Hatching info

[prairie]

I thought I would share information about my 2 recent hatches.

I began collecting guinea eggs on 5/23 (we have only 3 hens) and one of our Black Australorp chickens went broody so I had gathered 10 eggs and put them under her on 6/6. So some of those eggs were 14 and 15 days old.

Then my Cornish bantam hen went broody and I collected 7 more eggs and put them under her on 6/8.

Well the Cornish hatched first on 6/28 and only hatched 2 and abandoned her nest with the 2 babies. I took the 5 abandoned eggs later that day and put them under the Australorp (over 100 degrees that day!)

I forgot to mark the eggs that I moved from the Cornish nest to the Australorp nest. Ugh!!!

The Australorp hatched out 10 on 6/30 and had 5 eggs left under her (don't know if these were from the Cornish or not) The Australorp also abandoned her nest and left the 5 eggs. I kept thinking that she would go back to them but she didn't. So today 7/1 I broke the eggs and there were 3 that had baby guineas in them and 2 that were just the egg yolk. The baby guineas weren't alive but were almost fully formed.

I wish I had an incubater but don't so that is why I broke the eggs. But at least it does tell me that guinea eggs are probably good for nearly 2 weeks before having the hen set on them. And don't know why the mama's abandoned the eggs!

Still don't know why they hatched so early -- but I am so tickled to get 12 little keets out of my FIRST hatchings!!

 

[PeepsCA]

If you think about it, sometimes one Hen will lay 24+ eggs in a nest all by herself... and hatch out just about all of them! I think Guinea eggs stay viable for a lot longer when tended by a Hen than they do when stored by us... but I have not been able to prove it yet. Maybe the Hens turn them on and off all day long? Wish I knew their secret.

If you have had high day time temps that could have heated the eggs above 73 degrees a few days before you put them under the the Hens then they may have started developing a little bit on their own, hence the early hatching.

Congrats, hope to see pics soon!

 

[prairie]

I hadn't thought about them having 20 or more eggs but that does make sense! And yes we have had temps really high here for a long time.Thanks for your info!

 

[cajun backwoods]

i have 3 dozen guinea eggs that are scheduled to hatch on monday and stop turning today, but when i checked them last night 1 had already hatched and 8 more are piped, i hatch over 1000 chicken eggs every year but this is my first guinea eggs, i went ahead and took them out of the turning trays a day early, but was wondering if this is normal or is something wrong? thanx

 

[perchie.girl]

I think the heat is doing this all over the country.

deb

 

[PeepsCA]

My broody Guinea that was sitting on eggs out in the horse pasture hatched keets out on the 26th day. She was on and off of them quite a bit... regulating the temps I guess. I was worried none would hatch but she hatched out 9 keets.