I need a little help with green eggs and candling...

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KSlacum

KSlacum

Hatching
5 Years
May 21, 2014
4
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7
My dad ordered a bunch of eggs online and (of course) left me to figure out how to work the incubator and all that jazz. Last year I kinda got my feet wet with the whole incubation thing but it failed. This time, I've maintained the temperatures and humidity quite well. The issue I have is that the eggs are blue-green / green / olive egger eggs, whatever you prefer to call them. They're super hard to see through. And honestly we don't have the money to go buy the $50 light that heats up in 10 seconds that everyone talks about xD I just have a plain old LED flashlight. I have a few concerns, though:

I'm concerned that something is wrong. I've candled them several times and I DO see progress in the shadows (because that's all you can see). However, I'm just worried that they maybe died in their shells because they don't look as "full" as the eggs I've seen on the internet.

I mean I'm hopeless when it comes to these **** eggs xD it's frustrating as hell when all you have to go by is shadows. There's hardly any pictures of the green eggs on the internet with candling. I've candled teeny tiny finch eggs before and have seen the veins and all that before. /AND/ with these green eggs, we have several turkey eggs, THAT ARE PROGRESSING VERY WELL. I can see very healthy veins and movement in the turkey eggs but these green eggs are frustrating. So here's mainly what I want to know:

What is the "true" right way to candle? I've candled on the sides and on the large end. Should I determine the fullness based on the side or the large end?
How long do eggs take to blow up in the incubator? xD I know that's bad but the turkeys take a whole extra week in the incubator and I don't want to have to stop the process to clean.

In the end I think the best option is to wait it out. It absolutely kills me though to not know what's going on. It's part of my nature to feel that way since I'm a nursing student and all that crap. I've done lots of research on these eggs but always get those people that say candling worked well only when they got that $638429 lamp that I don't have money for. Besides the few questions above, I just need a little guidance or tips on these green eggs. My boyfriend says they're probably fine since the turkey eggs are doing so well, but I'm still anxious. So please, besides recommending me to get this really expensive lamp, any tips would be helpful. Thanks!
 
KSlacum said:
My dad ordered a bunch of eggs online and (of course) left me to figure out how to work the incubator and all that jazz. Last year I kinda got my feet wet with the whole incubation thing but it failed. This time, I've maintained the temperatures and humidity quite well. The issue I have is that the eggs are blue-green / green / olive egger eggs, whatever you prefer to call them. They're super hard to see through. And honestly we don't have the money to go buy the $50 light that heats up in 10 seconds that everyone talks about xD I just have a plain old LED flashlight. I have a few concerns, though:

I'm concerned that something is wrong. I've candled them several times and I DO see progress in the shadows (because that's all you can see). However, I'm just worried that they maybe died in their shells because they don't look as "full" as the eggs I've seen on the internet.

I mean I'm hopeless when it comes to these **** eggs xD it's frustrating as hell when all you have to go by is shadows. There's hardly any pictures of the green eggs on the internet with candling. I've candled teeny tiny finch eggs before and have seen the veins and all that before. /AND/ with these green eggs, we have several turkey eggs, THAT ARE PROGRESSING VERY WELL. I can see very healthy veins and movement in the turkey eggs but these green eggs are frustrating. So here's mainly what I want to know:

What is the "true" right way to candle? I've candled on the sides and on the large end. Should I determine the fullness based on the side or the large end?
How long do eggs take to blow up in the incubator? xD I know that's bad but the turkeys take a whole extra week in the incubator and I don't want to have to stop the process to clean.

In the end I think the best option is to wait it out. It absolutely kills me though to not know what's going on. It's part of my nature to feel that way since I'm a nursing student and all that crap. I've done lots of research on these eggs but always get those people that say candling worked well only when they got that $638429 lamp that I don't have money for. Besides the few questions above, I just need a little guidance or tips on these green eggs. My boyfriend says they're probably fine since the turkey eggs are doing so well, but I'm still anxious. So please, besides recommending me to get this really expensive lamp, any tips would be helpful. Thanks!
Click to expand...
You don't see pics of the green eggs being candled online because no one can see in the darn things...lol
wink.png
I also just use a led flashlight and it can be frustrating not to be able to see anything. When you candle, the best way is to candle down into the egg from the air cell. Maybe a little at an angle, but down into it from the air cell. On the green ones I've done the only way I can keep tabs on them is to spot veining around the air cell. I hold my flash light at an angle in the air cell where it lights up the border (where the air cell ends) and can usually at least see some veining around the air cell where it goes down into the egg. That's the only thing that I can usually see with any kind certainty.
While an egg CAN explode it's not an awfully common thing. After day 10 (when I remove my clears) I leave anything in the bator I can't be sure of until hatch time unless it smells. That is the key. If you start getting a bad smell...start sniffing around in there to find out what egg it is and get it out of there or you probably will have some messy troubles.
I agree with the boyfriend. If the other eggs look good, as long as these were fertile, they are probably fine too. It's just the inability to reassure yourself that is going to stress you out.
Good luck and keep us posted how it goes.
 
I just wanted to say don't feel bad about the flashlight. I borrowed a 1000 lumens flashlight from a friend (think he paid like $100 for it and it's a large pocket size), and I still can't see in my olive eggs. I can see the difference between air cell and non air cell areas, but that's it. .
 
I'm incubating eggs right now too.

6 lovely pale blue eggs, and seven of those stupid impossible to candle green eggs.

I've tried three different flashlights, a mini-mag light that you can focus the light down into a pinpoint, two different LED flashlights. These things are IMPOSSIBLE.

I don't even waste my time on em anymore. All I did was mark the air cells. I'm hoping for the best, because the blue eggs show movement, veining, all the good stuff. I have no idea though. Hopefully we'll find out by next weekend (eggs are "due" to hatch Thursday, and I'm going to give any unhatched eggs a few extra days just in case).
 
It's good to see that I'm not the only one that gets frustrated with these. Really the only reason my dad bought the green eggs is because the Ameraucana hens that come out of the bunch will lay the green eggs. Which makes no sense considering that we can buy these chickens at tractor supply like 10 minutes away. I guess he's feeling Dr. Seussy. But they don't sell turkeys!

I candled them like 5 minutes ago and I think the reason I'm having doubts is because I think something happened to the air cells during shipment. When I turn the egg on its side and shine the flashlight into the fat end of the egg, and then roll the egg, it's like the liquid "follows" me. I'm pretty sure that's a "no bueno" xD The turkey eggs are still going strong and very healthy. Nice thick red veins that don't form the blood ring, and I can see movement :) I'll keep incubating the chicken eggs with the hope that the turkey eggs give me, but I think that they won't hatch. Dad likes to order stupid green eggs all the way from California to Georgia when we can get the chickens when they're in season down the road xD but thank you guys for taking the time to read my plea for help and taking more time to reply to me :) it make me feel better.
 
KSlacum said:
It's good to see that I'm not the only one that gets frustrated with these. Really the only reason my dad bought the green eggs is because the Ameraucana hens that come out of the bunch will lay the green eggs. Which makes no sense considering that we can buy these chickens at tractor supply like 10 minutes away. I guess he's feeling Dr. Seussy. But they don't sell turkeys!

I candled them like 5 minutes ago and I think the reason I'm having doubts is because I think something happened to the air cells during shipment. When I turn the egg on its side and shine the flashlight into the fat end of the egg, and then roll the egg, it's like the liquid "follows" me. I'm pretty sure that's a "no bueno" xD The turkey eggs are still going strong and very healthy. Nice thick red veins that don't form the blood ring, and I can see movement :) I'll keep incubating the chicken eggs with the hope that the turkey eggs give me, but I think that they won't hatch. Dad likes to order stupid green eggs all the way from California to Georgia when we can get the chickens when they're in season down the road xD but thank you guys for taking the time to read my plea for help and taking more time to reply to me :) it make me feel better.
Click to expand...
Often times shipped eggs do end up with detatched air cells. A good share of people that incubate shipped eggs that have detatched air cells incubate and hatch upright in cut down cartons. Just to note, (and you probably don't care, your dad might) if the eggs are green then they are EE (Easter eggers) not true Ameracaunas. True Ameracauna eggs are blueish.

An EE or olive egger, (any shade of green) is a cross between an Ameracauna/Aracauna (blue egg gene) and brown egg layer.
 
I just candled my eggs from my Ameraucana and EE last night, at 5 days. Because I have been incubating for years, even though I also use a small LED light, I can see development in 5 of the 6 (the other is olive drab and I don't think a searchlight would help). However, all I can see are some tiny threadlike veins within the first half inch below the air cell. But that's enough for me!

I also have turkey eggs in set at the same time, but I can't see the same level of development in them. I usually wait until day 10, but I joined an impromptu hatch a long 2 days late, so I wanted to get a peek.
 
Last edited:
WalnutHill said:
I just candled my eggs from my Ameraucana and EE last night, at 5 days. Because I have been incubating for years, even though I also use a small LED light, I can see development in 5 of the 6 (the other is olive drab and I don't think a searchlight would help). However, all I can see are some tiny threadlike veins within the first half inch below the air cell. But that's enough for me!

I also have turkey eggs in set at the same time, but I can't see the same level of development in them. I usually wait until day 10, but I joined an impromptu hatch a long 2 days late, so I wanted to get a peek.
Click to expand...
This last hatch I could see veining at 3 days. By five days it was very noticeable. But it is obvious that my temps in the "warm spots" threw off the incubation as the majority were hatched out at day 19/20 with only one being punctual...lol My thermometers were closer to the center but the perimeter was warmer.
 
Ha! I am in Georgia. You aren't kidding when you say you can get stuff right down the road.

There are chicks for sale all over craigslist, hatching eggs, even started pullets sometimes.

The only reason I ordered my chicks from Meyer was because I wanted to start out with some form of "guarantee" (i.e. if they died in the first week or during shipping I could get them replaced).

Now that I've got more experience observing and working with my own healthy gorgeous chickens, I have more confidence.

Enough confidence to try incubating eggs my 2 easter egger gals made themselves. Hey, tell ya what, maybe if yours don't hatch out, I can offer you some from the next time I incubate, or hatching eggs that haven't been half scrambled being shipped across country.
 

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