Duck eggs alive? And age?

[caseymarie05]

I have five duck eggs that I had to bring in the house and put in the incubator 5 days ago bc momma left the nest(I think bc of a hawk that has been pestering her) but my question is, if I see some liquid moving in the eggs when I lightly turn them(not penetrating the air pocket) but I also see movement and quivering inside from the ducklings are they okay? Also I'm not sure how many days they are bc I didn't find her laying on them right away. I took a pic but it may be hard to tell as I didn't have help taking the pic and couldn't find the right flashlight. You can see the large air pocket tho.

 

[HumbleHen207]

The easiest way to tell if the eggs are alive at this point is by water candling. The process involves filling a deep dish with water at a temperature of approximately 98 degrees Fahrenheit. You then place the eggs in the water and allow them to float, this does not harm any potential ducklings or chicks! Watching the egg carefully for a couple of seconds, you should notice wobbling if they are alive, all living embryos move constantly inside the egg making this a fool-proof method for candling late stage eggs. Looking at the size of the air pocket however, I have a feeling they are duds, ticking time bombs, but its always better to double check!

 

[caseymarie05]

I checked just now and they all moved and wiggled. So I guess I'll see what happens. I shined a light into one and I saw a beak poking up into the air pocket and the body moving around.

 

[HumbleHen207]

Thats good news! Best of luck with them! Keep me posted on how they do

 

[caseymarie05]

They have all begun pipping today.