Trader Joe's Fertile Eggs - Started 8/11/12

[tlcmama]

We are just about to integrate the last of this springs chicks, to my husbands delight, but I can't stop thinking about hatching store bought eggs!

We don't have an incubator, but we DO have a very broody little bantam that I think will make a great mother.

Sooooo while my husband was at work my son and I went to Trader Joe's and bought a dozen fertile eggs.




My son used "the force" to choose the 6 eggs he though had the best chance of hatching. We only used 6 since the chicken whose going to sit on them in fairly small.

Looks like they were packaged on 220 (that means Aug 7th right?) So they were only 4days old when I bought them.
I put the date on them, let them come up to room temperature (I didn't think the hen would sit on them of they were refrigerator cold) took all the other eggs out of the coop and put these 6 in Little Browns favorite Nesting box.




As of this afternoon she has been sitting on them for 24hours. I offered her some food today and she hopped off the eggs, went out to the run, took a poop and had some food and water then got right back on the eggs.
She is serious about this experiment!

I realize our chances are pretty slim that they will hatch but I thought it would be a fun and educational thing for our family.
I didn't candle any of them, nor do I think I will. It will only make me crazy. I think I will just watch and wait.

Any thoughts? Advice?

More pictures to come! Thanks

 

[The Rancho]

Hi all!
I have been incubating some tj eggs as well. Today is day 21, originally i started with 2 dozen on day 7 i candled and 5 appeared to not be fertile. Of the remaining 19 all made it to lockdown. Yesterday we got our first pips and zips and by evening i had 3-4 that had hatched. This morning we have 16 chicks the remaining 3 eggs have pips! Looks like a great hatch rate!

 

[tlcmama]

OMG OMG OMG

I would NEVER have believed it, but guess what I woke up to??




3 so far, but I hear LOTS of beeping!!!

 

[tlcmama]

Little brown sat on those eggs until every single one was hatched!!
100% hatch rate, 6 total. not bad for store bought refrigerated eggs.




I love the pic with the date stamp in it - as it turns out I did not have to enjoy by sept 6, im enjoying them RIGHT NOW





And so is my lab partner!

 

[gryeyes]

Little brown sat on those eggs until every single one was hatched!!
100% hatch rate, 6 total. not bad for store bought refrigerated eggs.




I love the pic with the date stamp in it - as it turns out I did not have to enjoy by sept 6, im enjoying them RIGHT NOW





And so is my lab partner!

Absolutely FANTASTIC hatch rate! Wahooo!

You know what, the more I read, the more the information is conflicting. I guess one must do what works for one's self, no? I mean, I went researching (again) tonight, and found one site that said you MUST move the hen and eggs! So lord have mercy, I'm so ugg'd out, LOL. Hopefully, she'll feel good there tomorrow and won't give you any trouble?? I sure hope so!

Not true. I am one of the folks who has never, ever, moved a setting hen from her chosen nest. I do mark the eggs, though, so I can remove any "added" eggs laid in the nest by other hens, which they will do. Silly girls.

lockdown? i dont have to do that right?
little browns in charge right?

Yup, your hen will take care of that process; you may notice her in a sort of trance whilst she's on the eggs. The last few days, as she hears/feels/senses chick movement, she sits even more tightly and may not get up to eat or void. Or she might, but her time off the nest will be much shorter.

Mine hatched 1/1/11 (part of one of the Mahonri's Annual New Year's Day Hatch-a-thon (here on BYC) and I still have a Josie left from the four (one cockerel and 3 pullets) hatched from my Trader Joe's eggs. Two of the hens went to other folks when I had to get rid of some roosters and gave them away with a hen apiece. TJ the rooster died protecting the flock (he was one of several roosters of all different breeds) but lordy, was he a gorgeous rooster! The 3 Josies are exceptional layers - all White Leghorns.

 

[tlcmama]

Yeah - very curious about breed. From other post I've read it might be a good idea to candle at some point so I don't end up with an explosive stink bomb. Also not sure about separating her. She seems to be defending the box just fine and I'd hate to upset her.

 

[cluck-cluck]

As of this afternoon she has been sitting on them for 24hours. I offered her some food today and she hopped off the eggs, went out to the run, took a poop and had some food and water then got right back on the eggs.
She is serious about this experiment!

LOL, sounds great! I'm on day 14, one more week to go! I hope my 6 will hatch

I'm looking forward to having hens and eggs! They will be my first chickens ever! I'm using a home made incubator and if I'm successful, I'm going to buy some cute Serama eggs, and try my luck?? She looks so sweet in that picture, what a good mama!!

They should be either white leghorns or more likely, California whites, which are a hybrid of a "California grey" which is a white leghorn and a Barred Rock, I think female/male in that order, then the male off spring of that, called a California Grey, is bred with another white Leghorn. Supposedly they are sweeter than White leghorns. California Whites are not supposed to breed true. If you see any black spots on your chickens later, then they're Californaia White offspring. That's what I've read in my research, but like you, I've got to wait and see for myself

Please join the Trader Joe's thread, I'm talking to myself over there

I'm so lonely!

 

[tlcmama]

Well, sometimes a plan falls together, or else that saying would never have come to being. "I love it when a plan comes together".... wait a second, that was TV wasn't it?

The "A Team". You're aging yourself

 

[alexthechicken]

Does every Trader Joes do this? i live in Thousand oaks, CA and am wondering if my trader joes has them.

 

[cluck-cluck]

If you didn't see my post, alexthechicken, I'm quite sure the TJ's in Thousand oaks will have them! Give it a try, they're not even expensive for a dozen eggs!