Okay to break open an egg?

[Callender Girl]

I just did my first egg-candling experience. I don't think any of the 19 goose eggs are fertile. But, I'm not sure.

Gussie and Golly both left the goose house together for the first time in forever, so I slipped in and grabbed eggs. I checked most, but not all, and don't see anything that looks like an embryo, and they've been nesting for more than 10 days.

So, just to make sure -- because I think I did it right and couldn't see anything -- would it be awful to break open just one of the eggs to make sure I'm not getting rid of a bunch of viable babies? I absolutely checked all the eggs in the north nest and most in the south nest.

I put all the eggs back in the nests, but the geese are still out grazing. Is it possible they KNOW the eggs aren't good and have given up?

This was so much easier with chickens who did all the work themselves!!!! (But I love my Buffs).

 

[sylviethecochin]

How old is the nest? Can you post pics of the [EDT: candled] eggs?

 

[Callender Girl]

The last egg was laid more than 10 days ago, and I am not able to post photos. I have spent hour reading and looking at online candling articles, and I am not able to see anything that looks like a dark blob with anything radiating from it.

One of the reasons I am suspicious that nothing is really going on is that after Gussie made her nest, Golly -- whom I thought was a gander -- began sitting on the nest. Then, there were TWO nests, and they sat side by side. I got them as goslings, and because of the physical differences believed they were a goose and a gander. Maybe they are both girls, which is okay.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Yeah, at this point, I'd crack one open to check for fertility, and maybe think about ordering fertile goose eggs, if you want goslings.

 

[Callender Girl]

To be honest, I'm a little disappointed and a little relieved.

Chicken math got the best of me this spring, and I'm going to have to build another chicken coop. I really don't know where I would have housed more geese. Especially so many of them.

Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Another thing to is how fast the eggs cook off any visble goslings are going to retain heat longer. When my gooses gosling died in the shell the night before when Missy was outside was warm as toast. Next morning when I checked the egg just carrying it from the goose house to my feed room not more than 12’ the egg had cooled down already and I knew it was dead.

 

[Callender Girl]

There will be no goslings for Gussie and Golly. When they both went out today -- something they did yesterday for the first time in a couple of weeks -- I dashed into the goose shelter and pulled out the eggs.

I actually broke four, and my candling yesterday proved accurate; there were no embryos.

I still think Golly looks more like a gander than a goose, but HER behavior -- making her own nest and setting on it -- means I must have two girls. I am okay with that.

I just cleaned out the shelter, and they walked in, looked around, Golly hissed a bit, and they both left. Again, it's a bit disappointing for all of us, and a bit of a relief for me (my plan this spring was to buy 3 chicks; I am brooding 8 -- Buckeyes, Easter Eggers, one each of Welsummer, Speckled Sussex and Hoover's "Midnight Majesty Maran" -- upstairs right now).

But the goose family would have been really, really cute.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Aww well maybe you need to be on the look out for a husband for Gussie and Golly and then next year you can enjoy the goose family.

Enjoy those chicks.