Hi all,

We have two buff orpington hens now about 1.5 years. Both of them have been just the best! They have been docile healthy and reliable layers all their days.

Lately though, I've noticed that one of them seems to be consistently laying eggs with a visible soft spot. It appears as a darker spot on one (I think) the narrow end of the egg. I prefer to wash my eggs under cool running water with a soft brush and a bit of very diluted bleach water. The soft spot often cracks under the light pressure. I notice the egg is sometimes covered with very tiny light speckles too, which usually wash away - (blood)? I've waited for the problem to go away, but it seems to be persistent. At this point it is mostly an annoyance as I have to be extra careful with them and resist distributing these eggs to friends or family. Still, if this indicative of something more serious, I'd like to know.

Any reason why or what I can do? Our two hens are on cracked corn, game bird pellets, oyster shell and washed, ground egg shell (returned to them from the collective poultry we have). Our chicken yard also supports grass, and we provide green stuff, yard clippings and scraps to scratch through as often as we can. Only one of the birds seems to have this problem, but both are quite healthy and active otherwise.

If it lends any clue, this summer I've gotten a couple of those eggs with paper thin shells which barely contained it's contents. Thanks to this forum, I didn't panic.

In advance, thanks for your response.

LF/RJ