Candling position

[K0k0shka]

I only found one 9-year old thread on the subject (with not a lot of information in it), so I'd like to ask again. How should the egg be placed/held during candling? I've been looking at pictures and videos on the internet, and I'm seeing a LOT of eggs being candled upside down (pointy end up, with the air cell at the bottom). Some candlers are even made this way, meant for you to place the egg on a little stand air cell down, and the light shines up through it. This goes against everything I've read and heard about being careful with the delicate egg and its very important and fragile air cell... how the egg should always be fat end up, or at least on its side. But in these instances, it's completely upside down! Is that okay? The pictures/videos don't elaborate on when this is okay and when it's not... for example, I can't imagine how this would be a good idea with shipped eggs. Mine were shipped and their air cells are all over the place, so I've been paranoid careful about how I hold them, how I candle them, etc. But then I see people in videos moving eggs around holding them all sorts of ways like it's nothing. Am I stressing out too much? Or are there a lot of incorrect how-tos out there?

 

[rascal66]

Normally what I do, is hold the egg sideways (horizontal), and candle the blunt end (where the air cell is). I try to avoid flipping the egg upsidedown, but I'm curious to hear what other people say? I'm not entirely sure if there is a proper way?

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

Try reposting this in the hatch a long thread. You'll get more replies.

I think your instincts are correct. Shipped eggs need to be babies a bit more that other eggs. Yes, tons of bad videos out there from inexperienced people on their first or second hatches out there.

I prefer to hold them upright or horizontal. Shipped eggs I really try to keep in the same position they're incubating in. I think many people use lights which are not bright enough. This causes them to have to move the egg around, looking at it from all angles, in an attempt at determining viability or air cell growth.

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

Just for fun. You might find this link interesting. It's a thread I did in '17. When I started hatching. Asking a question about candling.

After a couple years and many more eggs I can now say with confidence I was correct. I still candle dark eggs this way to this day. I don't know why more people don't and instead dispense canned responses of "dark eggs can't be candled".

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/who-else-candles-like-this-day-5-candling.1200634/

 

[K0k0shka]

Just for fun. You might find this link interesting. It's a thread I did in '17. When I started hatching. Asking a question about candling.

After a couple years and many more eggs I can now say with confidence I was correct. I still candle dark eggs this way to this day. I don't know why more people don't and instead dispense canned responses of "dark eggs can't be candled".

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/who-else-candles-like-this-day-5-candling.1200634/

I made the same observation (without even knowing it) when I candled my eggs on day 7! This is my first hatch and that was my first time candling eggs that had started developing. All my eggs but one had lots of veining and the embryo was visible, and that one egg had nothing visible inside, but it didn't look the way those same eggs had looked before I set them. It had stratified itself. So my guess was that it was indeed fertile, and had started changing, but quit too early to start showing anything else. I moved the flashlight-style candler all around - on top, behind, underneath, but I held the egg upright (fat end up) the whole time. I'm just too paranoid to tilt it in any direction and by any amount... Those eggs have traveled coast to coast and their air cells are terrible But it's day 16 and they are still alive (as of yesterday), so let's hope my caution pays off!