Not sure age of eggs...turn or no?

[Themez]

Hi
So I have been trying to hatch chicks from my neighbor who's broody hen quit sitting after 1 hatched. Here is my dilemma. Her other gen kept laying on her head so there are different age eggs. One hatches last week...a sweet beautiful chick! One that had pipped at wrong end died last night ( so traumatic...I did what I could to help but it was almost 40 hours in).

I have 3 eggs left. Candles one and not sure it is viable. The other two are very viable but I am not sure their age!!! I had not been turning because I knew the one egg needed to be locked down. Here is my dilemma...do I turn? They appear to be (total guess) 17 days? Do I just lock down and hope for the best? My humidity has been pretty high because of the breached chick. Ugh

 

[4 Georgia Hens]

I wish I could help, but I don't really know... Hopefully, someone more educated will come along! Wait, one thing; do you have a brood hen that could sit on 'em?

 

[Themez]

Nope. She left them

 

[Ridgerunner]

Chicken eggs really don't need to be turned after about two weeks. There are two reasons you turn them, one is to keep the yolk or developing chick from touching the inside of the shell and getting stuck. By two weeks a membrane (the same one that can shrink-wrap a chick) has formed between the chick and shell to prevent it sticking.

The other reason is that turning helps the body parts form in the correct places. By two weeks all body parts have formed.

If you think they are past two weeks I'd stop turning.

 

[Themez]

I do think they are just at or past two weeks. There was a lot of moving when I candled this morning. My humidity is high but I live in Colorado...very dry here. Humidity is between 75 and 85%. They have not been turned in days ( except when hatching chick kept whacking them around last week). From what I have read I am going to just leave them be as if on lock down. Does that sound like an ok thing to do?

As far as the dark egg that I can't tell if it's alive ( the bit of remaining vein is very dark and I see no movement) I moved it to the far side of the bator. I think I will candle it again in a few days but I don't have much hope for it

 

[Ridgerunner]

I do think they are just at or past two weeks. There was a lot of moving when I candled this morning. My humidity is high but I live in Colorado...very dry here. Humidity is between 75 and 85%. They have not been turned in days ( except when hatching chick kept whacking them around last week). From what I have read I am going to just leave them be as if on lock down. Does that sound like an ok thing to do?

Sounds good to me. You are not in a great position, basically on a salvage operation. This probably gives you the best chance.