egg sizes

[robo]

is it only me that weighs the eggs my chickens lay, I don't do it every day but occasionally I put one on the kitchen scales, today we have the largest yet weighing in at 78 grams I know this is not big compared with some eggs but to us its our record to date

[Geoff]

You should always weigh them for baking. The secret of perfect sponge (I have heard) is to ratio the ingredients from the weight of the eggs not the number of eggs. If I was better informed I could tell you what "add four eggs" assumed was the average egg.

[Johnboy]

Hi Robo,
It seems that in the grand scheme of things your eggs are fantastic!


EU weight standard

SIZE PER EGG PER-100 MIN
XL-very large 73 g and more 7.3 kg
L-large 63 to 73 6.4
M-medium 53 to 63 5.4
S-small under 53 g 4.5

The above scale is that of commercial producers in the EU.
JB.

[Motherwoman]

I've got little leghorn bantams and the eggs are small but they are fabulous, deep yellow yorkshire puds on a Sunday. I just put in what feels right...

They are truely freerange and at the moment are enjoying the company of a dozen rams in the field next door... I don't think about what they eat too much!

MW

[Diane]

I agree - leghorn eggs are great. I have pekins who lay small eggs but their yolk, in comparison to large fowl eggs, is very big.

Mine free range in the garden too....deep yellow yolks. They are currently sunbathing with one of our cats

[robo]

yesterday we had an even larger one it was a over 7.5 c.m. long, only problem was the shell it was very thin at the pointed end and cracked badly when handled it was twice the size of our usual eggs

[Motherwoman]

Some of my youngsters lay soft or thin shell eggs when they first start laying but quickly get round to normal. Robo, you could try putting some oyster shell down for them, they won't need much but if your ground doesn't have any gritty stuff it could be what they're lacking. It's available from pet food stores.

MW

[robo]

hi motherwoman, I use 2 types of grit a rough one and a fine one mixed in with the layers pellets, I think it might be one of them just starting laying, I got some of the chickens from a local zoo and 4 others from a friend of my daughters so I do not know the history of them, we gave away 2 chickens last weekend they where both still laying but looked like they where pensioners as we had to many we gave them to a guy my mate works with

[PLUMPUDDING]

You made me wonder about the size of my hens' eggs so I weighed the ones in the fridge and they ranged from the smallest 63g to the largest a whopping 83g. They are just the ordinary Lohman hybrids and are in their second year. They have been the most productive breed I've ever had and have hardly missed a day since they started. They just slowed down to alternate days in the middle of winter when it was very short day length.

I don't know how long hybrids stay productive and would imagine they won't go on for anywhere near as long as the pure breeds. I had a 13 year old Old English Game bantam that layed an egg a couple of weeks before she died and a 9 year old Araucana was still laying occasionally.

[robo]

83 grm that must be near the size of an easter egg

[PLUMPUDDING]

I had noticed that they were sometimes too big to close the lid of the egg boxes. Fortunately they don't seem to have trouble laying them.

[robo]

we have just had the biggest yet 107 grm it dwarfs the other eggs

[PLUMPUDDING]

Is it a double yolker?

[robo]

don't know if its a double yoker, I am going to give it to my granddaughters tonight for a laugh

[Geoff]

You haven't got an odd bird with a long neck and a quizzical expression in your flock have you?