Fertilzed eggs.. not sure.. not wanted...??

[chicks47]

This spring we added 9 sex unknown chicks to our old flock of 2 hens. The chicks have of course grown and we ended up with 5 frisky roosters. We are not in a position where we wish to continue breeding. We have eliminated two of our roosters so far and intend to take care of the others over the next few weeks.
However, until then they are quite frisky with the girls. So are the eggs we are getting fertilized? They mate often enough in my opinion. From what I read a rooster can leave enough sperm to fertilize eggs for up to a week!
We have collected eggs and eaten some them right away. They looked normal. How soon can you tell if it is fertilized or not?
I don't want to waste the eggs, but we don't have any broody hens and not planning to incubate any of these.
Can you / should you eat an egg even if it is fertilized? If you eat it right the within a day or two of it being laid?
How soon can you candle an egg to find out if it is fertile?
Maybe we need to get rid of the roosters sooner than later if these eggs are unusable for us.

Never had roosters before. We were hoping for more girls from the batch.
Regardless .. any thoughts on what to do with our situation and information regarding the eggs is appreciated.

Thanks

 

[serama hen]

IT NORMAL I SAY LEAVE 1 ROO FOR EVERY 3 HENS THE FERTILIZED EGGS SHOULD HAVE A DOT OR SOMETHING INSIDE WHEN CANDLEED AND THEY ARE LIKE NORMAL EGGS I HEARD THEIR EVEN BETTER TO EAT HEALTHIER AND YOU CAN INCUBATE THEM LOWER TEMP MORE FEMALSES DEVELOP
THE EGG WILL LOSE FERTILLITY DAILY OR WEEKLY BUT LAST LIKE A NORMAL EGG

 

[MsBagawkbagawk]

This spring we added 9 sex unknown chicks to our old flock of 2 hens. The chicks have of course grown and we ended up with 5 frisky roosters. We are not in a position where we wish to continue breeding. We have eliminated two of our roosters so far and intend to take care of the others over the next few weeks.
However, until then they are quite frisky with the girls. So are the eggs we are getting fertilized? Yes, they're probably fertilized.They mate often enough in my opinion. From what I read a rooster can leave enough sperm to fertilize eggs for up to a week! Up to two or three weeks even! That's why if you want to breed a hen who's been with roosters who you would not want her to breed with, she needs to be separated for up to a month to get the unwanted sperm out of her system.
We have collected eggs and eaten some them right away. They looked normal. How soon can you tell if it is fertilized or not? All eggs will have a little white spot on the yolk, but if it looks like a bullseye, it is fertile.
I don't want to waste the eggs, but we don't have any broody hens and not planning to incubate any of these.
Can you / should you eat an egg even if it is fertilized? They are perfectly safe. I believe you can even buy fertilized eggs at places like Trader Joe's. I have 10 roos running with my hens and eat their eggs with no problems. If you eat it right the within a day or two of it being laid? It will be just as good as two weeks from when it's laid.
How soon can you candle an egg to find out if it is fertile? It has to be incubated for three or more days, at which point it will start to show signs of development.
Maybe we need to get rid of the roosters sooner than later if these eggs are unusable for us.

Never had roosters before. We were hoping for more girls from the batch.
Regardless .. any thoughts on what to do with our situation and information regarding the eggs is appreciated.

Thanks

Hope this helped! ~~Ms. B

 

[Happy Chooks]

Here is a great thread on how to tell if an egg is fertile.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/16008/how-to-tell-a-fertile-vs-infertile-egg-pictures/0_50

 

[chicks47]

Thank you so much. Happy Chook the pictures are very interesting. I have not looked at our eggs that closely, but will - just for curiosity.
@MsB.. Thank you - that information is very helpful. So even if we decide to keep one of our roosters.. we can still eat the eggs until we decide to breed and add to the flock.
Very helpful!