Speckledy Eggs

[Gorsty]

Hi folks

No problem really but just interested ....

One of my Barnevelders has started to lay speckledy eggs - why do you think this has happened? They have been plain brown for weeks.

Any ideas? What causes the freckles?

Bye for now

[MaureenHall]

It might be something she's eaten. My friend puts her tealeaves out for the chooks and often gets speckledy eggs after they've eaten them

[lynda66]

if they are like marans they kind of paint the outside of the egg as it's made with brown pigment, this takes time to become constant, hence you will get shades of brown and speckles, especially if they are young birds .... they also start to l.ose pigment as they get older

if they aren't like marans in that respect ... i have no idea lol

[RichmondHens]

Yep Lynda is right. It happens to my Welsummer eggs too.

[lynda66]

Yep Lynda is right. It happens to my Welsummer eggs too.

yay go me lol x

[bluemoon]

I'd love speckeldy eggs, but my Marans don't seem to want to lay them. One of my books says that if a hen starts to lay speckeldy ones suddenly, it might be an idea to check for red mite as the mites get squashed during laying, then dry out brown, giving the egg an appearance of being speckled. You can check by seeing if you can scratch the speckles off with a thumb nail, or by wetting them to see if they go red again. I would have thought that if this were the case with yours though then all the hens would be doing it and not just the one, so it sounds as if you're just lucky, I'm quite jealous. Does anyone know if speckeldy hybrids lay speckeldy eggs?

[Suechooks]

My Speckledy lays a plain brown egg. However my Amber Link lays a speckled egg and always has.

[MrsC]

My Speckledy lays speckledy eggs

[lettucegrow!]

Strange,my white/brown hybrid has just started adding speckles to her eggs. Must be the fashion at the moment!!