DISEASES OF THE OVARY AND OVIDUCT 133 



ground, and especially when the wings are clipped. 

 If these birds are allowed low roosts and put on a 

 light diet they recover. Some of these conditions 

 have been studied in the author's laboratory and 

 the trouble overcome by observing this rule. 



Abnormal Eggs 



Many different kinds of abnormal eggs are pro- 

 duced by fowls owing to various diseased or other 

 abnormal conditions of the generative apparatus. 

 Because of the rarity of their occurrence such 

 eggs are of little importance to the practical poul- 

 try raiser, but they possess much interest for the 

 scientific investigator. 



Soft-shell Eggs. — This is a condition where eggs 

 are laid without a sufficient amount of .shell sub- 

 stance covering the shell membrane. The com- 

 monest cause is overfeeding, another cause is the 

 lack of sufficient shell-making material in the feed ; 

 still another cause is fright, which may cause a 

 premature detachment of the yolk. 



The cause should be remedied and the condition 

 will disappear without further treatment. 



Yolkless Eggs. — These are small eggs, in which 

 the albumen and shell is formed about a small por- 

 tion of detached yolk, a minute piece of hardened 

 albumen or a bit of coagulated blood instead of 

 the normal yolk. 



Double and Triple Yolk Eggs. — These eggs with 

 two yolks are common. They are caused by two 

 yolks getting into the oviduct and being enclosed 

 together in the albumen and shell. Three-yolked 

 eggs, which are rare, have a similar origin. 



Bloodspecks, Blood Rings, Egg Inclusions.— These 

 have little significance; particles of coagulated 

 blood, due to hemorrhage when the ovum (yolk) 



