Day 18 Candling Question

[Scorpiochick]

Ok,

In 2 days our eggs will be in the incubator for 18 days.Before we put them on lockdown, we wanted to candle them 1 last time.I want to do it the water way, My fiancee is concerned that its not safe because the babies breathe through their shells. So which is the safer way? All advice appreciated

 

[Ridgerunner]

I assume by the water way you want to float the eggs in water and see if they wiggle? I reserve that test for eggs that are late, after the main hatch is over just to make sure there are none left. It should not hurt the eggs doing it early, but not all eggs develop at exactly the same rate. A lot of people experience late hatches, sometimes two or three days late. I’d hate to toss an egg because it didn’t wiggle just because it had not quite developed enough where if you are patient you can get a healthy chick.

 

[sumi]

Candle the eggs as you normally would, with a flashlight, but don't worry if you can't see much. At this late stage you'll often see little more than a dark space and a light space where the air cell is. Don't put them in water! As Ridgerunner said, that is for testing overdue eggs and the method is not foolproof. Best of luck with your hatch and keep us posted.