AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

Hi

One of my Isa Brown's eggs have been getting progressively lighter and ligter in colour over the last five days (see picy below). Her eggs use to be a really nice brown and in the last five days they have been getting lighter and lighter each day.

What would be causing this?

I haven't changed their diet or given them anything new.

This is very puzzeling.

Cheers
Chicka-Dee

Hi, Chicka-Dee ,

Stress can contribute to egg pigmentation discolouration, it is common in commercial hybrid brown egg laying birds.

Has anything stressed that particular hen the past five days? Is she suffering from any anxiety? Has she become particularly nervous for some reason?

Maybe moving into the luxurious new coop has stressed her? Maybe she has some sort of adjustment disorder from the move?

Chooks are very sensitive creatures.

Also the age of the bird will contribute to the decrease in eggshell pigmentation.

Hi PP

I really have no idea. She (Carmel) is the windger of the group. She is soooo vocal it almost drives you nuts. She talks ALL the time & never shuts up. But she has always done this, even in the old cage. I don't even have to see her to know it is her that is talking. Honestly I think if she was human she would be related to The Nanny Fran Fine!!! Lol.

I honestly don't know if she is unhappy. She doesn't seem to be unhappy. Maybe the talking is a sign that she is? She eats out of my hand and let's me cuddle her without trying to struggle out of my arms, and seems quite relaxed. She lays on time and eats everything that the others eat.

She's only 8 months old so it's not age....maybe it is the move. I know she hasn't moved down the ranks on the pecking order, because since Clara has moved into the other pen she has gone up the ranks.

Yes they are very sensitive little creatures aren't they PP. Wouldn't have them any other way. I love it when they settle in for cuddles & almost snuggle.

But this little one has me puzzled with the reduction of her egg colour, cause they use to be really golden brown.

Hi Chicka-Dee,

my Barnevelders have shown a change in egg shell colour as the season progresses too. They used to be a good brown colour and now they are a lot paler. I'm sure I read somewhere that this happens over the laying season and after they moult (assuming it isn't health related) the eggs go back to near their original colour. I'm still waiting for mine to come back into lay to know if this is true yet.

Are you sure this is the colour they are being laid at? My eggs discolour and darken a bit they sit in the carton in the fridge. Just by the look of the progression in colour it just strikes me as too even and such a distinct change in colour over only 5 eggs, I was just wondering if it is related to the length of time since they were laid.

Those 5 eggs were laid over 5 consecutive days, then on the 6th the colour started to come back and now she is back to full brown eggs.

It was totally weird. None of the other girls had any egg discoloration at all, they all ate the same foods, the only thing I don't know, is how much she ate or didnt eat, compared to the others.

Complete mystery.

Fascinating

Once again, I think it may be stress factors, something may have upset her that week.

Just goes to show what sensitive little creatures they really are and can be!

Diet also plays an important factor in the colour of the egg shell. As Johs mentioned the eggs tend to get lighter in colour as the season progresses. The hen will have a store of the various components that make up the egg shell and yolk colour at the start of the season, as the hen lays if the diet does not have these elements then the hen will use her reserves. If you feed them something extra to their diet like a cabbage head or lucern chaff (soaked over night), you will notice the egg shells get darker of the next few days, then will lighten off if they no longer get this extra food.

I let my hens out on to the lawn every other day and give them various weeds from the garden as well. The cabbage just seems to have something extra in it.

If you have yellow legged hen, you will notice at the start of the season they have nice yellow legs but those laying more will soon loose the yellow legs and these will be more whitish.

Stress / illness will also impact the colour of the egg shell in a laying hen.

RR