Help! Egg with small crack

[Lemon-Drop]

Hi, I transferred eggs from my hen to the incubator. (She had hatched two chicks and decided she was done sitting) non had externally pipped yet. I noticed one had a crack going down the length of one side-what should I do? It’s on the opposite side of the air cell. I added a candling pic in case it’s helpful.

Thanks for any help!

 

[sourland]

You can seal the crack with candle wax, but monitor closely to make sure it is not rotten and about to explode.

 

[Lemon-Drop]

You can seal the crack with candle wax, but monitor closely to make sure it is not rotten and about to explode.

How would you tell if it’s rotten?

 

[sourland]

Any 'off' smell would indicate decomposition.

 

[Alaskan]

You can seal the crack with candle wax, but monitor closely to make sure it is not rotten and about to explode.

Looks like it might be a rotten one....

Usually if you hold it to your nose you can smell rot...

Handle carefully.

 

[Lemon-Drop]

We ended up doing an eggtopsy. Once we opened it up, it reeked (I had to try very hard not to vomit.

After a little investigation, it looks like it was definitely rotted and hadn’t made it very far in the process. The white and all liquid was a stinky brown.

Spoiler: Graphic pic

We buried it in the forest with all of our other lost pets.

 

[Lemon-Drop]

Any ideas why it died early? I'm sad, but glad we got it out of there. I wonder if the crack was from the pressure of built up gasses?

 

[Lemon-Drop]

Thanks for the help @sourland and @Alaskan

 

[Alaskan]

That crack might have started out as an almost invisible hairline crack that allowed infection to set in...

Then as it rotted the crack expanded.