wierd thing just happened... soft egg

[top of the hill]

wierdest thing just happened, I was out in the coop chilling with the ladies when I noticed one of my RIR's was acting strange. Very quiet, kept to herself and wouldn't touch the raisen I tried to hand feed her. So of course my motherly instincts kicked in and I immediatly think of what BYC has taught me.

I feel her crop, feels full a little hard so I give it a little massage to try and loosen things up yet she's still out of sorts. So I run to the kitchen and grab the olive oil and a q-tip thinking I can run it along her beak and she'll drink it. That was sort of working until the other girls ran in and grabbed the q-tip from me! then, all of the sudden my RIR opened her wings, puffed up a bit and went into a deep squat. she made no noise, quiet as a church mouse, and out it came... a super soft squishy egg!

I was a little shocked as to what I had just witnessed partly because I've never seen it happen before but also becasue she had already laid an egg that morning, and it was perfect. Is this normal when pullets first start laying? I put the small bowl of evoo on the ground and scooped up this strange looking egg to examine it closer. Next thing I know the girls (including the RIR) are lapping up the evoo! well, at least they'll have healthy hearts!

I poured a bowl of oyster shells in hopes that my RIR would munch on it (which she did) so hopefully that will help.

here's a pic:

Its a little dirty as it was quite sticky when she laid it. I tried to squeeze w/o breaking to show how soft.

 

[ThePamperedPullet]

Just about anything is possible with young layers. If she laid an egg this morning then laid this one it is just a matter of her system is not quite set yet. As the pullets age, their systems will become more regulated and the eggs will be more normal. Her system kicked out a second oocyst before the first egg was finished. You will want to watch her so that this doesn't continue to happen or she could become an internal layer which is not a good thing but it is rare. I think you will find that she will be just fine and go on to lay normally after this. Just one of those things with new layers.

 

[ChickenAl]

Had the same thing happen right at our feet when ours started laying in July. She was fine after that. We called it a rubber egg. Got a few from the others too, but they all lay fine now.

They will lay at odd hours too until their systems gets into a regular routine. Should be fine in a couple of weeks.

 

[top of the hill]

Thanks all for your responses! Glad to know she will be ok. I cut it open and it looked beautiful on the inside. Ill post a pic in the morning.