How long before I have to set...

[Jeffross1968]

I lost a chicken recently to a dog attack. Her last egg was laid on the 16th. For sentimental reasons, I'm considering setting her last egg. Taking into consideration the lay date, how much longer can I wait before I can expect ANY chance of hatching? Reason I ask, is because I have a few eggs going into lockdown tomorrow, so do not expect a chance to set until Sunday....making it days since the egg was laid...

The egg has been sitting on my counter since it was laid, in a house that has probably varied between 68 and 75 degrees.

 

[djennings]

Are you saying you only have 1 incubator and since lockdown is higher humidity? If that is the case I have heard of people waiting sometimes 10 or so days before they finally put them in incubator.

 

[Jeffross1968]

Yep, only one incubator that will be in lockdown until Sunday, so want to wait until afterward to set any new eggs. So, 10 days would give me one day buffer. Have to cross my fingers and hope for the best. Thanks!

 

[Barbedwirecat]

As I understand you can wait up to 10 days as long as the eggs is kept between 40-60 degrees. But the longer you wait the less chance you have for it to hatch. It goes down a little everyday you wait. I'm not sure what happens if you keep it over 60---I think they start developing slowly, might want to wait on a more knowledgeable person on that. I can't hurt to try.

Now, I have a hovabator I am putting eggs in today (hopefully) and one I am still tinkering with that I've home made. If you are close by me I wouldn't mind helping you out since it's a pretty special egg to you.

 

[Gypsy07]

I have successfully stored eggs for over three weeks before I set them and still got a good hatch rate. Slightly lower than I'd expect with very fresh eggs, but still up round about 70-80%. A lot depends on hygiene procedures and how you store them. I think ideally you want to store them at about 55F and after the first week turn them once a day. There's also an ideal level of humidity (to prevent them losing moisture through the shell before you start incubating them) but I can't remember exactly what it is right now. Some academic publications recommend storing them in airtight bags to prevent moisture loss. This also keeps them clean. I've never tried bagging mine though.

The way I do it if I'm going to be storing them for a while is to wash and disinfect them, then put them in an egg carton and turn them by tipping the carton so I don't actually touch the eggs with my hands after I've washed them. Good luck with your egg! If you have any more from that hen, you might as well set them all. You've got nothing to lose and you'll have a better chance of getting some chicks from her.