So um yeah, collecting your own eggs for hatching.

[Crippledturkey]

I now feel bad for laughing from another section of this board about someone who was concerned that their hens right breast seemed larger after they ate, we are all new at something right? So tuesday I am buying an incubator and wish to hatch from my own flock. (I read a lot about hatching your own eggs but the information lacks as to how to get your eggs) I picture this scenerio. I put my RIR roo and 5 RIR hens in a seperate breeding coop/run, and they do their thing and lay 5 eggs in their nest box a day, I do this for a week and get 35 "fertile" eggs. I set them in the bator and follow the instructions and hope for the best? or do the collected eggs need special handling besides keeping them above 50 degrees until the time to set? I know they will not lay 7 a week I am speaking hypothetically. I read they could be viable up to ten weeks after lay. So yeah if ya could let me know about the initial collecting care and age of viability in your best expierience it would be much apreciated. Thank you in advance.

 

[Mr. Nappy]

From what I understand, a roosters sperm can 'lay in wait' inside the hen for about 30 days. So, if you have other roosters and want pure RIR, you'd have to keep them penned up together for around a month before you're guaranteed pure RIR eggs.
Also, I believe, after about 10 days to 2 weeks of storage (not 10 weeks), the viability drops off increasingly.

 

[silkie_sue]

Quote:
I collect and hatch my own eggs. I keep mine in my basement where it stays nice and cool. I put them in a egg carton and tip it 3 times a day. You want to try to set them no later than 10 days from first collection. After ten days the fertility is not as strong.
If you have never used a incubator before please do some reading here first. It's always best to get your incubator set up...the temp and humidity stable for a couple of days before setting any eggs.

 

[Flawedatdesign]

Silkie Sue said it best. Do alot of research before your bator gets there and your good! Can't say it's rocket science but it's a learning experience for sure. The key is temp and humidity. Once you can nail that to the optimal ranges it then becomes a waiting game

 

[oldorchardfarms]

I also collect my own eggs almost every morning i have 2 eggs then someone special lays one at night lol, what i do is i collect them in an egg carton here is the big deal keep them stored pointy side down, you do not have to turn them. for the best hatch rate i would keep them only for 8-9 days. day 10 can be tricky. i also keep them out of sunlight so i store them in my dresser drawer, so they stay warm and out of the sun. when you put them in the bator keep them with the big end up but on there side and turn them every 8 hrs about 3 times a day mark with x's and o's so you know but always turn them an odd number per day. If you need any help pm me and i usally get on several times though out the day. if this is first time it can be scary. good luck

 

[sgtmom52]

I collect mine over a 10 day period and store them in an egg carton in my wine refrigerator which keeps them at about 55 degrees. I usually have a very good hatch rate. I have hatched a couple of eggs that have sat in a basket on my counter un-turned for about 2 weeks (I added them to fill the bator and see what would happen) and they all hatched with no problems.

When chickens save their eggs for hatching they just let them collect in the nest with no special treatment.

 

[Crippledturkey]

Right on, thanks gys. I have been reading a lot on here on this section and doing numerous yahoo searches. There is so much information, will let ya know how it all goes.

 

[cmom]

Quote:
10 DAYS. I store my eggs on top of my incubator. Only one egg didn't hatch from my last hatch.