She's not sitting on her egg!

[lthao82]

Hi everybody,

I'm still new to raising chickens and my hen just laid her very first egg todat at about 2:15pm! But she didn't sit on it and so I took it out in hopes of having someone incubate it for me but they didn't so I brought it back home.

It's been out of the nest and now cold for almost 5 hours. I did buy an incubator but I put he egg back inside the nest. She's frst time egg layer. I honestly don't know how old she is or the rooster either. She's still not sitting on the egg. Will this egg hatch at all or did I just kill it by taking it away from the nest and then trying to put ot back in the nest?

I want to try hatching them naturally but I think I might of messed up by taking ghe very first egg out for a few hours and possibly killing the chick.

 

[Blooie]

Do you have rooster? If you don't, there is no way you're going to get a chick because the egg has to be fertilized first. Hens don't need roosters to lay eggs, and they will happily lay eggs day after day. It's a certain hormonal change that happens to them and makes them decide to sit on a clutch of eggs and hatch them out. That's known as "going broody." They will not sit on and hatch every egg that's laid.

So gather them as she lays them. Store them in the fridge and enjoy them in cakes, omelets, or whatever else you'd do with store bought eggs.

Welcome to BYC....look up at the top row of tabs and click on The Learning Center. There are lots of things there that should answer your questions.

 

[Paganrose]

Hello Welcome to BYC!

A hen will not sit on her eggs and hatch chicks unless she is broody. Whether she goes broody depends on many factors such as breed, age, time of year and hormones. Even the most broody hen will lay a clutch of eggs over the course of a week or so before sitting on the eggs. Some birds never go broody. And like Blooie mentioned you will need a rooster to have fertile eggs.

This thread is a good thread to ready about broodiness.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ody-hen-hatch-a-long-and-informational-thread

 

[lthao82]

Yes I do have a rooster and I've noticed him trying to mate with her before. But seems like ayer she's laid her first eh she's more then willing to allow him to mate her. This is her very first egg she's laid as well.

 

[Bryam]

She will lay eggs and have no interest in sitting on them. That is normal. Buy an incubator after you collect 6 or more eggs and try to hatch some chicks, if that is what you want to do. Eggs can sit dormant and fertile for 10 days to 2 weeks, so the egg she just laid is fine.

Best of luck!

 

[lazy gardener]

All of that being said, it's not a good idea to incubate her first eggs. They're too small to give a growing chick the best advantage. Wait a few weeks, or even months. Also, do you have the room to raise baby chicks? That's a whole new ball game, requires a place where you can provide a brooder to keep them safe and warm and at the right temp. You will have to raise the babies for a while before they can go in with your 2 adults.