Egg fertility question

[LarryTX]

Can someone remind me how long a hen needs to be with the rooster before her eggs are fertile? It seems that her third egg will be fertile, but I can’t recall. My granddaughter wants to hatch chickens from the incubator.
Thanks to all,
Larry

 

[Pork Pie]

I'd check after a week or so. These pics may help you determine when you have fertile eggs

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/16008/how-to-tell-a-fertile-vs-infertile-egg-pictures

http://horseshoe.two61.com/files/2013/04/fertile-eggs21.jpg

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

Isolate the 2 love birds in a pen for a few weeks, put on some Marvin Gaye tunes........ and then wait for 2 weeks or longer just to make sure the eggs are fertile. Oh yeah, also put a nesting box in there. If the little munchkin can't wait that long, order some fertile eggs on Ebay and incubate those.

 

[Mosey2003]

If the male is a good breeder, he only needs to be in there for 3 days. A week to be on the safe side though. I'd check starting 5 days after you put him in.

 

[LarryTX]

Thanks to all for your help.
Larry

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I think 2 or 3 days after the next egg is laid is plenty.
After mating, the semen is held in sperm storage ducts in the vagina.
When the next egg passes, some squeezes out. It then makes its way up the oviduct to the infundibulum where the swimmers place themselves in more storage ducts. The next ovum that drops will be fertilized.
Avians are unique animals with sperm that remains viable at body temperature for weeks. That's also why the male's testes are inside the body. Cause and effect or vice versa.
I like to think that is because the roosters can give themselves up to predators to save the flock. Then the hens can lay a clutch to raise up some replacement roosters.
As nature intended.

 

[LarryTX]

Thanks for the in-depth explanation. Nature takes care of these things in a miraculous way.
Larry

 

[EggWalrus]

It all depends. Are you just wanting fertile eggs or eggs fertilized by a specific rooster. About 3 or 4 days after knocking boots, she can be fertilized. And remain so by him for over a month depending on her and the rooster that knocked her up. Usually his work only lasts about 3 weeks but I've had hens that havn't been touched by a rooster in over a month that had over half the eggs fertile and hatch. But if you're wanting a specific rooster to be the the baby daddy, I'd recommend at least 2-3 weeks in a breeding isolation cage by themselves. Unless you want to get a bunch of mixed up daddy babies like in Jerry Springer, you got to keep' em seperated!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I read research recently that suggested a hen may be able to accept or reject sperm from specific roosters to make the father of chicks the preferred parent.
I'll see if I can find it for you.

Isolate the 2 love birds in a pen for a few weeks, put on some Marvin Gaye tunes........ and then wait for 2 weeks or longer just to make sure the eggs are fertile. Oh yeah, also put a nesting box in there. If the little munchkin can't wait that long, order some fertile eggs on Ebay and incubate those.

That's not how avian reproductive systems work. First of all, it doesn't take a few weeks.

 

[EggWalrus]

[QUOTE="ChickenCanoe, post:
That's not how avian reproductive systems work. First of all, it doesn't take a few weeks.[/QUOTE]

Maybe not.
But playing some Marvin can't hurt. He sings the universal language of love!