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I went on holiday recently and my neighbour looked after the chickens. He found that a couple of the eggs had red spots in the yolk should i be worried??? He thought that they might be fertilised but we dont have a cockerel but one of the hens crows and mates the other chickens?? Does anyone no what is up with ther eggs?????

It sounds as thought you have a cockerel if its crowing and mating the other chickens. If the eggs each have 1 red spot in the yolk that means they've been fertilised. If the comb and wattles aren't large enough for you to know its a cockerel, have a look at the back of its legs to see if there is a spur bud.

it could be a he/she as it not uncommon my mum had a chook that laid eggs but also crowed and fertalised eggs

thanks meg and matty

someone said that it wasnt fertile if it had a red spot as it just means something has gone wrong with the chicken :S

someone said that it wasnt fertile if it had a red spot as it just means something has gone wrong with the chicken :S

The red spot is the germinal disc also called the egg cell where the male cell unites with the female one and leads to cell division and embryonic development if the conditions are right.

I always thought that a spot of blood means that the egg was fertilised, but in one of my books I read that if you don't have a cockrel in the flock then it could be "caused by blood vessels rupturing in the ovary or oviduct and could be caused by low levels of Vitamins A & K, or the result of shock or stress. There is evidence that there is a hereditary tendency for this condition, so avoid breeding from such a hen."