Shipped egg questions

[LydiaB]

I got my Delaware eggs today… they were stuck with usps over the holiday weekend due to super slow shipping (not the fault of the breeder, eggs should have arrived by Saturday).
I opened the box and there were scrambled eggs in the packages. Yuck.
15 eggs were okay. 1 is okay but did have mold on it. I washed it but should I set it or skip it? I ordered 24 and she sent extra.
How long don’t let them rest?
When do I turn them?
I know it’s a long shot that any will even hatch. The eggs are 10 days old already. And obviously had a horrible shipping experience. The fact that the eggs were packaged well and literally scrambled says the handling was rough. Advice appreciated, this is my second chicken hatch. Much more experienced with ducks at this point.

 

[Jener8or]

I probably wouldn't try to incubate that one. Are you sure it was mold? I guess things can happen/grow during shipping! If you wanted, you could dip in in hydrogen peroxide, just to be safe, and then try setting it. I would definitely be sure to candle that one after 6 or 7 days and take it out if it is a dud, but since it likely has lost its bloom, it will be more susceptible to problems anyways.

You want to let them rest after shipping for 24 hours, pointy side down so the air cells can settle in the right place. (Maybe others can chime in if 12-18 hours might be enough, just for time's sake!)

I would turn them 3 times per day, minimum, but once every few hours wouldn't hurt, either. I don't know if you have an egg turner in your incubator or not, but if you don't, it's recommended to turn them an odd #, so that they spend overnight on a different sides each night.

I hope some of them do hatch!

 

[LydiaB]

Thanks.

Yes, it was green mold. The broken eggs had literally scrambled and were leaking liquid on most of the eggs.

I have an automatic turner, so they will get turned once an hour. What day do I start the turner? I usually do it the day after I set them. But some say day 3 is better for shipped eggs.

 

[Jener8or]

If you could candle them to see if any of the air cells are detached, that would be informative and maybe I would wait the 3 days until the air cells are settled.
I've never waited 3 days before turning shipped eggs and have gotten great hatch rates, but it seems like there could be some validity to this advice, especially with the shipment you experienced!

 

[LydiaB]

If you could candle them to see if any of the air cells are detached, that would be informative and maybe I would wait the 3 days until the air cells are settled.
I've never waited 3 days before turning shipped eggs and have gotten great hatch rates, but it seems like there could be some validity to this advice, especially with the shipment you experienced!

I will try to candle them…. Couldn’t see the air cells pre incubation last time. Maybe I’m bad at candling.

 

[Debbie292d]

I got my Delaware eggs today… they were stuck with usps over the holiday weekend due to super slow shipping (not the fault of the breeder, eggs should have arrived by Saturday).
I opened the box and there were scrambled eggs in the packages. Yuck.
15 eggs were okay. 1 is okay but did have mold on it. I washed it but should I set it or skip it? I ordered 24 and she sent extra.
How long don’t let them rest?
When do I turn them?
I know it’s a long shot that any will even hatch. The eggs are 10 days old already. And obviously had a horrible shipping experience. The fact that the eggs were packaged well and literally scrambled says the handling was rough. Advice appreciated, this is my second chicken hatch. Much more experienced with ducks at this point.

I've had about 5-6 orders of hatching eggs shipped here this year, and about as many of mine shipped out. It's been a bad USPS year for sure.

I hatch eggs two weeks old all of the time. I wouldn't worry too much about the age of them, it's more how scrambled they got on their way. Yes, age of eggs will affect their viability, but two weeks is when it starts. I've even hatched eggs from the fridge in a pinch to fill the incubators. Only half of those hatched though.

I let the eggs I get sit for 24 hours at room temperature, pointy side down.

I shut the turner off for their first day in the incubator, then let it turn every 2 hours. Once an hour or whatever you choose is fine.

Sorry about the broken eggs. You could still incubate those it touched as long as you sterilized the outside of the eggs. See my article https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/sterilizing-hatching-eggs.79104/


Wishing you a great hatch!

 

[LydiaB]

I've had about 5-6 orders of hatching eggs shipped here this year, and about as many of mine shipped out. It's been a bad USPS year for sure.

I hatch eggs two weeks old all of the time. I wouldn't worry too much about the age of them, it's more how scrambled they got on their way. Yes, age of eggs will affect their viability, but two weeks is when it starts. I've even hatched eggs from the fridge in a pinch to fill the incubators. Only half of those hatched though.

I let the eggs I get sit for 24 hours at room temperature, pointy side down.

I shut the turner off for their first day in the incubator, then let it turn every 2 hours. Once an hour or whatever you choose is fine.

Sorry about the broken eggs. You could still incubate those it touched as long as you sterilized the outside of the eggs. See my article https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/sterilizing-hatching-eggs.79104/


Wishing you a great hatch!

Thank you. I was planning to hatch them but appreciate knowing how/that I should sterilize. The breeder is also being gracious enough to reship us using UPS and I’m only paying shipping. If UPS doesn’t work she may quit shipping altogether.

 

[LydiaB]

I set the eggs Wednesday morning. I sterilized and candled first. I don’t even see air cells. I have a really hard time candling chicken eggs for some reason. They look “airy” to me. I’m good at doing duck eggs. Is this me, the eggs, or normal? Duck eggs I can see the air cell right away. I’m so confused.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Just got into poultry this spring, borrowed an incubator and ordered two sets of eggs. First set (15 eggs) 8 days in the mail, 5 squashed but hatched 6/10 (2 infertile, 2 embryonic deaths). Next batch 32 eggs (ordered 2 dozen!), 2 day shipping (also usps) no eggs squashed and hatched 24 birds (too many!). It is crazy how different your shipping experiences can be and how resilient eggs are too! Hope it works out!

 

[Sic]

I set the eggs Wednesday morning. I sterilized and candled first. I don’t even see air cells. I have a really hard time candling chicken eggs for some reason. They look “airy” to me. I’m good at doing duck eggs. Is this me, the eggs, or normal? Duck eggs I can see the air cell right away. I’m so confused.

The air cells in shipped eggs can expand a lot if shipping includes air flight. Not sure how you're candling or what color, white are easier. If you hold the egg pointy side down and use a mini flashlight or even your cellphone flashlight, start at the top of the round where the air cell should be, if you don't see it, slide the light slowly down the side from 45-90 degrees you should eventually see the demarcation of the air cell vs the egg white. Hopefully this makes sense. I had a very successful hatch with shipped eggs, but I did things quite differently, including hand turning every hour. Best of luck with your hatch