Should I wait?

[yinzerchick]

How soon can you start collecting eggs to try to hatch? Some of my hens have been laying for almost 2 months now, others not more than a month. Some are laying huge eggs, some are still a bit small. I have a good rooster and he's definately doing his rooster duties. Just wondering if it's still too soon to use them to hatch, since the hens haven't been laying that long and their "egg laying equipment" is still kinda in the start up mode. Are there any rules that apply to this?

Any suggestions? I don't want to try hatching chicks that wouldn't have a chance.
Thanks!

 

[hdowden]

the best time to incubate them is before they are 10 days old as the older thery get their viatilty goes down. so i would collect for 3 days and on the forth put them in the incubator...i am new to this so if i am wrong please correct me...any eggs that are a month old might as well consider them duds since that is way to old to try and incubate. ours have been laying for 2-3 months i think maybe less and i have put one in the incubator to test the bator and i just candled it and it seems to be developing

 

[Melissa Rose]

Hi

I know some people don't think you should or can hatch pullet eggs but I had several really tiny eggs that had to be pullet eggs in a batch I hatched and they hatched just fine and now that it's been a few weeks you can't tell any difference in the chicks even though the pullet egg chicks were quite a bit smaller when they hatched

Happy Hatching

 

[mstricer]

I've hatched pullet eggs before, I just chose the ones that looked the best and biggest. I'm glad I did too, because shortly after my hen got killed by a farmers coon dogs. If they've been laying for 2 to 3 months I would say its alright. Just remember that small eggs give small chicks. Good luck.

 

[yinzerchick]

Thank you!! That's just what I needed to know!