Am I overthinking this?!

[Tonyroo]

You would need to Crack one egg open to know for sure. Candling at this point serves guesses on your part.

 

[Micmac1234]

I can hear stuff sloshing around in most eggs…. That can’t be a good sign.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I can hear stuff sloshing around in most eggs…. That can’t be a good sign.

It is not, some may have never even started to develop.

Shipped eggs can be a problem. I've had a 100% hatch rate with shipped eggs, I've also had only one hatch from shipped eggs. You just never know. During shipping they can be shaken so badly they won't hatch. They may be subjected to high heat or get really cold. The shipper only has control of them before they ship them. I keep reading to only expect a 50% hatch rate with shipped eggs. From what I've seen that might be a good average over several hatches but I expect the individual hatch to be either pretty good or pretty bad.

 

[Micmac1234]

It is not, some may have never even started to develop.

Shipped eggs can be a problem. I've had a 100% hatch rate with shipped eggs, I've also had only one hatch from shipped eggs. You just never know. During shipping they can be shaken so badly they won't hatch. They may be subjected to high heat or get really cold. The shipper only has control of them before they ship them. I keep reading to only expect a 50% hatch rate with shipped eggs. From what I've seen that might be a good average over several hatches but I expect the individual hatch to be either pretty good or pretty bad.

That makes sense, either the whole batch gets damaged or it doesn’t. I had a dozen and cant believe we have 0 from it. Ugh I was so excited!!!!

 

[FunClucks]

That makes sense, either the whole batch gets damaged or it doesn’t. I had a dozen and cant believe we have 0 from it. Ugh I was so excited!!!!

I'm sorry your eggs didn't hatch. That's so disheartening!!!

Note: At day 20-21, if they eggs are not cold, they may not make a sound. I had eggs that peeped loudly when my broody left them too long to care for her already hatched chicks. I put them in a heated incubator and as soon as they were warm they stopped peeping. Put them in in the afternoon, they had hatched when we woke up the next morning. Three eggs, but it was just one baby that developed, I didn't candle at all until after the one hatched in the incubator - I put a safety hole in the air sack end, and could tell by looking that the eggs were dead.

If you want your broody to raise chicks, you might go to the feed store a buy a couple of day old ones. Stick them under her right before bedtime and remove all the eggs at that time (or remove eggs earlier and replace with fake eggs so she continues to sit). She may accept them, or she may not, you don't know unless you try. I stuck my incubated last chick under my broody, and she was calling to it before I'd even gotten it under her. It was peeping due to cold, and she was clucking, and under her I shoved it. Warmth = silence, and all was well.

 

[Tonyroo]

It's a gamble trusting a hen with shipped eggs let alone knowing if the egg are in good condition. But it's a learning curve nonetheless.

 

[Micmac1234]

I'm sorry your eggs didn't hatch. That's so disheartening!!!

Note: At day 20-21, if they eggs are not cold, they may not make a sound. I had eggs that peeped loudly when my broody left them too long to care for her already hatched chicks. I put them in a heated incubator and as soon as they were warm they stopped peeping. Put them in in the afternoon, they had hatched when we woke up the next morning. Three eggs, but it was just one baby that developed, I didn't candle at all until after the one hatched in the incubator - I put a safety hole in the air sack end, and could tell by looking that the eggs were dead.

If you want your broody to raise chicks, you might go to the feed store a buy a couple of day old ones. Stick them under her right before bedtime and remove all the eggs at that time (or remove eggs earlier and replace with fake eggs so she continues to sit). She may accept them, or she may not, you don't know unless you try. I stuck my incubated last chick under my broody, and she was calling to it before I'd even gotten it under her. It was peeping due to cold, and she was clucking, and under her I shoved it. Warmth = silence, and all was well.

That’s actually a great idea. This poor girl was broody from April- august last year and I was so excited to get her some babies. There is a feed shop with day old chicks and I can go Thursday or I could get 3-4 day old today… I’m guessing waiting until Thursday is better?

 

[Micmac1234]

It's a gamble trusting a hen with shipped eggs let alone knowing if the egg are in good condition. But it's a learning curve nonetheless.

I wish I could have a rooster. Definitely didn’t know the issues with shipped eggs before this!

 

[Tonyroo]

I wish I could have a rooster. Definitely didn’t know the issues with shipped eggs before this!

I'm sure someone in your area was selling hatching eggs. That would have been a safe bet. But since you just want your hen to experience chicks. It would have been better to buy a couple of 3 day old chicks and slip them under her at night.

 

[Micmac1234]

I'm sure someone in your area was selling hatching eggs. That would have been a safe bet. But since you just want your hen to experience chicks. It would have been better to buy a couple of 3 day old chicks and slip them under her at night.

I actually looked around and could not find anyone near me selling fertilized eggs. The lady I bought the eggs from has offered to send me more, is that a waste of time? I could get chicks from a feed store…