Fertile Eggs?

[yanks26]

I dont get how you know if an egg is even fertile to begin with. Say I have 10 hens and 1 rooster, what guarantees that every hen has been having sex with the rooster and therefore is producing fertile eggs rather than just regular cooking eggs?

Maybe I dont understand something. Please help me out! lol

 

[Akane]

Try the sticky:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=16008

 

[tim_TX]

There were some great photos of fertile vs unfertile eggs on here yesterday. You'll see a small disk on the yolk vs a spot. Of course this means you'll have to break them to determine fertility, which isn't very conducive to hatching but you'll get an idea. There is never any guarantee that every egg is fertile but you'll at least know your percentages. 10 hens to 1 rooster is right in the ballpark for near 100% fertility if all are mating. Personally, I run 15/1 with year old roosters and have great success. Good Luck.

 

[Tuffoldhen]

Quote:

That's how you tell and you crack open a few fresh ones before cooking and look.

 

[yanks26]

Quote:
wow. very interesting. Thank you guys so much for the help. That was great. I had no idea that a rooster can uphold 15 hens and keep them clucking lol. Roosters have my respect haha.

 

[jjparke]

Put them in an incubator and candle them after 10 days. If you have seen your rooster doing his thang then your fertility should be pretty good. I have 14 hens for my 1 rooster and I'm hitting around 92% fertility. You should be good. BTW my eggs have no marks on the outside that would dictate fertility so I wouldn't necessarily use that as a gauge.

 

[Akane]

It's not on the outside it's on the yolk. You have to crack the egg open and look at the yolk to find the fertile mark or not. There is no reliable way to tell a fertile egg without breaking it or incubating it.

 

[Bec]

Does it matter how dark or light the disc is?

I am having a heck of a time here trying to figure out if the eggs are fertile or not. I have 2 roos, so I hope something is happening!

I tried to take pics but it won't get a clear pic. It definitely isn't a dot, but not a dark disc either. It looks like a really light disc...