picking eggs to hatch

[featherpickingfool]

Spring is here and I thought my perpetually broody silkie could hatch some chicks. My problem is of my two roosters, one is a frizzle. Two of my hens are frizzle but one hen from last spring is normal so I want to pick out her eggs to make a clutch of 6 or so. What is the best way to do this? My choice hen is still laying smaller eggs so picking them out is easy, but where and how do I keep the eggs until I get 6?

Thanks

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Can you keep them in a cool basement or similar? About 55f is good for storing. I keep in an egg carton pointy end down to store and just spin them round gently a couple of times a day.

Are you sure you know which eggs are which as frizzle to frizzle crosses are not good?

Good luck with your eggs and hatch

 

[featherpickingfool]

Can you keep them in a cool basement or similar? About 55f is good for storing. I keep in an egg carton pointy end down to store and just spin them round gently a couple of times a day.

Are you sure you know which eggs are which as frizzle to frizzle crosses are not good?

Good luck with your eggs and hatch

The cellar is about 50 degrees. I don't want more frizzles from my original birds. I also want more variety in color.

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Your smooth non frizzle hen is in with a smooth non frizzle rooster then?

 

[Ridgerunner]

but where and how do I keep the eggs until I get 6?

The ideal conditions to store eggs to hatch are in temperatures around 55 degrees F (13 C) and in high humidity (80% has been suggested). The eggs should be turned daily, different ways to do that. Store them away from bright sunshine (can heat them up) and keep them away from air vents that can blow air on them. Eggs stores in these conditions can stay viable for over two weeks.

Very few of us have conditions close to this. I don't. I store my eggs in a spare bedroom at house temperature in the 70's F (under 25 C). The humidity is usually pretty low due to the heating or AC. I turn them by hand three times a day. I used to take the turner out of the incubator and use it to turn them but the wife got a house dog so I have to keep the eggs in a dresser drawer away from it. Can't use the turner anymore. I can store mine for a week this way and still get good hatches.

Hatchability does not all of a sudden stop for all eggs. The longer you store them the less likely they are to hatch. I always stop storing them by one week because by then I have all I need and I get good hatches. Many people report having good hatches storing them in conditions as bad as mine and still get good hatches after 2 weeks of storage. So I'd store them until you have your 6 eggs and set them, expecting the fresher ones to hatch and probably getting chicks from the older eggs. Your cellar sounds like a good choice.

Your smooth non frizzle hen is in with a smooth non frizzle rooster then?

Good point. With one frizzle rooster, one non-frizzle rooster, and one non-frizzle hen you would need to separate the hen from the frizzle rooster for three to four weeks, otherwise there is a chance some of the chicks will be frizzle.

 

[featherpickingfool]

Your smooth non frizzle hen is in with a smooth non frizzle rooster then?

I'm not trying for frizzles. I have one hen that is not one of original group. My newer rooster is a bearded white silkie non frizzle. My older rooster is a black frizzle for sure and maybe a double frizzle. This is his third spring. The eggs would be from yellow smooth bearded hen.

 

[featherpickingfool]

The ideal conditions to store eggs to hatch are in temperatures around 55 degrees F (13 C) and in high humidity (80% has been suggested). The eggs should be turned daily, different ways to do that. Store them away from bright sunshine (can heat them up) and keep them away from air vents that can blow air on them. Eggs stores in these conditions can stay viable for over two weeks.

Very few of us have conditions close to this. I don't. I store my eggs in a spare bedroom at house temperature in the 70's F (under 25 C). The humidity is usually pretty low due to the heating or AC. I turn them by hand three times a day. I used to take the turner out of the incubator and use it to turn them but the wife got a house dog so I have to keep the eggs in a dresser drawer away from it. Can't use the turner anymore. I can store mine for a week this way and still get good hatches.

Hatchability does not all of a sudden stop for all eggs. The longer you store them the less likely they are to hatch. I always stop storing them by one week because by then I have all I need and I get good hatches. Many people report having good hatches storing them in conditions as bad as mine and still get good hatches after 2 weeks of storage. So I'd store them until you have your 6 eggs and set them, expecting the fresher ones to hatch and probably getting chicks from the older eggs. Your cellar sounds like a good choice.


Good point. With one frizzle rooster, one non-frizzle rooster, and one non-frizzle hen you would need to separate the hen from the frizzle rooster for three to four weeks, otherwise there is a chance some of the chicks will be frizzle.

I don't want any double frizzles. I think the only way to keep the black frizzle away from hen would be to get rid of him and my wife wouldn't go along with it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't want any double frizzles. I think the only way to keep the black frizzle away from hen would be to get rid of him and my wife wouldn't go along with it.

I see you are aware of the problem of double frizzles. Your method will work.