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Barnyard Buddies:  Egg Question from a Newbie Farmgirl  |
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damselfly
Farmgirl in Training
10 Posts
Angela
A quiet mountain meadow
Missouri
10 Posts |
 Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 2:01:30 PM
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Hi there...I am very new to the country life but I am quickly finding it fits like a glove.
I have 4 hens. Despise not small beginnings, right? We thought we had five hens but it turns out that our youngest "Princess" had to be renamed "Prince Charming". :0)
Anyway, we live in Missouri and with this cold weather I have been bringing in some awfully cold eggs. I am concerned that they may actually be freezing a little. Some of them get tiny, dark speckles on their shells. The speckles look very similar to the way oil will spot paper.
Anyway, can I keep and use these eggs? Any opinions will be appreciated.
Every day you have less reason not to give yourself away. -Wendell Berry |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 2:09:25 PM
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Hey Angela, you might try gathering them earlier. Most hens will lay in the mornings. And I think they should be ok to use. Have you cracked one open yet? What does it look like?
Nice to meet you, too. I live in Ga. In the mud at the moment. Good luck with the eggs. They should be fine.
Kris
Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you. Maori proverb |
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sweetproserpina
True Blue Farmgirl
535 Posts
meg
Vinemount
Ontario
Canada
535 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 2:36:23 PM
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I think they should be fine. I've had eggshells that have differed in speckles and colour and have had no problems. The only problem with an egg freezing is the egg bursting the shell and then leaking out when it thaws. We had an egg the other day that did freeze and it had a crack in it. So we just put it in our compost (our regional compost takes almost everything). If you collect the eggs soon after they are laid, they should be fine.
It's great your ladies are still laying. I thought mine would slow down during the winter but they don't seem to mind the cold or lack of daylight at all. Snow however... they will have none of that!
"Isn't it splendid to think of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such an interesting world."
http://quaintandkeepinghouse.blogspot.com New Homekeeping Blog!
http://theprimroseway.blogspot.com/ |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 2:37:19 PM
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my hens have NEVER layed before noon! But I would suggest checking several times a day especially during really hot or really cold weather. I try to check in the morning before work and then agwin when I get home around 4. I think I have only found one in the morning maybe twice and I think because they layer it after 4.
Farmgirl Sister #17
Blog
www.willowtreecreek.wordpress.com
Felt and Fabric Crafts
www.willowartist.etsy.com
www.willowtreecreek.com
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Sitnalta
True Blue Farmgirl
4208 Posts
Jessica
NJ
USA
4208 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 4:43:06 PM
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Hi Angela,
I know that eggs will keep in a freezer for up to six months. My grandmother had a chicken farm years ago, and she told me this wonderful secret...I wish she had shared the secret of how to safely thaw them. I would imagine if they can be frozen in the freezer that plain old God-making freezes would be okay too. :)
I love it--Prince Charming!!! :O)
hugs!
Jessie
Farmgirl Sister #235
Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn  hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work You don't give up.
Stop by my blog for a visit www.messiejessie2.blogspot.com |
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K-Falls Farmgirl
Chapter Leader
2096 Posts
Cheryl
Klamath Falls
Oregon
USA
2096 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2009 : 4:46:37 PM
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Another chicken question.. I do not know but Dh asked me this.. Do Hens lay in the early mornings usually? What makes them do this or can they be a certain breed that do lay in Am. Hello Angela nice to meet you. Waving from Klamath Falls Oregon.
http://www.k-fallsfarmgirl.blogspot.com/
Come visit the barn at http://barndoorcreations.blogspot.com/
Cheryl #309
Farm girl sister
"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude." Maya Angelou |
Edited by - K-Falls Farmgirl on Jan 04 2009 4:47:49 PM |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
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velvetcadi7
True Blue Farmgirl
54 Posts
Amy
Galva
IL
USA
54 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2009 : 07:31:08 AM
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Mine lay throughout the day. I have 9 hens and will get a couple of eggs first thing in the morning, a couple more later morning, a couple more in the afternoon and a couple more when I tuck them in at night! At least I get my daily exercise trecking out to the barn 4 times a day!!!
Amy |
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K-Falls Farmgirl
Chapter Leader
2096 Posts
Cheryl
Klamath Falls
Oregon
USA
2096 Posts |
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Marybeth
True Blue Farmgirl
6418 Posts
Mary Beth
Stanwood
Wa 98292
USA
6418 Posts |
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mellaisbella
True Blue Farmgirl
1862 Posts
melanie
living on Anne of Green
Gables land
Canada
1862 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2009 : 1:24:11 PM
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hello from very chilly Canada where I find frozen eggs every day LOL!! my "gals' all lay at different times. I think the frozen ones that I am finding are from some that lay later on at night. Anyhoooo, I take the frozen ones, and put them in a carton with a red X on it (or mark it any way you like) and that way I know that the frozen ones were put in there. I use those ones for baking. The texture is a bit different (in the eeg, not the baking) that is why I ust them for baking:)
"learn to watch snails" SARK |
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stacyluu
Farmgirl in Training
24 Posts
stacy
tuttle
oklahoma
USA
24 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2009 : 5:16:21 PM
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| my gals lay morning/noon/late afternoon 4pm-ish...so whenever i get out & about/drive somewhere, i always take a minute and check for eggs....during the very cold days...i've been trying to check AM and before sunset....(need to check for frozen water anyway)..unless they burst open...no worries...the spots..we call these "freckles"..i love freckles on my eggs! more unique!..we also had to rename one of our gals..Dandelion...his new, more masculine name is Mr. Jim Dandy...i wouldn't choose to keep a rooster, but i enjoy having him..and roosters can stimulate your hens to lay more eggs per year!... |
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Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Jan 06 2009 : 01:17:25 AM
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| Frozen eggs can be a problem only if the shells crack. I picked one up the other evening and it actually exploded in my warm hand it was so frozen! Usually my chickens lay a few in the morning and then a few more in the afternoon. I have one that always lays at night. I use the frozen ones in baking as well. Don't worry about the spots on the shells it's normal. |
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I love my chickens
Farmgirl in Training
14 Posts
Diana
North Jackson
OH
USA
14 Posts |
Posted - Jan 06 2009 : 6:33:33 PM
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My chickens lay mid morning. I get speckles sometimes too and there has never been any problems with them. I think they just like to surprise me.
"Never look down, You may miss a sunset or rainbow" |
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damselfly
Farmgirl in Training
10 Posts
Angela
A quiet mountain meadow
Missouri
10 Posts |
Posted - Jan 06 2009 : 7:40:18 PM
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I should clarify on the spots/speckles. These aren't the normal speckles you see on farm eggs. I have those too, but what I am talking about are tiny, dark, translucent looking spots that appear when the eggs get really cold. I suspect it is happening when they begin to freeze.
I'm kind of afraid that the slight freezing might somehow cause the shells to be more permeable and vulnerable to bacteria.
Speaking of that, I've been washing my eggs in a solution of vinegar and water with a tiny squirt of Ivory dish soap. It's my multi purpose cleaner that I keep in a spray bottle. I thought it was a great idea because of vinegar's antibacterial properties but some one recently told me that they thought the vinegar may be striping the shell of a naturally occurring anti bacterial barrier.
So I don't confuse anyone, the little "freeze spots" are there before I wash the eggs. :0)
Thank you for all of the input so far.
Every day you have less reason not to give yourself away. -Wendell Berry |
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windypines
True Blue Farmgirl
4235 Posts
Michele
Bruce
Wisconsin
USA
4235 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2009 : 12:30:39 PM
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My ladies are about done laying by eight in the morning. I will get a few later in the morning, but they are usually done by noon. I do keep a light on for them at night. When my eggs freeze, the shell will have a nice long crack in it. I just use plain water to clean them.
Michele |
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MsCwick
True Blue Farmgirl
775 Posts
Cristine
Farmville
Virginia
USA
775 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2009 : 12:50:01 PM
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| If you soak a bone(egg shell) in vinegar, it will end up being as flexible as rubber!! It does deplete the shells hardness, not sure of the permeability tho. I thnk just a damp sponge would be enough to clean them. |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2009 : 12:59:18 PM
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I never washed my eggs til I got ready to use them. When I was selling eggs, I'd wipe them off if they were extra dirty, but even then didn't wash them. I'd rather have an unwashed egg for the natural covering and extra protection. When they are washed at all they lose the natural coating and are more suseptable to bacteria. I have read this in several chicken books and magazines. And back in the day, they weren't washed, just wiped off to look better.
But that's just me and the way I do it.
Kris
Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you. Maori proverb |
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eskimobirdlady
True Blue Farmgirl
700 Posts
connie
fairbanks
ak
USA
700 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2009 : 5:00:31 PM
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with temps somewhere in the minus30-minus 50 range most of our eggs are frozen before we collect them. the ones that crack i usually throw away because of bacteria. our hens are pretty crowded to keep them warm and they do not at this time have nest boxes so the eggs get pretty nasty. wish i had some pigs or dogs to give them to! if the shell isnt broken we uese them just as we would any other egg making sure that they are thawed enough to come out of the shell! lol.
peace connie in alaska |
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K-Falls Farmgirl
Chapter Leader
2096 Posts
Cheryl
Klamath Falls
Oregon
USA
2096 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2009 : 5:04:40 PM
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With Cold weather like you have it is amazing to me that you have chickens.. let alone layers... Boy the Good Lord is good to you.. I am worried about cold weather here in Oregon.. Guess I need more faith.
http://www.k-fallsfarmgirl.blogspot.com/
Come visit the barn at http://barndoorcreations.blogspot.com/
Cheryl
Farmgirl #309
"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude." Maya Angelou |
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Barnyard Buddies: Egg Question from a Newbie Farmgirl |
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Egg Question from a Newbie Farmgirl
