Steph101 Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Wonder if anyone can help. Had a bit of a shock this morning. My husband bolied 4 eggs, and as he started to take the shell off the one, he noticed something dark showing through the white of the one of them. They were only laid yesterday, so I knew it was fresh. I cut it open, and there was something dark and solid (by solid, I mean firm) inside, firm, about half an inch long... I'm puzzled. Never heard ot this before. Imagine if we'd given it to somebody else? Can you help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Could it have been a large blood spot? It is a problem with home grown eggs as we are unable to screen them like the commercial suppliers do. I always crack mine into a small jug before adding them to anything. Blood spots tend to be more common in the eggs from older hens as well - if doing boiled eggs, I always use the ones from my youngest girls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steph101 Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 I've seen blood spots before - but this was quite large and firm to the touch - almost like a small mushroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 I've seen blood spots before - but this was quite large and firm to the touch -almost like a small mushroom. Probably a 'meat' spot then. Occasionally a bit of tissue gets incorporated into the egg and encased in the shell. Usually tiny but can be bigger. Again more common in older birds (and another reason I now avoid hard boiled eggs ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steph101 Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 A meat spot, then? That does make sense. It was a bit of a 'meaty' texture. A bit like bacon rind in parts. Is it that common, then? What is the cause, do you know? When you say older birds, how old exactly? My oldest bird isn't even two and a half yet, and the rest about 21 months old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 That sounds exactly right then. After their first year of laying, eggs from hybrids do decrease gradually in quality - larger eggs but thinner, less uniform shells; higher instance of blood and meat spots; more watery whites. It's one of the reasons why the battery farms cull them after 12 - 18 months. A meat spot is just a bit of the lining of the egg laying tackle becoming detached and incorporated into the egg. Sometimes they can lay a large meaty piece on it's own - it's known as a lash. All completely harmless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steph101 Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 Thanks for your reply, that's really helpful. Is this one of the downsides to having hybrids then, do you think? I've only got hybrids. I've always thought they're brilliant in every way; docile, loads of personality, friendly, cheaper than pure breeds, and prolific layers. I've struggled to see the benefits of having pure breeds. Is this one of the benefits of pure breeds, then? Less problems with eggs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Seems to be. Although some hybrids seem to lay better for longer. But the gingernuts/warrens/isa browns seem to run out of steam quite quickly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollie333 Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Wow.. Never come past them in my eggs, and i give them away! Couldnt give any more advice than Snowy. Goodluck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steph101 Posted March 31, 2010 Author Share Posted March 31, 2010 Yes, it's made me think twice about which ones to give away and keep now. We've got a couple of white stars, and their eggs are always perfect. Maybe I'll go for more white stars in future. I do love my gingers though. They're friendly little birds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
