⠀ eggs smell like wet dog...what??

[Littlefox26]

So this has only recently started to happen. I have 5 hens 3 something I picked up at TSC at the end of the season, the sales guy wasn't even sure what breed (red with touches of white) and 2 araconas. Every time I cook eggs in the morning they smell so much like a nasty wet dog I dont want to eat them. Thing is they fast fine even really good with lots of flavor and have great color. Is this normal? It is very cold here right now, we are in central VA, and very windy so the girls havnt spent a lot of time outside though I try to make sure they have the option. Any help??

 

[DaveOmak]

the odor is probably coming from the feed..... what do you feed them....

 

[Littlefox26]

The Purina layina pellets. I switched to this a few months ago when I couldn't find what I used to feed them at the feed store and they dont like it quite as much as the old stuff

 

[DrMikelleRoeder]

Even a short amount of time outside allows access to whatever weeds may still be hanging around during the winter, and the hens may be eating or tasting things they might not normally eat simply because the items are there and the birds are experiencing a bit of cabin fever. Always be sure you immediately refrigerate eggs you have collected to minimize any bacterial growth and to reduce loss of moisture and carbon dioxide from the egg. Do not store them in the refrigerator near anything that is strong smelling, like onions or fish. The wet dog smell may be the result of hydrogen sulfides in the egg interacting with iron in the yolk. As you have discovered, it smells off-putting but does not affect the taste of the eggs. As spring comes and other types of vegetation begin to grow, your birds will have more grazing choices and you may notice the smell is not as prevalent or even goes away.

As for the birds not appearing to like their new feed as much, if you are judging that by their intake, it could simply be that their new feed is more digestible and has more energy than their old feed. Birds eat to meet an energy requirement, so the lower in energy and less digestible a feed is, the more of it they need to eat. The better quality is the feed, generally the less of it they need to eat. So what may appear to be birds not liking the feed as much may simply be birds not needing to eat as much, which, if you think about it, is a good thing for your wallet.

 

[City farm]

Glad you asked this question.. We do not refrigerate our chicken egg. I use a pair of thongs when I get them from the nest.. But I did wonder about the smell sometimes... I bet it is from the local weeds we get from our neighbors... We only harvest weeds from neighbors that do not spray anything in their yard... Free chicken food...

 

[Littlefox26]

Thank you everyone for all the information. The smell lasted for a little over a month in varying degrees and recently went away all together. I didn't get a chance to change feed but they have been getting out more now that the weather has been good enough. So they are getting to pick around the yard some.