My Buffs are laying!

[AJAX1413]

I am new to this so I wanted to ask some questions.
Do I need to wash the eggs?
I've heard of people leaving eggs out for as long as a month before bringing them inside... really?
If I have a friend with fertilized eggs, will my BO's sit on the eggs to hatch them if I put them in the nesting box?

Thanks!

 

[PineSummit]

Congratulations!

It isn't always necessary to wash eggs, but if they have dirt or mud on them (which can often happen after a rain) you will need to wash them.

I haven't heard that people leave eggs outside that long. Usually people bring them in on a daily basis. However, you don't have to put them in your refrigerator right away. Lots of people just leave them on their counter for a while until they use them.

Your hens need to go broody in order for them to sit on eggs and hatch them. When a hen goes broody, she will stop laying, sit in the nesting box all day and try to hatch the eggs. Just do a search for "broody hens" to read more. And if you place your neighbor's eggs in the nesting boxes, your hens won't do anything to them.

Good luck with your chickens!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

On the washing issue - even if they are dirty you can put off washing until you are ready to use the egg, the less disturbance to the "bloom" on the egg the better. Also, the "leaving them out" part may be a bit of a misunderstanding - many people "leave them out" in the house (ie on the counter, etc) but not actually in the nest boxes.