First timer, is my rooster doing doing his job?

[bwindrope]

So I've had a rooster in my flock for the first time and love the guy. I've raised him and the ladies together since they were chicks, and they are now about a year old. He's certainly keeping the flock happy, as I've never had such good looking chickens before. No feather picking or bloody spots. My birds are all Welsummers and I live in the PNW.

I've built a home incubator and from what I'm reading everywhere on this wonderful site, everything was fine. Temp always 95-102 and humidity 35-50. Turned them 2-3 times a day and all that. Well today was day 12 and I finally decided I couldn't see anything resembling what they should show as signs of life when candling them.

I took one and broke it in a bowl, and it may as well have never been incubated. No blood ring, nothing. Just watery yolk. I did all six, and the same thing. No signs of ever having life.

So now I'm wondering if my rooster is doing his genetic duty? Did they sit in the cold coop too long before I incubated them? They saw some nights around 32F and sat for about 4-5 days before I incubated them.

What would you all think if this happened to you?

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Crack a few recently collected, unincubated eggs and photograph the germinal disc (white spot on yolk)....post the pics. You may have to manipulate/turn the yolks to expose the disc

 

[bwindrope]

Ok, will do!

 

[Amc29]

A good way to check if the eggs are fertile is to look for the "bullseye" on the yolks of the eggs you crack open. It is pretty distinct when you see it. There are several images online that demonstrate what to look for.

 

[bwindrope]

Here are pics from two eggs. I don't have the gift of discernment on these things.

 

[imnukensc]

So now I'm wondering if my rooster is doing his genetic duty? Did they sit in the cold coop too long before I incubated them? They saw some nights around 32F and sat for about 4-5 days before I incubated them.

What would you all think if this happened to you?

I'd say they sat in the cold too long (probably froze) before you incubated them

 

[bwindrope]

I now realize I may not have even photographed the right spot! I thought the stringy white thing was the business area. From doing some more reading, it seems like the bullseye is elsewhere.

 

[bwindrope]

I'd say they sat in the cold too long (probably froze) before you incubated them

I've read that this isn't too much of a concern. That hens will not brood their eggs for some time until there are enough to bother with, and so they sit in nature for some time, even in cold. But maybe there are boundaries to what temperature they can tolerate at this stage of sitting?

 

[CanadianSkeptic]

The egg in the top picture looks fertile to me. See the white circle with the dot in the middle, AKA the "Bullseye"? That's a fertile egg. Once you know what you're looking for it's pretty easy.

 

[bwindrope]

The egg in the top picture looks fertile to me. See the white circle with the dot in the middle, AKA the "Bullseye"? That's a fertile egg. Once you know what you're looking for it's pretty easy.

Oh yeah, I see it now. So maybe the young man is at least doing the cloacal kiss some of the time. Now it's a question of whether it has been too cold while they sat in the coop before I brought them in to incubate. Maybe I should collect them from the coop every day and bring them into the warm house for a few days until there are enough to incubate?