How to fix detached air cells in shipped eggs

rp riley

Songster
Apr 17, 2020
329
487
161
Central Oklahoma
My Welsh harlequin eggs arrived from Metzer Farms. I candled them and most of them have detached air cells that move around the whole egg and some have them that just move around the top half. I am letting them sit for 24 hours before I put them in the incubator. Should I let them sit upright in on the egg turner NOT turning for 3-4 days and just turn it on full time after that? I have also read something about hatching them upright in a carton
 
I do know that turning is very important for the development of certain membranes inside the egg. This article explains why:
https://thepoultrysite.com/articles/the-biology-behind-egg-turning

When I incubated Muscovy eggs with wobbly air cells I set them upright in a cut down egg carton and put them at a 45 degree angle one way, moving them the opposite way to a 45 degree angle. Some of my eggs were too big for this so I had to improvise, but once they settled I lay them down, though I was hand turning which is often recommended for duck eggs.

The air cells may still look wonky and larger than they should be because the membranes detach from the inside of the egg so I would recommend weighing the eggs with a gram scale and tracking their weight loss rather than relying on the size of the air cell to tell you the humidity is correct. Eggs should lose around 12% of their start weight by the time they go into lockdown.
 

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