Wrinkled Egg Shells

If the white of an egg (or Albumen as it is correctly known) is watery, it is harder for a shell to be built correctly around it and can cause an egg shell to be wrinkled or have ripples on it.

Wrinkled Eggs
Wrinkled eggs are typically laid by hens that have at some point been infected by Infectious Bronchitis

As hens get older, the whites in their eggs will get thinner but some diseases such as the viral disease Infectious Bronchitis (IB) can also affect the ability of the bird to produce thick albumen (white) and cause wrinkled egg shells, even years after infection because hens will carriers of the disease for life.

If a hen has a good diet of a good quality layers feed, doesn’t have any obvious health problems and has access to grit, there isn’t anything that can be done about wrinkled shells.

Are wrinkled egg shelled eggs safe to eat?

Eggs can still be eaten as normal, providing the egg shell doesn’t have any cracks in it. Broken eggs should be discarded as bacteria will have entered the egg (I don’t waste these though, they are fed to the dog).

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Tim Daniels

Founder at poultrykeeper.com
Tim is the founder of the poultrykeeper website and lives in Herefordshire, UK. He keeps Cream Legbar chickens, Silver Sebright bantams and hybrid layers for eggs, Abacot Ranger ducks, Brecon Buff geese and some quail.