Hen Laying 2 Eggs- Danger?

[ClareScifi]

I just read that I should be worried if I have a hen laying 2 eggs per day, which I do have. The person writing said that she would be worried the chicken would develop egg peritonitis.

Has anyone had a hen who laid 2 eggs a day, and, if so, did she develop egg peritonitis or egg binding, and die? If so, how old was she when she died?

Thanks for your assistance,

Clare

 

[Kansaseq]

One of my Welsh Harlequin ducks was laying 2 eggs a day at first. They were her first eggs, and I attributed it to her being a new layer. She has since worked out the kinks and has been laying one egg a day for months now. I think they can do this at the very beginning of their laying cycle and be ok. If it's an older bird, I would be more worried.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Are you collecting eggs at the same time everyday? Sometimes you can find 2 days in one day with one that was actually laid late the previous day and the other laid the current day.

It's physically impossible for a hen to lay more than 1 egg per day. The laying cycle is roughly 24-26 hours in length. Therefore, you get 1 egg a day or every other day depending on the hen and if she takes breaks.

 

[ClareScifi]

Oh, yes, chickens CAN lay 2 eggs a day. It's not that uncommon. I've read many, many links about that. That is not in question at all. The question is whether it is linked to egg peritonitis.

My 2 chickens are 13 months old. They did lay some double-yolked eggs when they first started laying last summer, but the phenomena of one chicken laying 2 complete eggs per day, both with nice hard shells, just started this March, after their first cold winter in which they didn't lay at all. They are Plymouth Rocks, famous for decreased production in winter and cold hardiness.

Early in March I found 3 eggs a day in their nest, laid collectively each day. 2 chickens, 3 eggs.

That dropped off for some time when the weather here got colder, but now I'm again finding 2 eggs laid by the one chicken. The other isn't laying anymore I think. Her feet and beak are orange.

I just wonder how long I'll have the double-egg layer. I'm afraid she will die of egg peritonitis. I'm afraid they both may have the disease, since it's odd for a 13-month old not to lay, I feel.

 

[ClareScifi]

Kansaseq,

Do you suppose my girl could be double laying now due to it being cooler weather, following the long winter of no laying, even though she started laying again for a bit in early March?

How would you proceed? Should I give her a special diet to help her body deal with all the stress of laying 2 eggs per day?

My neighbor tells me his chickens aren't laying consistently, either, but I'm not sure how old they are.

Here's a discussion of chickens who lay multiple eggs per day. Two isn't uncommon in chicken farms, but 3 per day is very rare.

Clare, Zone 5, Salt Lake City

 

[ClareScifi]

Oops, I forgot to post that link that talks about chickens who lay more than 1 egg per day. Here it is:

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/archive/index.php/t-167011.html

 

[sourland]

Clarescifi, sorry, but that is seriously in question.

Just because someone posts something on a board does not make it factual. Listen to greenfamilyfarms. They presented facts not conjecture.

 

[ClareScifi]

Okay, here is a link from our very own board:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=113864

Check out the posting from the woman on page 2, at the top, whose chicken was laying multiple eggs a day and later got infections. I highly doubt all these members of our group are making up these stories.

 

[sourland]

How about a link from a reproductive physiology source? People make mistakes, and, yes, sometimes they even tell stories.

 

[ClareScifi]

I've called several vets, and they say, yes, it is quite possible. I attended a talk last night by a University of Utah Agent, a poultry specialist with advanced degrees in the area, and he agreed that it does happen. He doesn't know what my hen's outcome will be, and he said it will take a lot of energy for her to keep up the 2-egg per day pace. That is why I am trying to figure out the best diet for her. I have considered taking her to a vet to see whether she has peritonitis, but I'm afraid it might stress her out.

Did you read all the posts by members of this group in that link I posted just a few seconds ago? I would highly doubt that all 3 pages of posters would make up stories about hens laying multiple eggs in one day.

Maybe you are unfamiliar with the multiple-egg laying problem due to the fact the discussion of it is in the Chicken Behavior and Egg-Laying area of this group, not in Emergencies/Diseases/Injuries.

I loved the last line of one woman's post, but I can't verify that some hens who lay multiple eggs don't have her Betty's problem. I would love to be able to find out that multiple-egg laying doesn't spell pending infection and death for the hen. She wrote:

'Once, unfortunately for a sweet fun loving hen named Betty, 4 "eggs" were laid in one day by her. They had backed up due to the first one in line being malformed and once that came out, the others followed quickly on its heels (1 more malformed- a rubbery collapsed twisted shell with no content - and one soft shelled and one hard shelled). In the ensuing months, she continued to have problems and eventually infections that at first responded to antibiotics and later did not and then sadly, I lost her shortly after a surgery intended to relieve her of the problem (hysterectomy). But anyway, long story short, it is most certainly possible for a hen to lay more than one egg in a day. And hopefully, not necessarily because of a problem like Betty's.'