Foghorn died....

[SoccerMomof7]

Okay I know it has been forever since I have been on, it has been a crazy school year. Last night I went to check the chickens before bed and found my rooster dead. He was under a year old, I have no idea what happened to him, he had no visible injuries and no previous symptoms. I need to know how long my chickens eggs will be good to incubate, I would really like a little foghorn. The only problem it that they aren't laying very often and all the eggs except the 1 from today is in the refrigerator. I don't have an incubator and don't have the $$$ to purchase one this close to Christmas. What can I do? What do I do with the egg until I figure it out? Help someone!

 

[Verboten]

I would take the more recent eggs out of the fridge so hopefully you will have more chances. It sounds like some people have had good luck with refridgerated eggs.

edit: and do a search for MissPrissy's threads about her homemade incubator. - it seems to be inexpensive, simple and effective. Best of luck to you!

 

[Verboten]

Did you mean to post the same thread twice?

 

[SoccerMomof7]

What do you mean?

I placed another thread in Incubating/hatching to figure out what to do with the eggs after I thought about the fact that would be a more appropriate place for this thread! Thanks though.

 

[Verboten]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=115094

I'll take that as a yes then.

 

[Dandelion007]

Your hen's eggs will be fertile for the next 3 to 6 weeks. I have found on the internet that hens retain rooster goo for 3 weeks but some have reported fertile eggs up to 6 weeks later. You can check out this link to determine your hen's are still laying fertile eggs:

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

Hope this helps you. I don't think you have to be overly worried about getting enough hatching eggs to replace your roo.

 

[Dandelion007]

MissPrissy has posted instructions for making an incubator for around $35.

Here is the thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=8510

 

[SoccerMomof7]

Thank you so much but Katy is going to incubate them for me. I am so thankful for this site, I would be completely lost on numerous occasions if it wasn't here!