Jumbo Oblong Buff Orpington Egg??

[Stephoney]

My Buff Orpington, Princess Buttercup, has laid 2 of the largest eggs I think I’ve ever seen. This is her second year laying and she’s always laid larger eggs, but these are monsters. The dark brown eggs in the photo are from my two Wellsummers, Flash and Dash. They’re eggs are nice and large. The other eggs are from my EE, Ameracauna and Salmon Faverolles. None of them lay particularly small eggs, but they all look puny compared to Buttercup’s. I haven’t cracked one open yet to see what’s inside (double yolk maybe?) I changed to a feed a month or so ago that’s really amazing- no soy or corn, all natural and complete (I don’t have the percentages off hand, but nothing looked out of the norm). She acts healthy, free ranges from morning to sundown- so she doesn’t eat a ton of the feed. They get leftover meat from dinner and a few handfuls (there’s 11 hens and 3 chicks in the flock) of BSF larvae every night before bed. Otherwise, it’s pretty much whatever they can find on the property. Is this her new normal? Is there anything to be worried about? I read the article about egg shapes and characteristics, but it didn’t really explain that much.

 

[sourland]

Ouch !

 

[Magda12]

My Buff Orpington, Princess Buttercup, has laid 2 of the largest eggs I think I’ve ever seen. This is her second year laying and she’s always laid larger eggs, but these are monsters. The dark brown eggs in the photo are from my two Wellsummers, Flash and Dash. They’re eggs are nice and large. The other eggs are from my EE, Ameracauna and Salmon Faverolles. None of them lay particularly small eggs, but they all look puny compared to Buttercup’s. I haven’t cracked one open yet to see what’s inside (double yolk maybe?) I changed to a feed a month or so ago that’s really amazing- no soy or corn, all natural and complete (I don’t have the percentages off hand, but nothing looked out of the norm). She acts healthy, free ranges from morning to sundown- so she doesn’t eat a ton of the feed. They get leftover meat from dinner and a few handfuls (there’s 11 hens and 3 chicks in the flock) of BSF larvae every night before bed. Otherwise, it’s pretty much whatever they can find on the property. Is this her new normal? Is there anything to be worried about? I read the article about egg shapes and characteristics, but it didn’t really explain that much.


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What is the name of the feed?

 

[Wanna Farm]

One of my four Buff Orpingtons is also laying monster eggs and I have the same question - is she ok? Can she get egg bound? Last HUGE EGG was over 3" long!! More like an ostrich! They were born last March. I love my girls

 

[FunClucks]

Sad story - trigger warning.

I've had two buff orpingtons from Hoover's hatchery. One lays pointy end eggs, medium-large size, about 4-5 days/wk. The other laid larger eggs, not as large as yours, but definitely extra large, very rounded on both ends, and oblong, and as a quite young pullet (not yet 7 months). She laid 4-5 days/wk. I was a bit worried about her, but not much I could do. No double yokers. About 3-4 months into laying, she layed a half-size egg (size of a golf ball) and the next day we found her dead in the run with no external injuries or sign of illness. She was fine around mid-day, we found her around 3pm. No other chickens were sick before or after, so we figured there was something wrong with her reproductive system, and maybe she had a heart attack. Dad buried her before I could inspect her.

The other chicken is still fine. I've heard of chickens laying eggs like yours does for years with no issue. But that was our experience.

 

[Stephoney]

Hi- sorry to have missed a few posts. My flock eats Scratch and Peck and black soldier fly larvae. During summer, when it was in the 90’s and low 100’s, I started fermenting feed to get more moisture into their diets and make the food easier to digest.
I lost a hen last June to a raccoon incident. I bought the doomed hen, Phyllis, with Princess Buttercup. Not long after the incident, Buttercup stopped laying entirely. She had previously laid one more extra enormous egg and then, nothing. She molted soon after late July, had a bout of sour crop and was just generally depressed and miserable. I was a little worried that I was going to lose her, but steadily she pulled out of it. As a matter of fact, just yesterday- in the middle of winter- Buttercup laid an egg! She looks really good, red comb, nice feathery coat.

 

[Mrs. K]

Eggs are not perfect. I think most people have boughten eggs for years from a store, and do not realize that those eggs are carefully sorted as to size and shape. The irregular eggs are sold to business that produce packaged food.

There is nothing wrong with the eggs, and really there is nothing you can do about it. It generally sorts itself out in a while. At first, and often on here, I have seen people indicate that this is a feed issue, but I know longer think so. I think it is genetic and considerably more 'normal' than I first thought.

I do think BO may have a bit more of a tendency to producing double yolks. I have had several that did so for weeks as pullets beginning to lay, and then again for the first couple after the first big molt, and then never again.

My son's have always thought that a double yolk in the breakfast pan was a sign of good luck for the day.

Mrs K