A flock of laying hens, large or small, will supply eggs for the table but there are certain measures you should observe before serving them to your family. It goes, without, saying that your flock should be kept clean and disease free. Supplying proper nutrition to your hens is a must. See The Best Chickens for Egg Production for information on breed selection.
Gathering the Eggs
Eggs should be gathered often to keep them from being cracked or getting soiled by the chickens. Nest boxes should be kept as clean as possible. Whether you use straw or another type of litter in your boxes it should be changed regularly. Affixing a rail along the nest box area will help keep the eggs cleaner since the chickens will defaecate before entering the nest. It also keeps them from breaking eggs that might already be laid by allowing them to enter the nest box more slowly.
Good Eggs, Bad Eggs
If you manage your own flock properly you will not have to guess the age of an egg from your nests. When the eggs are stored they should be sorted as to date gathered in order to keep them from becoming too mature and spoiling. Check the shells of the eggs to see if there is any dirt on the outside. If there is just a spot or two remove it with a light sandpaper. If it is heavily soiled you can wash it but use water that is warmer than the egg and always dry it off before storage. Ordinarily eggs should not be washed because washing destroys a natural preservative that keeps the egg fresh.
Eggs Inside and Outside the Shell
The shell of an egg should be strong. If the shells are weak and thin then you should consider culling your flock and getting rid of the older hens. Again, proper nutrition plays a heavy role in the consistency of the strength of the shell. Never use an egg with a cracked shell even if it is a pinhole. Bacteria can get inside very quickly. The egg inside, when broken, should contain a solid yolk surrounded by a white substance known as albumen. The color of the yolk is influenced by feed given the hens. It can range from light yellow to dark yellow. There are sometimes blood spots in the eggs, these are safe to use but if a hen lays them persistently she should be culled. There are times when you will get a 'double-yolker' or an egg with a double shell. They are just occurrences of nature and will not damage the egg.
Test for Freshness
If you do find a nest of eggs outside where you collect them and want to know if they are good or not a simple test is the water test. Place the egg in a clear bowl of fresh water. If the egg settles to the bottom and lays flat it is fresh. If it goes to the bottom but tips up with the large end it is about a week old and if it stands up on the small end it could be from two to three weeks old. If the egg floats to the top is very old and should be destroyed.
Source:
Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens, Gail Damerow, Storey Publishing, 1995, USA
 |
