Can chickens hatch their first laid egg?

[LTygress]

I just candled all of the eggs again today, and the first-laid egg from the mystery hen is still showing good progress. I'm also leaning towards leghorn again, simply because one of them makes that long, drawn-out squawk like my other hens when they want to get into the nest and it's occupied, or too busy in the area.

So this coming Sunday, I should have some idea of who laid the egg, and who fathered the egg. And soon after that - a huge explosion of eggs will be hatching from all different hens.



I have officially decided I need a second incubator!

 

[gimmie birdies]

fun, yeah I have 2 bators going but they are small they can fit 12 in each or more- since mine is a homemade, and I hand turn, I like to have small amounts in my bators so they don't get cold while I am turning them. I have 5 from a vets fridge in one with one from my flock that is about 6 days diff. then in the other I have placed 8 or so from the last couple of days including a double yolker. I have not hatched out any double yolkers but we will see. the 8 I don't know how fertile anyone is since the roos are all young. they would be very luck if they "got" any so we will see.

 

[LTygress]

Okay, it's two days late because of a power loss in late September... but the first-laid egg I was expecting is zipping out right now. I can see a white-ish beak so far. He's got a total of four hatch-mates - two from yesterday and two others from today. But the others are all bantam. He'll be the only large fowl.

But I promised I would post here when he hatched. So the hatch was indeed successful, proving that IF the hen was broody, she would have successfully hatched her own first egg.

And I still need to determine WHO laid the egg, and who the father is. Pics probably coming tomorrow, because I may need some help with that! Haha!

 

[gimmie birdies]

bantams usually hatch first

 

[LTygress]

Okay, here we go....









The hen is definitely a leghorn. No doubt there. This little one came out looking EXACTLY like one! Yellow down, yellow legs, yellow beak, and all. The challenge is finding out who the father is.

Part of that may have to wait until this one gets older and (hopefully) lays eggs. If it's a pullet, of course. Not going to help if it's a roo. But all things considered, I'm thinking the father may actually be my ameraucana roo. The reason I say that is because this one had down stuck to it's eyeballs when I was taking pics. You can see part of it in the second pic, in the way of the eye (but not in it at that time). And that would mean cheek muffs, and thus, the Ameraucana roo.

It doesn't have any resemblance of a crown, so the gold polish is out. And not a single black fleck, so I'm betting the Columbian Wyandotte bantam is out. The porcelain D'uccle is still a possibility, but the legs are clean.

The possibility of cheek feathers definitely has me leaning for Ameraucana roo though. What do you all think? See any other characteristics I am missing? Beak shape/size, color spots I can't detect, etc.?

 

[gimmie birdies]

cute. too soon for me to guess.

I had a chick with a foot that totally faced backward and it would walk on its wrist. eventually it straitened out on its own. I dont think trying to fix a foot is a good idea. not to say that your chick has any.

any more chicks? you can put out a mirror and a stuffed animal, and I give my newbies a bit of egg yolk water to make'm strong.

 

[LTygress]

This one doesn't have foot problems. He was just still new to the whole walking/standing idea, fresh out of the incubator, and wasn't sure how to handle being put on a blanket. His bedding in the brooder is paper from my cross-cut shredder. And he's got PLENTY of brooder mates, I just separated him for the pics.

 

[gimmie birdies]

great!

 

[big bouncer]

My first laied egg chick is doing fine. it is small like a bantam.

It is 3 years later, how did the chicks turn out?

 

[Daddy rooster]

I am trying to hatch for the first time.i have home made incubator,if not vented properly through out day it reaches temperatures 105-110 for short periods.have I killed them?I candle often an see dark blobs an can still see the air pocket.if I move them while candling the dark blobs move with the cycling .in nature temperature reach excessive highs.so am I wasting my time on this batch?I'm going to continue and see what happens.