Thank you so much.

Very educational.

Great way to make a teachable, highly informative lesson out of a terrible loss. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for sharing this. It was perfect for my son’s project on the egg cycle.

I am 60 years old, and this is really fascinating. I just asked google where the eggs come out of chickens.

Thanks for the real pictures. I’m sorry Birta had to pass, but I appreciate her contribution to science.

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator. Thank you.

We are backyard chicken enthusiasts and she is doing a presentation on weird eggs and how they happen. We needed a brief age appropriate back presentation on how chickens lay eggs.

Perfect diagram for her project. You are very welcome.

How about a hen is now laying eggs only half the size she was. Is she sick.

It is very common for a hen to lay an extra small egg now and then – some don’t even have yolks in them. These can happen when a small piece of the oviduct comes loose and the body mistakes it for a yolk and encases it in a shell.

If that is ALL she is laying all of a sudden, she may have a problem inside her oviduct causing this.

Your web site is very helpful. Thank you so much.

I am a writter and I train people of backyard chickens and I am preparing a new webinaire and foudn your picture has excellent resolution to use in a backround video. Thanks, Louise From Canada.

And thank you for asking.

Let us know what you think. We LOVE getting feedback.

Due to spam I have had to turn Comment Moderation on to prevent the garbage from piling up. Sorry for the inconvenience.

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Egg-laying chickens lay up to one egg per day at their peak. But how do chickens lay eggs.

The process takes 24 – 26 hours per egg. Eggs are formed from the inside out, starting with the egg yolk, egg white and egg shape.

In the “pets with benefits” equation, farm fresh eggs are protein-packed gifts that families diving into self-sufficiency have come to love. But how often do chickens lay eggs.

The magic behind each farm fresh egg is a 24-to-26-hour process, with much of the work happening overnight. At their peak, laying hens can lay up to one egg per day.

The shell defends the yolk from harmful bacteria and keeps the chick or yolk safe. Hens spend much of the egg formation process making sure the calcium-rich shell is strong and protective.

The fact that shells are created at night is clear when looking at the egg formation timeline. For example, if a hen started the process at 7 a.m., she would create the eggshell starting around 12 p.m.

To ensure your laying hens achieve a consistent supply of calcium through a blend of oyster shell, vitamin D and manganese, all Purina® premium layer feeds are infused with the Oyster Strong® System. This exclusive system utilizes larger particles of oyster shell to provide a slow and steady release of calcium during the night when hens are forming eggshells.

Here is an approximate timeline for how an egg is formed: Each female chick is born with thousands of immature yolks, known as chicken ova.

Once a yolk has been selected to develop, it spends the next 10 days growing. When it is time for the yolk to be released, it breaks out of its protective membrane and drops into the infundibulum or the beginning of the oviduct.

As the egg enters the hen’s reproductive tract, the egg white begins formation, starting with a clear, protective yolk casing called the vitelline membrane. As the yolk enters the magnum, layers of thick and thin proteins, known as the albumen, create the egg white.

This spinning motion causes the formation of the chalazae or the white, stringy pieces you see in an egg. The chalazae’s role is to keep the egg yolk in the center of the egg instead of sticking to the shell.

Just before the egg enters the shell gland, it spends an hour in the isthmus. While there, the inner and outer shell membranes are added around the albumen and the contents begin to take on the oval shape you expect.

The developing egg spends about 20 hours in the shell gland, where the shell is formed and eggshell color is added during the last 5 hours. The shell formation takes the most amount of time to complete.

A solid shell is the best defense against bacteria that will try to get inside the egg. Eggshell formation requires about 4 grams of calcium per shell.

Hens that lack proper calcium levels typically produce soft or brittle eggshells. Sometimes an improper calcium balance can cause hens to pull calcium from their bones to produce eggshells, weakening their overall skeletal structure.

Which layer feed Oyster Strong® System is right for your flock.

Both large and small farms raise chickens, turkeys, ducks, and other birds for eggs. It is a great way for many to get children involved by giving them a job on your farm.

Often, it is up to individual farm decisions and state regulations regarding whether or not to wash your eggs.

Salmonella, a disease associated with poultry, can also be passed through contaminated shells. Dirty shells contaminate clean cooking areas, kitchen utensils, food, or hands.

Even shells that appear clean can carry germs. Even so, eggs do not need to be washed.

Whether or not to wash your eggs comes down to personal beliefs or state regulations. In some states, you must wash your eggs before you sell them.

Check out your state regulations about farm selling before choosing to wash or not wash your eggs.

Whether your birds are housed in coops, cages, runs, or free-range, it is important to keep their housing clean. If you are using closed facilities, changing bedding/litter can often keep feces and debris, like feathers, off your eggs.

If there are small amounts of debris or feces, wipe eggs with a towel or sandpaper. Do not scrub as you may damage the shell.

Using 90-120°F, wash eggs and remove debris. Avoid letting eggs soak.

If using soap, use unscented soap to wash your eggs. Warm water allows the egg to expand and push bacteria out, but cold water pulls the bacteria in.

Sanitizing your eggs lessens the microbial load on the shell. Using a chlorine-based sanitizer between 50-100ppm protects the cuticle of the egg while sanitizing.

For organic producers, the final rinse must not exceed a chlorine level of 4ppm. After sanitizing, let dry and store promptly in a refrigerator set between 35-40°F.

If you choose not to wash your eggs, gently brush debris and feces from the eggs using a cloth. Then safely store them in a cool place in your house.

Before using or eating, wash with warm water to remove any dirt.

After handling your eggs, make sure to thoroughly wash your hands. Safe cooking techniques prevent bacteria, such as Salmonella, from persisting in your eggs.

CFSPH-Cleaning and Disinfection on the Farm: Farm Fresh Eggs. CSU Extension-Home-Produced Chicken Eggs.

USDA-Guidelines for Organic Certification of Poultry. PennState Extension-What Do I Do With All These Eggs.

NPR-Why the U.S. Chills Its Eggs And Most Of The World Doesn’t.

Refrigerate Eggs When the Much of the World Doesn’t.

You wanna talk about a mess – they tend to migrate on the back porch, the front porch, the summer kitchen porch, in the garage, on my picnic table, in the garden and on the kids play set. Hens don’t wander far from their food, water and protection so it’s time for a move.

We will be able to move them to different parts of the pasture as well which they will enjoy exploring.

”, “How quickly should I get them in the fridge. ”, “Can I leave them on the counter.

We have become accustom to the idea of putting everything in the fridge to keep it lasting longer and to prevent contamination. When you go to the grocery store where are the eggs.

Did you know in the UK, eggs are on a stable shelf without refrigeration in the baking aisle. Other countries in Asia and around the world happily keep their eggs on the counter while here in the US, we hide them away in the fridge.

Washing is the biggest reason commercial eggs (and even many small farms) are refrigerated.

Some small farms choose to follow this practice as well. The idea behind this… the more chickens you have, the more likely Salmonella can exist.

This is no way for these lovely birds who provide us food should live – but that’s a discussion topic for another day. So, the eggs are washed in a non-fragrant soap (no Bath and Body Works scented eggs allowed), then rinsed with a chemical/sanitation-water mix to remove any bacteria from the washing cycle.

It already has it’s own protection layer – isn’t that amazing.

The ‘bloom’ prevents bacteria from entering inside the egg (hence why the chemical/sanitation step in commercial egg production is critical).

According to an interview Nadia Arumugam of Forbes had with Mark Williams, Chief Executive, British Egg Industry Council “In Europe, the understanding is that this mandate actually encourages good husbandry on farms. It’s in the farmers’ best interests then to produce the cleanest eggs possible, as no one is going to buy their eggs if they’re dirty,”.

We have nesting boxes that once laid, the egg gently rolls away from then hen into a protective area util collected. Eggs are collected daily – this helps ensure no added dirt or grime on the eggs.

As long as the UN-washed eggs that were collected are not placed in a fridge they don’t need to be refrigerated. They can actually stay on your counter for 2 weeks (then placed in the fridge for up to 3 months).

This condensation may remove the bloom and allow for bacteria to enter the egg. All commercial as well as all WASHED eggs MUST be refrigerated.

washing eggs does remove contaminates but it jeopardizes the natural protective layer already in place to keep contaminates out. We recommend buying UN-washed eggs and giving them a wash just before you use them (unless boiling them – the boiling water will sanitize the egg).

And once refrigerated, keep your eggs refrigerated. Until we see you on the Farm again… Peace and Love,.

We all know that you don’t need a rooster to get an egg, right. Our hens will lay an egg daily with or without any assistance from the male sex.

A rooster is genetically programmed to take the task of populating the world with his offspring, and he is single-minded about it, dedicated even.

Courtship, mating, and raising brood starts in the springtime. The increase in daylight energizes the hormones, and the increase in hormones leads to procreation behaviors.

These hormones, in turn, produce a cascade of other hormones necessary for the development of the yolk and the soon-to-be embryo. You should remember that many of today’s chicken breeds have had the innate ability to become broody bred out of them, so few, if any, will sit on eggs for you.

An interesting thing to note here is that broodiness is ‘infectious.’ If you get one hen to go broody, you will likely have at least one more of the ladies who want to brood.

Some roosters are a little bit romantic – others not so much. To indicate interest in a particular hen, the rooster will perform the courtship dance.

This is his ‘come hither dance, and he will repeat it until she either indicates she likes him or walks away from him. Hens’ are no easy mark, though – they will have evaluated his merits as a suitor.

Is he a good protector. Is he healthy.

And is he sexy. (a red comb and wattles really get the ladies interested).

If not, she will ignore him. He will start ‘tid-bitting’ in earnest once spring arrives.

If it turns out to be nothing of interest to the hen, she will brush him off, so he must be on top form in several arenas of showmanship and ability to win her approval. Occasionally, a hen will dislike the rooster and may never mate with him at all, but this is rather unusual.

If they decide they don’t want the sperm from the mating, they can eject most sperm to avoid fertilization. If you are witnessing a mating for the first time, you can be forgiven for thinking it’s more akin to rape than ‘love,’ but fortunately, the hens don’t see it that way.

Roosters are very zealous in their mating practices. He can mate anywhere from 10-30 times per day depending on the level of co-operation from the ladies.

The optimum time for mating is early morning, when his sperm load can be anywhere between 100 million – 5 billion sperm.

He will mount her from the back, grabbing her head feathers in his beak and treading her with his feet to find a stable spot on which he can balance. What happens next is called the “cloacal kiss”.

The papilla is what passes the sperm. During this “cloacal kiss” the hen must open up her cloaca so his sperm can reach the unborn/unlaid eggs in her oviduct.

The sperm that he passed will fertilize the eggs she had that day and some days after. He will use his claws to get a steady grip on her – this is where most injuries to hens occur.

You can help the hen to ensure that the roosters’ spurs are short and if he is frequently mating with certain hens, fit them out with a hen saddle for protection. See Price on Amazon.

The rooster has two working testes which are located in his abdomen very near to the kidneys. He can constantly manufacture sperm as needed for mating – ever ready.

He has something called a papilla inside his cloaca. The papilla is a tiny ‘bump’ on the cloacal wall.

A hen is born with two ovaries, but the right one usually atrophies and dies, so the left ovary is the one that will carry all the eggs a hen will ever lay and then some.

When it is ready to be dispatched, it is dropped into the infundibulum of the oviduct, where it begins its’ descent. For an in-depth look at chicken reproductive anatomy, see our article.

Rooster sperm is viable for 7-10 days inside the pockets, although fresh is best. However, sperm intent on fertilizing travel on up into the area of the oviduct known as the infundibulum to ensure success.

Once the rooster DNA is delivered to the hen DNA in the germinal disc, they fuse and become a zygote (fertilized seed). It takes about 5 hours for cell division to start, and at this point, it is called a blastoderm or embryo.

This includes laying down albumin, building the shell, and applying the bloom before the eggs lay. If our hen is interested in being a mother, she will now find herself a nesting place that is quiet and dark.

The number in a cache is variable, but you should try to make sure she can cover all the eggs she has 5-8 is a reasonable number. If she has too many, remove some to another hen or incubator.

If you allow the hens to hatch their own, you can do a few things to make the process smooth. Firstly, make sure the rooster can’t hurt her during mating – trim spurs and talons.

Secondly, when she is looking for a dark and secure place to set, try to encourage her into a small separate area where she can be undisturbed by the other birds. Add in a feeder and waterer, so she has her own little ‘apartment,’ and she should be all set.

Once our hen has decided she has enough eggs to sit on, she will start to brood. This means she will sit on those eggs for the next 21 days until they hatch or die.

Once she becomes fully broody, the rooster will not fuss with her. He may be a Mr.

His involvement with the chicks will not start until they are hatched. Our broody will diligently turn, warm, and fuss over her eggs for the next 21 days.

You may see her once a day run out to poop, perhaps have a quick dust bath and then run back to the nest where she will rearrange her eggs before sitting again – total dedication.

No one will mess with a broody hen and chicks – she will defend them most vigorously. They will learn all they need to know from her, and if the rooster is a ‘family guy,’ he, too, will take turns looking out for his offspring.

Well the quickest, but most destructive way is to crack the egg open. A fertilized chicken egg has a white spot on the yoke.

However, once you have cracked the egg open it is open to bacteria and cannot grow into a chick so it must be thrown out. Another way to tell if an egg is fertilized is to use candling.

When you’re in the room put a flashlight underneath it. If the egg is fertilized it should have a clear spot with veins within the egg.

A rooster inseminates a hen with his sperm by jumping on her back, lowering his tail, and touching her cloaca with his. As we mentioned earlier, this is called the “cloacal kiss”.

The papilla is what passes the sperm. During this “cloacal kiss” the hen must open up her cloaca so his sperm can reach the unborn/unlaid eggs.

The frenetic mating activity of spring and early summer will start to moderate when the days get too hot and humid. By this time, the broody Mama.

Egg binding is a serious condition that can mean death for a laying hen. It essentially stops up all the body functions and causes extreme stress and pain for the hen.

With proper care, an egg bound hen may be able to recover. It is also important to know what causes egg binding and how you can prevent it in your backyard flock.

Egg binding, also known as oviduct impaction, occurs when an egg gets stuck in the cloaca and is unable to be laid. An egg bound chicken can quickly go into shock and die from egg binding.

The stuck egg also inhibits the hen from expelling feces, which then leads to constipation and even infection from non-expelled body waste.

However, there are several causes for egg binding even in healthy, young laying hens:. Large Eggs – Eggs that are abnormally large for the hen can lead to egg binding.

Odd Eggs – Eggs that are not the normal oblong, oval shape of a traditional egg can get stuck in the cloaca and cause oviduct impaction. Odd-shaped eggs can be a result of injury, age, genetics, disease, or diet.

Old Hens – As hens get older, their reproductive system naturally slows down and the muscles needed for laying an egg lose tone and get weaker, which can contribute to egg binding if the hen can’t expel the egg.

The extra fat puts pressure on the muscles needed for laying an egg.

Calcium Deficiency – Calcium is needed to stimulate the muscle contractions used during egg laying. A calcium deficiency can lead to egg binding issues.

Disease – Disease, infection, or parasites can cause the oviduct to swell or cause malnutrition which would inhibit proper laying.

Production and hybrid breeds are more prone to being genetically pre-disposed to egg binding.

Let’s take a quick look at a hen’s reproductive system so you can get a better understanding of how egg binding affects the laying process. Within an unhatched egg, a female embryo will develop her left ovary and oviduct.

The ovary consists of a cluster of many undeveloped yolks, called ova. A hen will never run out of ova during her productive life.

Once the female chicken is mature, hormones will trigger the ovary to release one mature ova into the oviduct. During a laying cycle, each ova is released about an hour after the last ova, which causes a hen to lay her egg about an hour later each day.

A released ova enters the first part of the oviduct called the infundibulum. At this point, if there is sperm present from the hen mating with a rooster the ova will be fertilized.

Then it moves into the oviduct isthmus where the ova and albumen are encased in several membranes.

The shell is coated in a thin, protective coating in the vagina right before it passes into the cloaca to be laid. This protective coating is often called the bloom or cuticle of an egg.

The point at which egg binding may occur is right before the egg is laid. When an egg is shaped in the uterus, the pointy end comes first to proceed through the rest of the egg forming process.

This rotation process is where egg binding can occur. Usually if an egg gets stuck in the rotation process, you may not be able to see the egg even if the hen is exhibiting symptoms of being egg bound.

A hen can also become egg bound right before the egg is pushed out. The muscle contractions that are intended to push the egg out of the cloaca may not be strong enough to finish the laying process.

A blockage of more than 24 hours can cause another egg to build up behind the stuck egg.

Egg bound chicken symptoms are fairly easy to recognize, however, you must be careful not to mistake them for other signs of illness or disease. Egg binding is often characterized by a sudden onset of symptoms.

If you are unsure if a hen is egg bound and you can’t visibly see part of the egg, you can gently feel inside the hen’s cloaca for an egg. Do so by lubricating your finger with olive oil and carefully inserting it into the hen’s vent.

Be careful not to stretch or break the delicate skin of the vent when you are feeling for the egg.

Cystic right oviduct can be caused by another illness or disease as well.

The longer a hen is egg bound, the less chance she has to fully recover from the condition. Here is the care an egg-bound hen should receive immediately upon diagnosis:.

Quarantine- Move the hen into a separate space away from the rest of the flock. Ideally the location should be dimly lit, quiet, and warm.

A good standard to go by is keep the quarantine area between 60-65°F. Make sure the area has soft litter for nesting (like large flake wood shavings or straw) and the hen can access food and water if she desires.

Step #2. Hydration- Encourage the hen to drink water to help her stay hydrated.

Avoid adding supplements to the hen’s water that could cause her to stop drinking due to the flavor of the water.

Nutritional Support- While an egg-bound hen may not be too interested in food, make sure she at least has the option to eat. Supply the hen’s normal layer feed in an easy to access spot.

Calcium promotes proper muscle contractions for pushing out the egg. While crushed tums and vitamin supplements can be offered, using calcium concentrate is the most effective way to supplement calcium.

Offering calcium supplements prior to a warm water soak can be beneficial too.

Here are several ways to help an egg-bound chicken:. A non-invasive way to treat an egg-bound hen is to use warm water soaks and gentle massages to help the hen pass the egg on her own.

The warm water and salts will help relax the hen’s muscles. Make sure the water is deep enough so that the hen’s vent is submerged in the water.

Remove the hen from the water and gently dry her off with a soft towel. Keep her in a warm location while she finishes drying.

In conjunction with the warm water soaks, you can also massage the egg externally. An external massage would involve gently massaging the hen’s abdomen to help maneuver the egg into a proper position for laying.

You don’t want the egg to break while it’s still inside the hen and you don’t want to push the egg out and cause pro-lapsed vent or vent tears.

You can use petroleum jelly, olive oil, warm saline solution, poultry wound wash, or soapy water to lubricate around the hen’s vent.

A veterinarian can do an X-ray to confirm that the hen is egg bound. They can also administer calcium supplements in the proper dosage or use hormonal injections to encourage muscle contractions for the egg to be laid.

If the egg still hasn’t been laid, it may be time to consider last-resort efforts to save the hen’s life. A manual or surgical intervention may be necessary to prevent the hen from going into shock or getting blockages that can lead to infection.

Eggs are one of the most versatile foods around. They can be the star of the show (omelette, quiche), the supporting actor to other ingredients (pad thai, spaghetti carbonara) or the hidden hero by making a cake rise or giving a soufflé its fluff.

An egg develops through multiple stages during its time inside a hen. A yolk is encased in layers of egg white and protective membranes, sealed within a shell and coated with a fast-drying protective fluid.

The hen breeds used in commercial egg farming start laying eggs at around 16-18 weeks (four months) old. The first eggs laid by hens at this young age are relatively small at about 45-50 grams.

Commercial laying hens continue to produce first quality eggs until they are about one and a half years old. After this, their eggs become fewer and shell quality decreases which leads to more cracking and breaking.

There are no roosters on commercial egg farms and hens lay only unfertilised eggs. A hen requires around 24-26 hours to produce an egg and after it is laid, the process starts all over again about 30 minutes later.

This process happens in specialist hatcheries, not on egg farms.

Birds are unique among animals because only one ovary (the left) matures to the stage where it releases eggs. When a yolk is ready, it moves out of the ovary and into the oviduct – a tube-like structure that is divided into different sections.

There are many different proteins that make up the egg white. The different protein layers provide protection for the yolk and create a template for the formation of the shell membrane and shell.

The process is called calcification as layers of calcium carbonate are added to form the shell. During the last two hours of shell formation the bulk of the pigment (white or brown) is produced and deposited into the outer layers of the shell.

The egg then rotates just before laying to be laid large end first, having moved through the oviduct small end first. Adult hens need about 14 hours of daylight to lay eggs consistently and different lighting programs are used depending on the farming system, geographic location and season.

Most commercial farms use artificial lighting to some degree to get a consistent level of egg-laying all year round. Eggs are produced using different methods with the three most common being free range, barn-laid, and cage.

Learn more about these different farming systems today or take Australian Eggs’ interactive tour of three commercial egg farms.

So productive are our American hens that the United States is able to export nearly $600 million worth of eggs each year, making us the world’s second-largest egg exporter, according to OCE.

The top country we get our eggs from turns out to be.. Canada.

They’re sending us theirs -– what, are people just standing there on the northern border, tossing eggs back and forth.

also imports a large number of eggs from the U.K., the Netherlands, Turkey, China, and France. As to why we would both import and export the same commodity, well, different factors like transportation costs, fluctuating supplies, and the commerce of two-way trade likely play a role.

Learn all about raising backyard chickens from small beginnings with chicks and eggs to identifying problems within backyard flocks and how to fix them in Pam Freeman’s Backyard Chickens Beyond the Basics (Voyageur Press, 2017). Freeman’s practical advice makes chicken keeping easier with these guidelines.

You can purchase this book from the Capper’s Farmer store: Backyard Chickens Beyond the Basics. Once your chickens are finally old enough to lay eggs, it’s exciting to head out to the coop and check the nest boxes to see if you’ve gotten any eggs that day.

When the first egg came from my first flock, I was so excited. I’d been waiting and checking the nest boxes every day.

And then suddenly there it was. I remember grabbing that egg and running inside to show my family.

We debated whether to keep that egg or cook it. In the end, we couldn’t resist tasting it.

It was delicious and we were forever hooked on the creamy flavor of the backyard egg. Over the next few days, we received more and more eggs.

When my dad came to pick some up, I immediately opened the egg carton and preened over the beauty of my fresh eggs. My dad, who grew up in the city, just stood and looked at the eggs.

He asked why they were smaller than store bought eggs. I explained that chickens lay small eggs when they first start laying but not to worry because they get bigger over time.

He took the eggs home but looked befuddled as he was leaving. I got a call from my mom that night.

Apparently he had taken the eggs to my mom and told her not to worry that they were small, to just leave them in the refrigerator for a few days and they’d get bigger. He told her he never knew eggs grew.

It took me a second to realize what my mom was telling me. My dad thought that eggs them-selves grew in size once they were laid until they reached the size you see in the stores.

She explained to my dad that when an egg is laid, it doesn’t grow in size. Hens that are just getting into the swing of laying, lay smaller eggs until their bodies fully adjust to the laying cycle.

He loves the eggs they produce. Beyond loving the eggs backyard chickens produce, this chapter takes fresh eggs to another level of understanding by exploring exactly how eggs are formed inside a hen, how eggs get their color, which chicken breeds lay colored eggs, the parts of an egg, and how to properly store eggs.

You’ll never look at an egg the same way again.

Many folks raise different breeds of chickens just for the color of eggs they lay. There’s nothing wrong with this.

There are so many egg colors to choose from: white, brown, olive green, dark chocolate brown, and blue. Just how eggs get these unusual colors and whether or not they taste different are questions many chicken keepers have.

We’ve also seen people look at green and blue eggs and ask how they taste. I actually even hear it from chicken keepers themselves: they will swear that one color egg tastes different than another.

To understand how an egg is formed is to understand how egg color is applied—and why it doesn’t affect taste. From this, you can see that he flavorful parts of an egg are intact before the eggshell is ever formed.

Tip: With some exceptions, you can generally tell what color egg a chicken will lay by looking at its earlobes. White lobes equal white eggs.

She has tens of thousands of ova contained in her ovaries. As she grows, her left ovary matures and becomes her only functional ovary.

Once a hen is mature, she has the capability to begin laying eggs. At maturity, her body starts to add yolk to the ova.

On day two, another layer of yolk is added to the first ovum and a layer is added to the next ovum. This goes on down the line until the first ovum is mature and ovulation takes place.

At ovulation, the follicle surrounding the ovum ruptures and releases the yolk into the oviduct and the 25-hour process of forming an egg begins. The oviduct, a canal where the rest of the egg is formed, is about 25 inches long and has five distinct areas where different parts of the egg formation take place: the infundibulum, magnum, isthmus, shell gland, and vagina.

The yolk spends about 15 to 30 minutes at this point where the chalazae are added to keep the yolk in the proper place in the middle of the egg. If you have a rooster, this is where the egg is fertilized.

The yolk then moves down the oviduct to the magnum, a 13-inch-long area where the egg white forms, and then to the isthmus, a 4-inch-long area, where it is covered by the inner and outer shell membranes. This process in these two areas takes around four hours.

All eggs start out white because they are formed of calcite, which is a crystallized form of calcium carbonate that’s naturally white. If you have a white egg–laying chicken, then no pigment is added after the shell is formed.

If you have a brown egg–laying chicken, the brown pigment, protoporphyrin, is applied fairly late in the shell formation, after the white base has been laid. Because it’s applied so late, the brown pigment does not penetrate through the shell, leaving the inside of a brown eggshell white.

It starts with the blue pigment being applied, followed by brown pigment. Since the brown pigment is applied late in the process, it doesn’t sink through the entire shell, but it does mix with the blue on the surface to create green.

In the vagina, the bloom, or protective covering, is added to the egg. As the egg travels through the oviduct, it travels small end first.

Fun Fact: Near the shell gland and the vagina is the sperm host gland. This gland’s sole purpose is to promote reproduction of the species.

When an egg is laid, a small amount of sperm is squeezed out of this gland and then travels up to the infundibulum where it can fertilize the next mature ovum. Sperm can live in the host gland for about two weeks.

Hens can “dump” sperm from a lesser rooster in favor of that from a lead rooster. The cloaca in both hens and roosters is where the digestive, excretory and reproductive tracts all come together.

stays wrapped around the egg while it moves through the cloaca. This shuts off the intestinal opening as the egg is laid.

Once you’re familiar with how an egg is formed, simple math outlines a hen’s laying cycle. After a hen lays an egg she will ovulate in the next half hour or so.

Eventually a hen will skip a day or two from egg laying to catch up. This composes a laying cycle and can vary from 12 days to almost a year depending on the breed of hen.

For many backyard chicken keepers, it’s all about the eggs: those nutrition-packed gifts from our hens. Nowadays, if you want to move those eggs from place to place, you stuff them into a card-board or plastic egg carton for quick and easy transport to your family, friends, and customers.

In the early 1900s, eggs were just as sought after as they are today, and folks needed some way to safely transport their eggs. In 1903, a patent was issued for a wooden egg carrier with a removable cardboard insert and a metal slider that could join multiple stacks of carriers.

Elbs with the STAR trademark. An advertis.

Here are the breeds of chickens that lay colored eggs… so your kitchen can be full of eggs that are fresh, delicious, and beautiful.

It is not because of their diet, or living conditions, or anything else that people may wonder. It’s just the way they are.

Bumps or speckles on eggs can be caused by excess calcium or a change in diet, but colored shells are not. Well… there’s really none, besides the fact that they are beautiful.

In fact, most of these breeds are more expensive than “regular” brown or white egg laying hens. Additionally, many of them lay fewer eggs and eat more food than some of the very practical egg-laying chickens.

I have seen them listed for as much as 8 dollars per dozen in one of our local markets. But if you aren’t selling them, you would choose them just for the love of color.

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They lay soft brown eggs that are much more beautiful than the cheap white ones available at the grocery store. Brown eggs are the most common color of egg from a backyard chicken.

So even though they aren’t exactly colored eggs, we will include them on our list because they are an excellent all-around breed and brown eggs are still relatively exciting.

They have a charming name and are inexpensive to buy. But beware, the Easter Egger is not an official breed.

If you don’t want chickens for show and aren’t breeding them on your own, this might not matter to you one bit.

So if you have your heart set on a specific color, they might not be the best choice.

They are a cross between any brown egg layer and any blue egg layer.

They are a beautiful addition to your flock if you are looking for just a few more chicks to round out your order. Now, I know this list is about chicken that lay colored eggs, but don’t forget the value of white eggs.

Having white eggs mixed in with brown and colored eggs looks beautiful and helps the colors blend together nicely. If you want the most beautiful and appealing mix of colors in your egg basket, add some white egg layers to your flock.

If you want eggs that are a true, beautiful blue, then you’ll definitely want some of these hens in your flock. They are a bit more expensive than Easter Eggers, but you are guaranteed a bluer color.

I don’t have either of these varieties in my flock, but I have in the past. Their eggs are a much deeper brown than what you.

They are just beautiful, especially in a carton mixed with white and blue. Blue eggs come from Ameracaunas, Cream Legbars, and some Easter Eggers.

Green eggs from Olive Eggers and some Easter Eggers. Happy egg collecting.

An average hen lays about 260 to 280 eggs in a year. As such, having a couple of hens can promise considerable profit.

So is it painful for chickens to lay eggs.

This article will cover. First, let’s talk about how hens form and lay eggs.

Once it reaches 20 to 24 weeks, the egg formation and laying process will be triggered when light enters the hen’s eye. Whether natural or artificial, the light will activate the hen’s pineal gland and cause it to release an egg from its ovary.

A hen typically takes half an hour to complete this process. The yolk will go through various parts of the hen’s reproductive tract to facilitate egg formation.

When it reaches the hen’s magnum, additional proteins called albumen will be added to the egg white. The developing egg will then continue to travel down the oviduct, spinning until it forms the chalazae or the stringy parts of the egg.

Next comes egg shape formation. This part happens in the isthmus, where more membranes are added to the albumen until it forms an oval.

As its name denotes, the shell gland is where the hen creates the eggshell. The shell protects the yolk from harmful bacteria, which is why it’s the part that takes the longest to complete.

Once the egg is ready, the hen pushes it from its shell gland into the cloaca. The cloaca is the space inside the vent, the posterior opening where hens defecate and lay eggs.

To better visualize this whole process, watch this video: Central to the process of hens laying eggs is the song that they sing when they do.

This is called the “Egg Song.”. There are many possible explanations for why hens cackle when they are laying eggs, and these include:

A common reason why hens sing the Egg Song when they’re inlay is that they want to announce where they are to the rest of the flock. In the wild, hens may wander off to lay eggs, and the noise they make could serve as an unintentional signal to other chickens of their location.

They’re trying to distract predators. Another potential explanation is that the Egg Song acts as a distraction from potential predators.

It’s vital as hens can be vulnerable to predator attacks when laying eggs. According to a study that explored this specific topic across 11 organic or free-range farms, about 4% of hens in these farms died from being attacked by a predator.

Additionally, hens may cackle to communicate their pride at having been able to lay eggs. While it is normal behavior for these animals, it is also a source of distinction that may accord a higher position in the pecking order for hens.

Often, a hen that has just laid an egg will mate with a rooster. Because of the volume and intensity of the Egg Song, other people think that it’s a call for help.

To answer this question, it is first necessary to establish whether chickens feel pain. Like most living organisms, chickens have skin receptors that respond to various sensations – including pain.

In one such study, for instance, it was found that chickens who have suffered damage to their beaks, a highly-sensitive organ that contains many nerve endings, tend to cover the end of their beaks under their wing or stop pecking and preening. Additionally, another study found that hens, in particular, feel empathy.

When it comes to egg laying, the specific part that is involved is called the cloaca. This also has nerve endings, which can suggest that it will trigger sensations when it is used, like when a hen lays eggs.

In fact, two specific factors can make the process distressful for particular hens.

Sometimes, this happens when a hen lays an egg with two yolks. With more than one yolk to develop, the normal egg formation process might also require more albumen or a bigger shell.

Fortunately, the process is believed to get better for these younger hens after the first time.

While it’s normal for hens to experience this, rest assured that these sensations are not thought to be painful or cause any distress. However, if your chicken has past injuries on the hind area, egg laying might cause some discomfort.

Pain receptors called nociceptors can be found throughout their bodies. However, in contrast to other parts of the chicken’s body, there are no pain receptors in its reproductive system.

But let’s not forget that even though the laying process isn’t painful for hens, they still experience discomfort if they’re injured or feeling distressed elsewhere on their bodies. When hens lay eggs, some pressure on their vent is normal as the egg makes its way out of their body through the oviduct.

However, there are times when hens might show signs of strain or make some noise while laying an egg. This might mean that it takes a little more effort than usual for them to pass the egg through their reproductive system, causing temporary discomfort during this time.

While chickens generally do not feel pain when laying eggs, it still pays to ensure they are cared for throughout their egg-laying life. Peak production time for a hen is within the first two years, and it can continue to lay eggs for as long as ten years.

Hens must have water and food every day. The eggs should be picked up at least twice a day.

Finally, their housing or pen must be kept clean and follow a weekly sanitation plan. For optimal health, chickens need a balanced feed that contains minerals, protein, and vitamins.

The amount depends on the hen, but typically, a hen that weighs about 6 pounds can consume about 3 pounds of feed every week. This may slowly decrease in the summer and increase during winter.

As they have jungle birds for ancestors, chickens need a place to roost in their coop. As such, their housing should have elevated areas where they can perch.

Finally, it should be well-lit. Laying hens, in particular, must have access to light – natural or artificial – for at least 17 hours every day.

Pay particular attention to specific components such as feeders and waterers, as these can trap dirt and debris and potentially cause sickness to your hens. Additionally, schedule an annual thorough sanitation procedure.

There are many possible reasons why hens may stop laying eggs. The first is inadequate light.

Also, check if the coop conditions are causing stress to your hens. Common reasons for stress include overcrowding, noise, insufficient warmth or ventilation, and sickness.

They should be fed a steady stream of complete feeds to ensure they are in peak egg-laying form. In conclusion, if you’ve been wondering, “Is it painful for chickens to lay eggs.

This is generally true unless they are very young or laying exceptionally large eggs. However, you can still make the process comfortable by ensuring they receive proper care.

Joseph Hudson has been raising chickens for over 15 years. In 2018, he completed the Agriculture & Natural Resources progr.