day 23 and still no chicks :(

[pennyd]

Hi there, my broody hen has been sitting on 5 eggs which were supposed to be fertile when I bought them off the internet. She's now on day 23 and has sat really patiently. How much longer should I wait? If the eggs are not going to hatch, is it too late to put some more under her to try again? Any advice is much appreciated, Penny

 

[greycat]

Did you ever candle the eggs to check for any development? By day 6 or 7 you will be able to see if they are viable or not.

You can swap the eggs out from the broody and she will most likely continue to set.
one thing that will work in your favor is that she cant read the calendar.

i have double set hens in the past and had some luck with it.

I have 22 eggs from my flock set in the incubator now that are on day 6 and all of them are developing.


I set 15 eggs for a friend , however & non from his flock were fertile. He has a lazy rooster that is not doing his work.

 

[pennyd]

Many thanks. I have just spoken to a friend of mine who has offered me some day old chicks instead. I might try fostering these onto her instead, but its not gonna be the same as hatching my own . I tried to candle them when I got them, and I tried again today. I am fairly amateur at this, but I thought the 1st time that I could only see something in 1 of them, and the same when I checked tonight, but am really not sure either way. Many thanks for your help tho. The kids are getting quite impatient. They have been waiting for weeks and told all there teachers and friends at school and they are all waiting for photos of the newborns.

Penny