broody hen - no fertilized eggs

[BrickBarn Acres]

So wouldn't you know 3 weeks after butchering all the roos (they got really mean), I have a hen that's gone broody. So without any fertilized eggs, wondering what to do. I see where people place fertilized eggs under the hen. I have a friend who has fertilized eggs. my question is - how long can an egg go before you put it under the hen and it's still viable. We work together, so she would need to collect the eggs, keep them overnight, bring them into the office and then I'd have to wait 10 hours before I can put them under the hen. If I put them in a box on a heating pad, would that be sufficient or do I need to worry about it at all. Basically the turnaround from collection to placing under the hen would be less than 24 hours.

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

That would be fine. Just make sure they don't get washed or cold.

 

[Pork Pie]

Theres no need to keep the fertile eggs on a heating pad - just keep them in a cool room in a normal egg box, pointy end down. Rest one end of the egg box on something (so its not level) and swap it around every 12 hours or so. The viability of fertile eggs reduces with age, but up to 7-10 days should be fine.

CT

 

[aart]

So wouldn't you know 3 weeks after butchering all the roos (they got really mean), I have a hen that's gone broody. So without any fertilized eggs, wondering what to do. I see where people place fertilized eggs under the hen. I have a friend who has fertilized eggs. my question is - how long can an egg go before you put it under the hen and it's still viable. We work together, so she would need to collect the eggs, keep them overnight, bring them into the office and then I'd have to wait 10 hours before I can put them under the hen. If I put them in a box on a heating pad, would that be sufficient or do I need to worry about it at all. Basically the turnaround from collection to placing under the hen would be less than 24 hours.

You can hold eggs for up to a couple weeks and still have them hatch.....
.....if you keep them at a reasonable temperature.
Embryo development doesn't start until the eggs have been kept at 100F for a couple days.

Hens can also hold viable sperm for up to a month, so stick a couple of your hens' egg under broody too, they may still develop.

 

[BrickBarn Acres]

thank you - I always learn something new when I post here.

 

[junebuggena]

Another option is letting her sit for a few weeks on dummy eggs and then putting some day-old sexed chicks under her. That way, you get to add some new layers to your flock, the hen does all the hard/stressful integrating, and you don't have any more mean cockerels to deal with after a few months.
I caution against incubating any eggs that might still be fertile from your flock. Mean boys tend to pass that temperament on.

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Wait, I didn't see the part about the heating pad. You don't need to use that. Just leave them in a carton outside a fridge in room temp.