Selling elongated eggs - they just do NOT hatch well

[Phage]

An egg is not just an egg.
I buy LOTS of eggs, and in the last several lots I have been sent a large number of really elongated eggs. Not ones that are slightly long.

I am a researcher and study eggs, and know that at the end of incubation the chick has to undergo a very complex series of rotations to get into the correct position to allow the remaining yolk sac to be incorporated into the abdomen, pip and hatch. There is not a lot of room in an egg just before hatching and they need a certain breadth of egg to allow this movement. This is why elongated eggs while they are just as fertile and may develop just fine, have a high rate of non-hatching at the last moment.



I know I am not the only one to experience this, and so do many sellers as they incubate and hatch their own eggs too.

Edited for clarity

 

[onthespot]

Those eggs belong in the frying pan. I agree!

 

[RedReiner]

hmmm...all of mine hatched. most of my girls lay elongated eggs.

 

[naughtyhens]

Thank you! I got a long egg in hatching eggs bought on eBay. I decided not to set them all because I wasn't sure the hen could cover them (first time) and I don't need too many chicks anyway. So I had to decide which one to eat. Believe me, I overanalyzed this while letting the eggs settle down. In the end I decided that elongated one just didn't look right and I scrambled it and had it for breakfast. I bet sellers just think bigger is better and don't mean any harm. It was an eggstra anyway and no eggs broke in the mail...

 

[Kermit's shadow]

I have hatched eggs of every shape and size, and the correct dimensions, and would never say that odd balls are less successful except that many odd shapes have poor shells that you can't see by candling, but they do loose weight VERY fast. Odd shape and good shell (proper weight-loss) and all will be fine.

 

[Phage]

Quote:
Thank you onthespot!!

I am not saying that no elongated eggs will hatch, just chick breeds that usually hatch out of regular shaped eggs have a hard time with narrow ones, and hatching is pretty hard on a chick anyway.

When all eggs are elongated for a breed, like some polish, and that is normal for the breed, and is a different situation.

 

[Phage]

Kermit's shadow :

I have hatched eggs of every shape and size, and the correct dimensions, and would never say that odd balls are less successful except that many odd shapes have poor shells that you can't see by candling, but they do loose weight VERY fast. Odd shape and good shell (proper weight-loss) and all will be fine.

The odd shape is possibly because the hen is short some resource, such as water for albumin. This may well be associated with other deficiencies such as low calcium.

Sonew123 did a little mini experiment last year when she set porous eggs that were very old. I believe at least some did hatch. I have also noticed that some older eggs seem to become more porous with age, and although they can hatch, they do loose water very fast.

This may be incorrect, but if a batch of eggs arrive very porous or leaky I assume they may not be super fresh, or have been compromised by shaking or temperature extremes before they arrive.​

 

[rebel-rousing-at-night]

Quote:
I'm speaking as one who knows barely nothing about hatching eggs.

This is because I am very ignorant about hatching eggs and all the information required to know the difference.I think you bring up a very good point about one of many types of eggs that would not be good for hatching.

IMO a lot of ppl have hens and roos and think that is all that is required for hatching eggs.

There may be a thread or many threads on here that discusses "good eggs for hatching" verses "bad eggs for hatching". If there is or not I think it would be great for the knowledgeable egg hatching ppl to create a sticky with this info.

I have never sold hatching eggs but if I did I would want to sell the right ''type" and that I don't know about.

 

[BawGock]

Hi,
I have experimented with all shapes of eggs from my girls, especially my BLRW who seem to produce the full range of egg shapes: long and very round at times.
My experience so far is that both extremes do not have the hatch rate of "normal" shaped eggs.
Though I may try to incubate them now and then, I never sell them to my hatching egg customers.
I want them to have the best possible chance of having a successful hatch.

Carolyn

 

[yook2000]

Quote:
You are a good seller. I just bought some hathing eggs from my local breeder. When I picked up an elongated egg and asked her if this one was ok to hatch. She said it would be the same as the regualar size. I would not buy eggs from her again.