Hard yolk

[ChrisMath88]

Is it normal to have a firm yolk in a fresh egg. I cracked open two of my speckeldy's eggs today, fresh only laid in the last two days but the egg yolk is really firm before any cooking, I made a omelette with them, was a bit lumpy but still tasted good!


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[Small pumpkin]

I have no idea. If it helps, I get the odd one that dose that. Like you say they still taste fine. Just whisk a bit harder

[BUFFS]

your hen must have a hot bottom if the eggs cooked before you get it..

[ChrisMath88]

my hen that was laying the hard yolks had stopped laying for a while and then laid one today again as you can see with a firm yolk... She's looking healthy although her movement has slowed down compared to the other who wiz around everywhere, she just takes her time with everything. Does anyone know what could cause this and is it a sign of anything that could be more seriously wrong with her. Like I said looking at her you wouldn't think anything was wrong so I'm stumped.....


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[Scarlet]

I've never come across that before. What do you feed them?

[ChrisMath88]

Layers pellets and they forage in the garden, the others are all ok so I don't think it's the food. She might be egg bound so I'm going to try and treat her this weekend see if I can help her along with a warm bath and get some caster oil down her


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[Scarlet]

If she was egg bound she wouldn't lay an egg, it would be stuck inside, she wouldn't be moving much, you would feel the mass in her lower tummy and she would find it difficult to walk. Spending a lot of time in the nest box trying to get rid of it. Usually if it's not passed within a week, the end is near. I don't think she could be egg bound if she has laid.

I presume that egg had a shell on it? Older hens can lay a weird lump that is called a lash, which is a shell less mass, rubber like, that doesn't really resemble an egg apart from the size. This is usually toward the end of their laying days.

Has she had other laying problems, soft shells, not laying, misshapen shells etc. Hybrid hens are bred to produce a lot of eggs per year and egg quality in some strains suffer, this may just be a trait that is particular with the strain that she came from, she may also have a laying problem that is particular to her.

[ChrisMath88]

Never had a problem with her laying until she went broody at the start of the summer. She isn't that old about a year and a half. She stopped laying for a while obviously being broody, then a month or so later came out of being broody took a few weeks for her lay again then was fine for a week or so then started laying the firm yolked eggs for about a week. then stopped laying completely until she laid the one egg as shown in the picture, she is bigger in the abdomen than the others and hasn't moved a lot in the last week and does look sorry for herself now... I'll just have to keep an eye on her and keep her comfortable where I can


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[Scarlet]

Hmm, that's a long time not too be laying over the summer months even for a broody. They usually give up after a few weeks, especially hybrids. Did she show other broody signs when she's been sat in her box, fluffing up her feather etc.?

[ChrisMath88]

Sadly she didn't make it through the night, it's for the best she did seem to struggle through yesterday very quiet ate little and didn't move pretty much all day. I think it was being egg bound that got her. It was just I came to the conclusion too late I guess. At least I'll know the signs early on now if it ever happens again I'll know what to try and do to fix it. Hopefully if wont happen again...


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[veggiechicken]

Sorry Chris