How long can a hatch last?

[Weasleymum]

My two broodies were setting 20 eggs between them (sharing nest). The hatch started yesterday morning, and by yesterday evening I had 11 chicks. The hens are still trying to hatch the rest of the eggs (when I picked up a few to smell them, they carefully rolled them back underneath). At what point should they-- and I-- give up on the remaining eggs? It's been almost 24 hours since the last chick hatched.

 

[silkiechicken]

They should get up within 72 hours and abandon the nest. Just put food and water near. As for the eggs... as long as they were all set on starting the same day, the hatch should be within a 72 hour window or so. If some eggs were added a day, two days, three days, 4 days later... then that's a bit of a problem and you won't know how long the hatch will last.

 

[Weasleymum]

Thanks! They were all added at the same time-- since I don't have a rooster, I got the girls some fertile eggs to set, so I know exactly when they get started.

 

[Weasleymum]

Just coming back to say that we broke open everything that didn't hatch-- all but one were infertile! One had a chick in it that looked to have died at least a few days earlier. 12 live chicks out of 20 eggs, one died later (but that was our fault.) Not too bad for not candling or anything, although the woman whose eggs they were said that she is going to have a serious talk with her rooster...

 

[silkiechicken]

LOL.

Well, congrats on the chicks you do have! Did you notice if the infertile eggs were really infertile (small white speck on the yolk) vs perhaps fertile but died very early with a small disc on the yolk? In any case, a dozen is a good number! Twenty eggs might have been a lot to keep covered depending on the size of your girl.

 

[Weasleymum]

No, we didn't examine them that closely. But they looked like breakfast eggs, totally liquid... It seems weird that if they were actually fertile they would all stop developing so early on.

 

[Mama2B&D&...Chickens]

No, we didn't examine them that closely.  But they looked like breakfast eggs, totally liquid... It seems weird that if they were actually fertile they would all stop developing so early on.

I think what silkiechicken was saying was that 20 eggs is a lot for them to sit on...not for two to sit on if there doing one chicken to 10 eggs and 1 to another 10 but that maybe they didn't cover them all if they were jointly all laying on top of each other haha, I only sit 10-12 for one girl since I want them all equally heated and turned well...but I'm slightly OCD so the perfectionist in me doesn't want to even chance giving her more and her "trying" to grow all them when she can easily sit on 12...If they both just sat next to each other with a clutch though its different...they just might not have been fertile

 

[Weasleymum]

They split them up evenly. I put 10 eggs in each 'nest', later on I counted 9 in one nest and 11 in the other. They switched back and forth a bit, but maintained two nests side-by-side.