Why are my eggs rotten?

[amynrichie]

This has happened before, prior to my finding my Easter egger dead. Now I have ANOTHER Easter egger laying eggs that look like they have mold in them. I doubt it's mold. The egg had no obvious cracks in it prior to opening. It's been washed in warm water and stored in the refrigerator. This egg is probably a couple weeks old, but no more than that. I have never seen this in anything but my green eggs.

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[amynrichie]

I just cracked open two more green eggs and found another one.

 

[amynrichie]

Any thoughts on what this could be? An infection in the oviduct?

The hen looks great, running around doing chicken things, laying nearly every day. Her shells seem to be good quality, not the hardest shell I've seen, but certainly not crumbly and thin either.

I only have one easter egger, so there is no doubt as to who is laying these eggs. I had two unwashed EE eggs on the counter this morning. I checked them both and one of them had the green glob in it.

I have never seen this in any of my brown or white eggs. I'm thinking I may have to cull this hen.

 

[Chickenkeepr]

I've found eggs that had been stored in the fridge for a few weeks that have a bit of an "off" smell to them. Upon close inspection they were faintly cracked. I now candle all my eggs (simply using my cell phone light does the trick) and any previously invisible cracks are glaringly obvious. I seem to have one hen thats a bit rougher with the eggs than she should be, or they are getting stepped on.

Edited to add: I never did crack mine open because I already knew they were bad lol. Hopefully it's something as simple as a missed crack in your case.

 

[amynrichie]

There is no smell to them whatsoever. I have other eggs that get cracked from time to time, and have never seen this in them.

 

[amynrichie]

I'm really concerned about this. Does anyone else have any ideas what this might be? I summarized my info below.

* only the one hen ( Easter Egger)
* It also happened last fall. I thought the culprit was the EE that died. It could be both EE, or I just didn't notice because this one did not lay all winter.
*The EE hen looks to be in good condition.
*Eggs do not appear to be cracked. Other (brown) eggs that DO get cracked do NOT have this green "stuff"
*Eggs do not smell bad when opened.
*about 50% of her eggs look like this.
*Is this infection vs some weird malfunction where pigment is getting deposited INSIDE the egg? I have my doubts about it being pigment.
-the older the egg is the more green I find in it. I'm thinking some sort of fungal or bacterial growth. But HOW is it getting in the egg- and WHY only this hen's eggs?
*treatment vs cull?

Thanks,
Amy

 

[WPFarmstead]

Could it be a precursor infection to lash eggs?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Following.
I have not seen this.
Questions - have you felt of the "unknown substance" does it feel grainy/gritty or have any texture?
- What type of feed do you use, do you give any supplements?

Usually I reference two articles/links about egg quality issues, I did a quick look but didn't see anything similar. Hopefully we can track it down.

These are the links I usually use:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/publications/1/egg-quality-handbook/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/common-egg-quality-problems

 

[Eggcessive]

It can be a sign of pseudomonas or staphyloccus bacteria in the egg when there is green or blue in the albumen.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It can be a sign of pseudomonas or staphyloccus bacteria in the egg when there is green or blue in the albumen.

Thanks @Eggcessive was doing a bit more reading and was leaning toward the bacteria getting into the egg.
Does it mean there are hairline cracks in the egg or is the bacteria in the oviduct and enters the egg that way?