Should I give up?

[Jojosine]

Hi all

we have a broody sitting on eggs and today is (possibly) day 21, but there is no sign of hatching whatsoever and she also moved the eggs slightly since yesterday.

It was always going to be a guess because our rooster limps, but still manages to do his job with most girls. Then we had to 'reserve' enough eggs to put under a broody. We collected eggs for around 7 - 8 days and kept them at ambient temperature (definitely not too hot, I would say rather cool) before we put 9 eggs under a broody.

She has been fairly good, but on day 1 we noticed her wandering around and we don't know for how long she had left the nest. The rest of the incubation period she came off the nest several times to eat and poop, but this typically only took 10 minutes or less. She also chucked 2 eggs out of the nest, which upon further inspection were dudds anyway. So, we thought all was well with the remaining 7 eggs.

BUT it is now day 21 (we think) and when she was off the nest to eat, I quickly looked inside the coop but there is no sign of pipping or cracking and I think she also moved the eggs (but maybe not rotated).

Should I already give up and feel very disappointed or should I wait for another couple of days?
How likely is it that eggs hatch on day 22 or maybe even on day 23?

Cheers,

 

[SilverBirds]

I would go out at dark with a strong flashlight and candle the eggs. If you see movement, wait a few more days before giving up. Feel free to take pictures of the candled eggs if you aren't sure what you are looking at.

 

[AinaWGSD]

I would give it a few more days, especially if you're not 100% certain what day they're on. Not all (arguably most) babies will arrive on their due date. Let the hen decide when she's done, nature is usually better at these things than we are.

 

[LaFleche]

Patience is key!

Just let her do her thing and this far along I would not disturb her by candling the eggs as you will disturb the higher humidity she is creating underneath for them to make it easier to hatch. Messing with her and her eggs at this point might cause shrink wrapping.

 

[D13]

I've had a few broodies myself and my advice is to give her and the eggs another week. After that, take any unhatched eggs out immediately, as they could be very rotten and infect the other eggs.
It's great to hear that one of your hens went broody, it's a real treat to watch a mother hen teach her babies all the ways of chicken life.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Definitely give her some time, candling is a good idea too, my first hatch for quail was day 19/20, it was supposed to be day 16/17, but a cold incubator delayed it significantly (boy was that a long couple days!). Try to be patient!