two Rhode Island Reds, and two Barred Rocks. I don't know which one laid the egg, but I live in the NW and we're at the end of October where it's getting in the 40's at night with the days in the 50's - 60's, so I don't think it's from heat. I'll continue to look, but really curious as to what's going on.