[Laydies]

Our Laydies have just started ..Laying...    we have a rhode rock, a ranger and a bluebelle... we thougbt that we would easily be able to identify who laid what by the colour of the shell - we knew the colour of the bluebelles egg, and also the rhode rock - but today, we had a 3rd colour, so we assumed the ranger had started to lay - hurrah.... then, we found a 2nd egg of the same colour as the 3rd egg - so....  Is the ranger likely to have laid 2 eggs in 1 day - or - do the colours of the egg shells vary on a daily basis..?

I'd be interested to know as the colours are quite different and wouldn't be easily confused...    but I am.... confused!!   

[UrbanG]

I cannot help you with the egg colours but I can say that the 1st time one of our girls laid (this Sat) she definitely laid 2 eggs almost one after the other. (exactly the same size and colour) it was definitely her as the other lady was no where near the coop in that 2 hour period.

So maybe when they 1st start to lay they can drop multipul eggs out on the same day?

[Laydies]

Hi
thanks for this - and if this were the case, it would certainly answer the question as that is what we think may have happened! -
we will just have to keep watchful - but it is SOOO rewarding having eggs at last and it lifts the spirits to find one in the nest box.. I'm so glad we had them!

[hendreary]

I wish mine would lay multiple eggs in the same day.  I am lucky to get more that two a week each. I have had a look in all thier haunts around the garden and check them regularly but so far have only found eggs in the nest box.

[Henlady]

I have 4 new hens 3 of which have just started laying.  One has only laid soft eggs and the other twos are different shapes and slightly different colours so I can identify them.  But I have also had 2 eggs laid by the same hen in the same day.  I suppose they just need to sort their systems out.

[suffolk chucks]

glad we not the onlyones confused. we have bluebell, rhode rock and speckledy and never sure who lays what...................we only know thay taste lovley 

[Elcie]

One of the things I am really missing at the moment is knowing which hen lays which egg, silly isn't it!  I used to have 3 in the garden and learnt which one laid which egg.  Now have 11 at the allotment, not all of whom have started laying yet (I think!) and am getting 5/6 per day.  A couple of them are easy to tell - the blue egg/white egg - but I need to spend some more time there during laying time before I know which hen is laying which egg all the time!

If you post a piccie of their eggs on a day when you have three then between us we might be able to work out which is which.  My ranger lays light brown eggs which are quite round.

[Laydies]

Well, I really am confused now!!
 
All the eggs now seem to be a very similar colour, the first ones were quite different.... and ... today, we had 2 eggs, one very small as you would expect, and then one very much larger!  It was the turn of our youngest daughter to have the eggs, so, she decided on the large one for her lunch.. poached!   it was only a DOUBLE YOLK!! these girlies have only just started laying - Is this unusual?   

[Henlady]

I had 2 double yolkers from the same hen in her first week of laying.  Her other eggs were smaller and the double ones were still smaller than a large supermarket one but after the first I guess the second one was double.  Lovely fried so you can see the yolks. 

When I know who has laid the egg I write their initial on the shell but even though I have 4 different breeds it is hard to tell the difference.

[lisa80]

Double yolkers are quite common in new layers :)we had loads at one point because all our girls were young.I think the only time you have to worry is if an old girl starts laying them

[UrbanG]

Our girls have been laying for a week now but we have not had any double yokes 

But, the eggs they are laying hardly have any whites in them, once fried they have a large yoke and only about 2cm of white around it. (Which is nice as I love the yoke a lot more)
Is this normal on new layers?

Scott

[joyfull]

perfectly normal - with a fresh egg the yolk should stand higher and the white will be thicker - those that spread out are a couple of weeks old at least  .
Don't be sad about no double yolkers as single yolkers are better for your girls. They are all born with a certain amount of eggs and by producing double yolkers you are using up two of these eggs in one go - yours still have those eggs left meaning that they will be laying longer. Also double yolkers tend to be extra large which means that they can get stuck on route (egg bound) which in itself can bring all sorts of problems.
Just think yourself lucky as it means your hens have got this laying thing right first time 

[UrbanG]

I can just remember when I was a kid getting all excited when there was a double yoker on my plate before school
But I guess at 4 years old you don't really concider the welfare of the chicken it has come from.

VERY happy our girls seem to be getting on fine in the laying stakes though

[joyfull]

You can always pretend by using one whole egg and the yolk from another  

[UrbanG]

DAM IT!!!  I bet thats what my mother used to do!!

There did seem to be a hell of a lot of double yokers in our household back in the 70's.

I'm going to have words with my mother this weekend!!!  she has been sussed out..  thanks..