Once a fertile egg is laid how long do you have to put it under a hen/incubator?

[Crazyhenlady]

Reason I ask is because I bought some fertile eggs from someone on craigslist and he had tons of eggs. Made me question is mine were fresh enough? They weren't in the fridge and hadn't been washed so that good, just not sure how old they were. Anyone know?

 

[Goblnfvr]

I know the sooner you get them in the better but I have seen comments on here that say upwrads of 10 days is OK.

But they suggest you still turn them everyday even if not in the incubator

 

[rosiethechicken]

Hens lay upto 12 eggs before sitting on them for sure. General consensus is that upto 7 days old is good.
Some folks say upto 10 is good too. Depends on quality of eggs and other factors.

So unless your eggs are 12 days or older, try them out.

 

[Nsampsel]

When I was ordering eggs I specifically asked about this & was told 3-4 weeks as long as temp was 50-60F & eggs were turned daily. Hatch rate does go down with longer storage tho.

 

[Crazyhenlady]

I hope this teenage bot knew what he was doing....lol . The parents were no where in sight. He seemed like he knew....guess we'll see. I put 6 eggs under her.

 

[Nsampsel]

Sometimes the kids know more than the adults...LOL Especially if they were hhis 4-H project or FFA project.