over due

[mrz hen]

My hen is brooding for the first time.and its been 24days and still nothing. I do have rooster so the eggs are fertile.
What do i do.
Do i wait longer????

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Have you checked other eggs for fertility just to make sure? Have you candled them at all to see how they have developed?
You could candle them to see what's going on in them. Candling them at night would be best so she does not get too disturbed.

 

[dreamfree]

In my experience, it usually takes longer time comparing to incubation. Check the eggs too.

 

[appps]

I had my broodies lone egg hatch day 25 so don't give up yet. Day 26 is pretty much the latest I think I've read of them hatching though.

did you candle them at any stage and know they were developing?

 

[mrz hen]

What does candle mean?

 

[lazy gardener]

What does candle mean?

My suggestion is that you go to the learning center at the tab on the top of the page. Then look for "hatching eggs 101" and scroll through the many wonderful, educational, and totally fascinating articles till you reach one dealing with candling. You should find some good pictures to show you how, and even show you what you should be seeing. HE 101 deals a lot with incubation, but it will teach you a lot about egglet development. Happy reading, and wishing you the best!

 

[lazy gardener]

Mrz. Hen: Go to this thread: Sally is providing all of the information you'll need in one place. Just read all of her stuff. She's a power house of information! https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1068075/help

 

[appps]

Yes great resources already posted. In a nutshell though it means to shine a bright light into the egg through the shell around day 7 and 14 to see the developing chick inside.

If they have no changes you know the egg will never hatch. By the time they are ready to hatch if you go somewhere dark and shine a bright torch into them they should be filled with black which is the chick inside. Try candling one from your fridge first so you know what an egg with no development looks like.

Word of warning though. Be very careful when handling those eggs. If none of them were successful and you haven't thrown them earlier in the process they could be quite rotten by now. Before doing anything else give them the sniff test. If they have a bad smell dispose of carefully.