cuckoo maran eggs

[deathfromabove]

How can you tell how developed an 8\9 day old eggs are from dark brown eggs. I have three sitting under an Australorp I can see something in there but really can't tell. The rooster is an EE and mom is a cuckoo maran so hopefully get some olive eggers.

 

[cstronks]

You have two options - the first is to candle them, only I wouldn't advise reaching under a broody hen. Candling will show you the inside of the egg ( as you probably know already) however it requires either the hen to come off the egg or you to go into it. The second (what I would suggest) is that you just let her sit until the eggs hatch. Hopefully all three crack open in another two or three weeks!

 

[deathfromabove]

She let's me reach under her no problems, just wanted to know what im suppose to see at that stage of development.

 

[cstronks]

Lots of veins are a good sign, as well as a small object which would be the yolk that is slightly off the circle shape. The chicken embryo may start to appear more clearly here. For Maran eggs, because they are so dark, you will need an extremely high powered light and you will have to do the candling in a pitch black place. That is really the only way you will see inside of it.

 

[deathfromabove]

I can't see any veins just a spot when I roll the eggs. Maybe I should give it another week to see if I see anything new. It is that the shell is so dark I can't see anything. I know they are fertile I've checked eggs prior and looked up some pictures of the different stages but can't tell yet.

 

[cstronks]

As long as the spot is somewhat sizable, then that is probably a good sign. No spot would mean that no embryo is forming. Maybe give it another week and then take another look, but a spot isn't a bad thing at this point.

 

[deathfromabove]

Great , thanks. I'm just worried that the babies are still alive, what would it look like if they didn't make it at this stage?

 

[cstronks]

You would probably just see small spot in the egg with little or no veins. Candle today and document what you see, then candle again in a week, and if you notice no change, then you have bad eggs.