Backyard chicken eggs

[WeAllHaveWings]

Dh's friend is keeping chickens and dh's is coming home every week or with half a dozen or so eggs. They are free and it's very kind of him to share.

I don't know anything about keeping chickens, neither does dh and neither of us visit this friend at home so have no idea how well they are kept.

I do know he has less than ideal ideas about caring for his dogs, never exercised, never wormed or vaccinated, poorly house trained, doesn't take to vets unless very obviously serious.poor diet etc. They are a breed with breed specific health issues, is t neutered and he is considering breeding. You get the idea........

Is it risky to eat backyard eggs (salmonella, etc) if you have no idea of how well the chickens are kept or how old the eggs are? Is it normal for the shells to be much finer/thinner than supermarket free range eggs. I know these should be better than the supermarket but something is holding me back from me (or letting dc) eat them. Dh says they are ok.

Thin shells indicate old hens or hens with a shortage of protein in their diet.

I had some hens given to me which were getting on a bit and their eggs were like this even though I fed them well...I didn't eat them because I also felt a bit "off" about them.

Don't cook and eat them if your instinct says no OP. I recently got some younger hens and their eggs are much healthier looking and I don't feel odd about eating them at all.

The thickness of shells drops as the hen ages so it might be age. All our ex-batts come with thin shells because they are a bit older- it's one of the reasons the farmers get rid of them as the eggs don't survive the journey to the supermarket so well.

What is the yolk like? That's usually a nice indicator.