Fertile Egg in a Half Shell

[JFreeman]

My Polish hen Labelle has been laying on a clutch of eggs that should be on lockdown. I have an invasive broody. An invasive broody is what I call my OE hen that only wants to be broody when another hen has already been sitting on a clutch for about two weeks, and my OE pushes the other hen out of the nest and takes over. This is the second time this year Myrtle (the invasive broody) has done this, so I had to move her out of the coop. This is what I found under her...

I don't know what happened... Maybe it pipped and one of the hens just kept pecking?

It is still moving, still alive, and still chirping. I have checked on it three times since this morning with no change. It was due to hatch tomorrow. Does it have a chance to survive? Has this happened to any one before?

 

[JFreeman]

This is Labelle:

This is Myrtle stealing Labelle's clutch of eggs:

 

[JFreeman]

Peep-date: I went back to check and the chick is still alive and peeping.

 

[darkbluespace]

wow, I hope it makes it! Since it is so close to hatch time and it is still going strong that is a good sign. If it were my egg I would put some ointment on the membrane to keep it from drying out and so I could see if veins are still being absorbed.

 

[JFreeman]

Wouldn't the ointment suffocate it?

 

[Ridgerunner]

What probably happened is that they were fighting over the eggs and that egg got damaged. I’ve had that happen before. That fighting seems to happen for me when the eggs internal pip and the chick starts peeping. That’s aggravating when eggs get damaged like that.

The biggest risk is that the egg will dry out. Another big risk is that the hen will step on it and puncture the chick or at least the membrane and cause it to bleed. If you have an incubator you might fire it up and really raise the humidity. If the chick hatches you could give it back to Mama to raise.

I don’t know if there is anything you can do under a broody that doesn’t just make it worse. You can’t wrap it with a wet towel or anything like that, the broody will just scratch it off. Anything that is not porous could suffocate the chick and prevent it from zipping when the time comes. If you try to take it out of the shell before it is ready it will probably bleed to death or die because the yolk is not absorbed.

If you don’t have an incubator you could try to fix up a shoe box or something like that with a heat source and containers of water for moisture. It would probably have a better chance that way than under the broody. I’m really worried she will step on it and get the gunk on the other eggs, keeping them from hatching. You have a rough choice with no real good options.

 

[JFreeman]

I wish I had thought of that... I went out to check on them, but the chick didn't survive. It had peeped, and it looks like it dried out.



I did have a hatchling to greet me though.


We took the other egg out. If it happens again, I will try using the incubator technique.

 

[jeichhorn]

I am not sure if I'm in the right forum/place but I need help! I live in St. Louis MO, and I have a friend in rural France who has competition silver laced Wyandottes. He wants to buy 24 eggs of American birds because in France all the SL Wyandottes share the same bloodlines. Can anyone help me get started? I'd prefer to ship them, but I can carry them over next winter. My gosh, these birds are beautiful! Help?!! Jeanne Eichhorn

 

[AmericanMom]

I am not sure if I'm in the right forum/place but I need help! I live in St. Louis MO, and I have a friend in rural France who has competition silver laced Wyandottes. He wants to buy 24 eggs of American birds because in France all the SL Wyandottes share the same bloodlines. Can anyone help me get started? I'd prefer to ship them, but I can carry them over next winter. My gosh, these birds are beautiful! Help?!! Jeanne Eichhorn

I think your best bet would be to go through customs and find out what you would need to do.. I don't know the laws in France in bringing in live animals or even hatching eggs. They may have laws we are not aware of here. Have your friend check from their end and you check from here.

 

[jeichhorn]

Thank you! Such a good place to start: customs! Thanks.
Has anyone even HEARD of something like this?