Hatching eggs ... quality for hatchability ... Questions

[sonew123]

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I do that too and never thought to really add that to alot of my posts..duh...

 

[cherylcohen]

Help, I have eggs coming from 5 breeders today to put under my broody girl, here's the thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=304097&p=1

My question for you egg-experts is that these 5 speckled sussexs came in filthy. Are these ok to put under my girl?

 

[IggiMom]

I have never sent out eggs to hatch. But if I did, I am a very small time person here, I do not have the facilities to have a lot of different feeds, so forth, although of course, chicks get chick feed. I am not sure where I would even find breeder feed.

I am thinking of having some hatching eggs for sale, and really, the hens that produce them will have the same excellent care that all the rest of my chickens do. That is, they will get lots of good feed, and many excellent quality treats, such as meal worms, and good table scraps.

I also give them lots of hay to scratch in, oyster shell as much as they want, and I do get them checked for worms.

To sum up, I would not think if you were taking good care of your chickens that you would have to do something special for the breeders, but I would be interested in others think otherwise.

Most of my chickens also free range, which is healthier than beinging cooped up, although if I were trying to keep them separate to breed purebreds, they would have to be penned.

Catherine

 

[cherylcohen]

I'm not sure if that last post was for me, if so I maybe used the wrong terminology. The "breeders" that I spoke of are PEOPLE BREEDERs that sent me these eggs from their farms. I don't have breeders, (not even a rooster) only one broody girl!

 

[FlashPointFarm]

They should be fine. I'd candle them to make sure. I've received eggs like that before and they hatched.

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[cherylcohen]

So I shouldn't wipe them off or anything?

 

[FlashPointFarm]

Yes, you can spot clean them with a damp cloth or paper towel.

 

[cherylcohen]

with a little water? Sorry I'm new at this hatching thing

 

[speckledhen]

Yes, Cheryl, you can wet the paper towel and lightly wipe the really bad spots, but don't push in, wipe away from the egg, if you know what I mean.
Something to note from a friend's experience. She is an experienced hatcher. Received dirty eggs from a breeder. The chicks from that breeder were full of green goo and died at hatch or in the egg. The others in the same bator hatched just fine. She sent a chick for necropsy and found that there was ecoli contamination, probably in filthy nests they said, that was responsible for the bad hatch and chick deaths. So, no, I never send out filthy eggs and if I have to really clean them, I do not send them. Folks receive eggs the way they come out of the nests, and I think they will all tell you, they are very clean. I clean out my nests regularly to avoid dirty eggs.

My breeding flocks get a special breeder feed, sometimes game bird breeder, alternating with regular layer pellets, plus supplements in the form of Avia Charge 2000, canned fish and scrambled eggs for extra protein, plus a Red Cell/Wheat germ oil mix spritzed on oatmeal at least once a week if I havent used Avia Charge that week.

 

[cherylcohen]

OH NO!!! Thanks Cynthia ok I will gently clean them. But if they are in fact infected

will it hurt the other chicks? or worse my precious mabel...sounds like it didin't with effect the rest of what was in the bator but these are going under my broody