Eggs are moving! How much longer???

[Mary Coleman]

Okay so today I candled a clutch of eggs that my broody hen abandoned about 5 days ago. Anyways they were pretty dark inside and I noticed 1 egg moving around and wabbiling a little bit! I was so exited because i was afraid that they had died because they has been without heat the whole day in 55 degree weather. Anyways how much longer do you think it will take for them to hatch??? Also, I now have a new broody! She is a very young buff brahma bantam and she has been broody about a day or two. Anyways I moved her in a dog kennel tonight into a new nest and if she accepts the new nest do you think she would take the newborn chicks??? She is on only two eggs that I gave her. Thank u in advance.

 

[Lacrystol]

Okay so today I candled a clutch of eggs that my broody hen abandoned about 5 days ago. Anyways they were pretty dark inside and I noticed 1 egg moving around and wabbiling a little bit! I was so exited because they had died because they has been without heat the whole day in 55 degree weather. Anyways how much longer do you think it will take for them to hatch??? Also, I now have a new broody! She is a very young buff brahma bantam and she has been broody about a day or two. Anyways I moved her in a dog kennel tonight into a new nest and if she accepts the new nest do you think she would take the newborn chicks??? She is on only two eggs that I gave her. Thank u in advance.

Ok I'm a little confused so lets see if we can make since, If the broody hen abandoned them 5 days ago where are they now? Are you trying to incubate them yourself? How did the eggs go without heat for 1 day if she left them 5 days ago?

Now, you said they were pretty dark, but one was wobbling but then you said they had died? Do you know for for sure they are dead? When chicks get ready to hatch the egg will get dark? Did they smell or something? Did you crack them opened and seen they were dead??

As far as how long before hatching day well send me a pic and maybe I can give you an estimate, I take it you didn't keep track when the momma was sitting on them? If you have a new broody hen, why not give her the eggs? Will she accept the chicks, well sometimes they do some times they don't, they have to all hatch around or close to the same time and she will accept them but it sounds like these eggs are to far along, so chances are since she just started she will probably want to sit the whole 21 days or so. if you throw new chicks in with her your basically telling her stop trying to hatch eggs, here's your babies and when it comes to hens, you don't tell them when to stop.. LOl

So chances are she will continue to sit on her eggs and the new babies could end up starving because she may not taking them out to eat and drink. etc...

Now I have a bantam who only likes to sit on eggs for 14 days and let others take over, once the babies hatch THEN she wants them back. So you could have a situation like that. Is she a first time mommy?

 

[Mary Coleman]

Okay haha so yes they ARE in an incubator and 6 of them are alive and are very dark and ARE alive. I just moved my new first time mamma buff brahma bantam hen to a new nest last night and I was wondering About how many days do they have left to you think if one was moving around? And if she would accept the chicks after being broody for about 2 days.

 

[Lacrystol]

OK when you say moving around are you talking about the eggs are sitting in the incubator and they are wiggling? or are you talking about when you candle them you can see them wiggling??

If you are talking about seeing them moving or rolling in the incubator I would say they are probably going to hatch in the next few days or so. I would give them 3 maybe 4 days from today..

No I doubt it if she will accept the chicks with just being broody for 2 days. She wants to be a mommy so she is probably going to sit from day one until her own pop out. She may get very upset if you throw strange chicks in with her now..

I've had a couple of hens reject and kill new babies while they were sitting they just didn't want any part in someone else kids. But then I had mommies that will take ANY and ALL of kinds.

My Gamebird bantams they are very small chickens and yet I had a mommy take care of 7 Maran Chicks which is a large chicken. LOOK soo funny because you see all these little furry butts stick out all around her entire body but she did it.. LOL

You can give it a try but stay right there in case she gets really upset over it. I really doubt it if she accepts them though..

 

[Lacrystol]

Have you tried to candle them? Do you know how?

 

[Mary Coleman]

Yes I have candled them with a candler and they are dark inside

 

[gimmie birdies]

if they are moving/peeping then it will be one day till they poke a hole, after they poke a hole they might rest and not move for another 24 hrs before they start to hatch, so a couple of days. remember not to help.

 

[Lacrystol]

Yes I have candled them with a candler and they are dark inside

Can you see any air cell space at all? If so has the Air cell space dipped? Dipping meaning, it should look slanted?

 

[Mary Coleman]

Yes there is an airshell I'm not sure if it's slanted and I'm 99.9% sure their alive. When I candled them they were moving inside the egg.

 

[Mary Coleman]

Do u think that the broody would take them if she has only been broody 2 days?