Mourning Dove's abandoned egg

[BabyDove]

So what do you think? I only had the egg like that until I was able to read and make this incubator with what I had around the house. It’s a heat lamp and I made the cage around the bulb for protection. Next to the lamp is a container of water for humidity

 

[Kessdayton]

So what do you think? I only had the egg like that until I was able to read and make this incubator with what I had around the house. It’s a heat lamp and I made the cage around the bulb for protection. Next to the lamp is a container of water for humidity

Pretty good for a makeshift incubator with just the stuff you had. All you can do now is wait and hope it hatches! Once it does you should let it adjust for a bit and once the little white fuzz on it dries off you can take him out and feed it, make sure you keep him warm but it can’t stay in the incubator. I got a heating pad and scrunched a little sock together to act kind of like a nest and put that on the heat pad. I also had a heat lamp above him for extra warmth from the top like the mom would do but I didn’t put it too close so he wouldn’t get heat exhaustion and die

 

[BabyDove]

Thank you

 

[Qwerty3159]

Hi, I got your message. I don't have experience with incubation so I'm honestly not sure what to look for or watch out for. Can you post some pictures of the egg as it is now? Hopefully the others who have been posting here will have more advice

 

[BabyDove]

Thank you for answering. I will try to post pictures.

 

[Kessdayton]

Thank you for answering. I will try to post pictures.

Did it hatch?

 

[BabyDove]

No. It didn’t hatch. It looks. Like there is a tiny white circle on the egg shell . I only have one iPhone so I can’t take a picture at the same time as I am using its flashlight to see inside. I would question that today,being day the 18 th day, that all hope is lost. I feel so sad and responsible

 

[Qwerty3159]

I'm only guessing but is it possible that mark was the baby beginning to hatch? They sort of poke a circle of holes along the shell and bust outh. If there's anychance of this I would just leave the egg be and let the baby hatch, sometimes it can take days. I wouldn't say all hope is lost.


Remember that even if the hatching doesn't succeed, that you did your best with the resources you had and you at least provided the dove a chance to hatch. If you'd left it on the pavement it surely would have been eaten or stepped on. I understand your sadness and am hoping for the best, but the fact that you made the effort to save it at all is something to be proud of.

 

[Qwerty3159]

So I just did some research and found that mourning dove eggs take 14 to 15 days to hatch, which you're past.
However there's factors that could effect this. Did you immediately start incubating the egg or did it sit out for a day or two? Was there any learning curve with you for bringing the egg to proper temperatures? Because if this is the case that could extend the time for development. To give an example, pigeons lay 2 eggs a day apart. However they'll often not incubate the first one until the second one is laid so that they hatch at the same time rather than staggered.

 

[TwoCrows]

It is illegal to harbor any wild birds or eggs from native wild birds here in the United States. Please see this sticky...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/migratory-bird-treaty-act.1369922/