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How to Recognize a Good Egg Yolk & How to Get a Bright Orange Egg Yolk?

We have all experienced different shade of yellow egg yolks and for most of the people the color of their egg yolks does not make a difference, but it does.

The color of the egg yolk is more important than you know, when the color of your egg yolk is bright orange this means that your eggs are coming from a healthy hen.

That is why we at the typesofchicken.com team have decided to give an article about the importance of the egg yolk color, and what you can do to get the bright orange egg yolks.

1.What does the egg yolk color show about your chicken?

good egg yolk

If you combine an egg yolk from a store-bought egg and an egg yolk from a backyard chicken you will notice the difference right away – the store-bought egg yolks will have a bright yellowish color and the backyard ones will look fuller and will have a darker color, bright orange.
The color of your egg yolk indicates the health of your hen, if the egg yolk color is bright orange then your hen has a healthy, chemical-free diet and that it is capable to lay quality eggs.

If however your egg yolks are yellow and don’t look full it means that your chicken is not getting the diet it needs and maybe even indicates health problems.

You don’t need to panic – try and changing your chicken’s diet. If you don’t know the right diet for your chickens check out our previous post on what to feed your chicken to get the best eggs. If the diet change does not work we recommend that you consult your local veterinarian.

2.How to get the bright orange colored egg yolks from your chickens.

Chickens are not vegetarian, they are omnivores and if your hens diet consists of all the nutritious materials a healthy laying hen needs you will get a darker yellow, bright orange colored egg yolks.

Three main ingredients are needed to get the bright orange color of your egg yolks:

  • Xanthophylls
  • omega 3 fatty acids
  • meats

Xanthophylls are found in fruits and vegetables, the xanthophylls are carotenoids that cause the darker egg yolk colors. One of those xanthophylls is lutein, the more lutein the more orange your egg yolk color gets. These nutritious materials can found mostly in dark and leafy green vegetables, such as cabbage, broccoli, and spinach.

Omega 3 fatty acids can be found in seeds and grain mostly, so make sure that you ask your chicken food supplier if the whole grain chicken feed you get for them has ingredients that consist of Omega 3 fatty acids.

worms, maggots and earthworms

Meats have an important part in your chicken diet, so we at the typesofchicken.com team suggest that you give your chickens a regular supply of mealworms, maggots, and earthworms. Chicken enjoy these little insects and giving them as treats to your chickens can do wonders for their mood and health.

If you don’t have the means or time to find and provide these materials that your chickens need to get the bright orange egg yolk color, there is an easy and simple trick that many small farmers use. Let them roam in your garden – there they can find xantrophylls in your cabbage leaves or whatever green vegetable you are growing,  omega 3 fatty acids in the seeds that are ready for pecking in every garden and the worms are also present in your garden. This will give your chicken free-roam time and natural nutritious materials that they need to give you the best eggs.

If you want to get the bright orange egg yolk that we at the typesofchicken.com team get, your chicken coop is also very important. We used this manual to get our coops and we suggest that you do the same.

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