I had to pull some eggs into the house this morning--my "broody" Runner hen gave up on the eggs this morning. I guess she got tired of me picking her up to gather the fresh eggs under her each morning, and finally just quit. I gave her 20 minutes to come back and when she didn't, I gathered the eggs and stuck them in the incubator.
I'm amazed at the difference in the incubator eggs versus the hen eggs. I've never hatched under a hen before, so I never thought about how the oils in her feathers would affect the eggs. But there's a big difference. The eggs that have been in the incubator have dry, rough shells. Those that were under the hen are smooth and glossy. It's seems so obvious now--her feathers are full of oils from her gland, so that would rub off on the eggs. I imagine it's really, really good for them.
One of the six that were under her looks dead, though--I think it's a blood ring. The others look great. I'll be interested to see if there are any differences over the incubation period from eggs that have never been under a hen. They were under her for four days.
I'm amazed at the difference in the incubator eggs versus the hen eggs. I've never hatched under a hen before, so I never thought about how the oils in her feathers would affect the eggs. But there's a big difference. The eggs that have been in the incubator have dry, rough shells. Those that were under the hen are smooth and glossy. It's seems so obvious now--her feathers are full of oils from her gland, so that would rub off on the eggs. I imagine it's really, really good for them.
One of the six that were under her looks dead, though--I think it's a blood ring. The others look great. I'll be interested to see if there are any differences over the incubation period from eggs that have never been under a hen. They were under her for four days.
