Good Evening, Omani!!!
You should definitely try setting some of your own eggs!! Even though it's still rather cold , the eggs should be fine as long as they don't freeze(that would definitely kill any existing embryo). Try to gather the eggs as soon as possible in the morning.
I recently ordered 10 Delaware eggs from a guy in NJ. They got held up in the postal truck that broke down for many hours en route to my house.....that was the day it was really COLD here(10-15 below with the wind chill). Of course there was no heat in the truck....it wasn't working. Anyway, by the time I received the eggs they were very cold......I thought there was NO WAY they were viable anymore. But I set them in the incubator anyway. Last night I candled them.....and ,to my surprise, all 10 of them have embryos developing!!!! Even the extra egg he sent looks as though it may be OK.....not sure yet though. I may have another 100% hatch rate....I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'm very happy!!!
A 50% hatch rate is about average for shipped eggs.......no matter how well they pack them for their journey so many variables must be taken into account. Were they handled roughly by the Post Office.....were they x-rayed.....were they packed properly?? You should have better %'s with your own eggs....as long as the roosters are doing their job(smile). Give it a try....it's really a lot of fun.
Sicerely, Kathy
