Ringneck Dove not hatching

[karthigan]

I have a pair of ringneck doves. The first egg was laid on 12/01. I was out of town and returned back on 12/03, I noticed a second egg. The mom has been sitting on the eggs for a lot of time. She only steps out for food and water. The dad sits on it when mom goes about to eat and drink.

The eggs don't look cracked. It says everywhere that the egg should hatch in ~14 days. When should I expect the eggs to hatch?

How long will the mom sit on the eggs before it quits?

Is there a way to tell at this point if the eggs will hatch or not?

I would really appreciate your help.

 

[sourland]

Generally the mother does not initiate 'full' incubation until the second egg is laid. That being said, you would still have expected that they would hatch on the 17 th. If they were mine, I would give her 2 more days and then candle the eggs. Are they young birds, and is this their first nest ?

 

[karthigan]

Thank you so much for your feedback. Yes, they are young birds. I have had them since August 2016. I don't know how young they are exactly, probably a year old. Yes, this is their first nest.

What should I expect to see when I candle the egg (iPhone Flashlight) at day 16?

Would the mom stop sitting at some point?

 

[Hokum Coco]

. The first egg was laid on 12/01. On 12/03, I noticed a second egg.

Is there a way to tell at this point if the eggs will hatch or not?

As Sourland mention candle the eggs the squab should be full developed by now and resemble a black mass allowing little to no light to beam through.

I raise homing pigeons and their eggs hatch in 19 days in a perfect world.
I had them hatch as much as four days late.

Where it is their first nest I would give them another week if it were me depending on how the eggs candled.

 

[karthigan]

I candled the egg using an iPhone flashlight. I just see clear liquid, and no veins etc. It is ~16 days since the two eggs were laid. These are the first set of eggs laid by my dove. Looks like unfertilized eggs. When should I expect them to lay again?

 

[sourland]

Take the eggs and toss them. With pigeons during the height of the breeding season they will lay a second clutch within two weeks. Not certain about doves.

 

[Hokum Coco]

When should I expect them to lay again? I doubt if they will lay again until spring (February 14 is the earliest I have had them begin to copulate). With my homing pigeons I would count 10 days after I saw them copulate and eggs would begin to arrive. A bit of trivia pigeons and doves will pair up and raise offspring in the right conditions. However their squabs are mules and usually can not reproduce as a rule of thumb.