When do I let my hen give up on unhatched eggs?

ClaraCluckChicken

Songster
7 Years
Jul 11, 2017
61
31
118
Hello! We have our broody hen some eggs from our hen who does lay fertilized eggs and she hatched three on Sunday night! Yay! It’s our first time going the broody hen route and I’m not sure when I should take the two eggs that haven’t hatched? I know they can hatch on different days.. it is now Wednesday so almost a full 72 hours since the first three hatched. I’ve candled them and I don’t see movement but they look full and I know movement can be hard to see towards the end. Any insight?
 
Did you give her all the eggs at the same time?
Usually the hens decide when they're done. Usually by the 2nd or at the latest the 3rd day they abandoned the nest so the chicks can find food and water.
 
Did you give her all the eggs at the same time?
Usually the hens decide when they're done. Usually by the 2nd or at the latest the 3rd day they abandoned the nest so the chicks can find food and water.
We did, but when we gave them to her we gave two from the nest next to her (had just been laid) and three from inside (that had been laid the days prior). It was kind of a “let’s just see what happens” type of thing so we didn’t mark eggs or anything. I was thinking these two could’ve been the ones that we grabbed from the nest next to her and maybe the older ones are what hatched. She has food and water close enough to her that shes been able to teach the chicks to eat and drink without getting off the two extra eggs.
 
It doesn't matter if they were freshly laid or a few days old. They will all start developing once she starts setting on them so they should all hatch the same time or close to it. I would guess the others aren't going to hatch. Not such a big deal if the chicks are eating and drinking now but I would probably go ahead and toss the eggs today or tomorrow.
 

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