Collecting cold/cool eggs for hatching

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

I’m going to (purposefully this time) collect eggs for hatching starting in a few days. My understanding is that freshest is best but it’s okay to keep them for 7 days before incubating.

My question is about the eggs getting cold while in the coop. The eggs can sit there for up to 10 hours. The coop ranges 35-55 degrees Fahrenheit depending on the day. This time of year, I refrigerate all my eating eggs since some days they can get cold in the coop (and I haven’t mastered a tactic for keeping eggs organized if some are in the fridge and some are on the counter). Is it okay to let cold eggs come to room temp and store in the 65-68 degree house before hatching? Or should they stay cold (store in coop or fridge) before going in the incubator?

Also, what’s the maximum amount of time an egg can be stored before incubated and still hatch?I feel like 7 is rule of thumb, but I’ve heard they can go longer. One of my fave older gals laid today. If she doesn’t lay again, is there any hope this egg could hatch if started 2/25 (12 days from now)?

And final question- how long do hens lay fertile eggs after being exposed to a roo? I’ve heard they can go a month, but is that typical or just certain cases? If you lost your roo, how long would you continue collecting eggs for hatching?

 

[ExoticPetOwner]

The eggs should be stored in a room temperature area where the temp ( about 60-68 degrees F ) doesn't fluctuate much. The eggs should be brought in as soon as possible. Don't let them sit out for long so they don't freeze. Don't wash the eggs, leave the bloom on. You can gently scrape the muck off of them, just don't wash them. The eggs can last about a week until they are nonviable. The less time an egg waits to be incubated, the better the hatch rate there will be. If hens have been with a rooster for an extended amount of time and they have been mating, hens can store sperm for up to 2 weeks, some have been known to store for longer periods. The best thing to do in this situation is to be collecting eggs as soon as possible to incubate them, you don't want to wait long.

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

The eggs should be brought in as soon as possible. Don't let them sit out for long so they don't freeze.

Thanks for your reply. I wish I could collect them sooner, but with my work schedule I can’t.

The eggs can last about a week until they are nonviable. The less time an egg waits to be incubated, the better the hatch rate there will be.

So there’s no point in trying to hatch a 12 day old egg it sounds like. I kind of figured. I sure hope this hen lays another egg closer to my incubation date.

If hens have been with a rooster for an extended amount of time and they have been mating, hens can store sperm for up to 2 weeks, some have been known to store for longer periods. The best thing to do in this situation is to be collecting eggs as soon as possible to incubate them, you don't want to wait long.

so I’m thinking I should try to hatch WAY more eggs and anticipate a low hatch rate. They’ve been with my roo all winter and mating (and hatched a few cuties in the winter with a 100% hatch rate but most work was done by a broody). He was getting too frisky and hurt a couple girls so he went to a new flock. Im scheduling the hatch date around my spring break so I can be home when the chicks move to the outdoor brooder in case we run into any issues. Unfortunately that means I can’t set them too early.

I suppose another alternative would be to expect a low hatch rate from my eggs and maybe buy more eggs from elsewhere.

 

[Egzermalda]

There is a Facebook group called "Hatching Store Bought Eggs". Hatching rates are pretty low, but MANY people have successfully hatched eggs (fertilized, of course) from a grocery store carton. So, the eggs are often several weeks to over a month old and have been refrigerated and shipped. "Happy Eggs" is the most common brand, but there are others. Some brands are advertised as Fertilized" or "having a rooster" but some are simply free-range or cage free and a roo slips in either intentionally or accidently. There is a date on all egg cartons called the "Julien Date" which is day of the year (1-365) that the eggs were packaged. Obviously, the fresher the better. There is a Happy Egg carton which contains a mix of dark brown and blue eggs which seems to be a way some people are getting Marans and Legbars.
It just goes to show how, "Life will find a way".

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

There is a Facebook group called "Hatching Store Bought Eggs". Hatching rates are pretty low, but MANY people have successfully hatched eggs (fertilized, of course) from a grocery store carton. So, the eggs are often several weeks to over a month old and have been refrigerated and shipped. "Happy Eggs" is the most common brand, but there are others. Some brands are advertised as Fertilized" or "having a rooster" but some are simply free-range or cage free and a roo slips in either intentionally or accidently. There is a date on all egg cartons called the "Julien Date" which is day of the year (1-365) that the eggs were packaged. Obviously, the fresher the better. There is a Happy Egg carton which contains a mix of dark brown and blue eggs which seems to be a way some people are getting Marans and Legbars.
It just goes to show how, "Life will find a way".

Thank you for quoting Ian Malcom.

 

[BelovedBirds]

I’m going to (purposefully this time) collect eggs for hatching starting in a few days. My understanding is that freshest is best but it’s okay to keep them for 7 days before incubating.

My question is about the eggs getting cold while in the coop. The eggs can sit there for up to 10 hours. The coop ranges 35-55 degrees Fahrenheit depending on the day. This time of year, I refrigerate all my eating eggs since some days they can get cold in the coop (and I haven’t mastered a tactic for keeping eggs organized if some are in the fridge and some are on the counter). Is it okay to let cold eggs come to room temp and store in the 65-68 degree house before hatching? Or should they stay cold (store in coop or fridge) before going in the incubator?

Also, what’s the maximum amount of time an egg can be stored before incubated and still hatch?I feel like 7 is rule of thumb, but I’ve heard they can go longer. One of my fave older gals laid today. If she doesn’t lay again, is there any hope this egg could hatch if started 2/25 (12 days from now)?

And final question- how long do hens lay fertile eggs after being exposed to a roo? I’ve heard they can go a month, but is that typical or just certain cases? If you lost your roo, how long would you continue collecting eggs for hatching?

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Hi!
I know you've already received replies but I just wanted to offer my 2 Cents.

As long as the eggs haven't frozen solid, they should be okay. I've hatched refrigerated eggs before, they're pretty hardy
Collect them as soon as possible, and then leave them inside at room temp for 12-24 hours. From there you can put them in the incubator, or store them for incubation.

Just keep in mind that eggs left exposed to extreme temps will have their viability drop quite a bit faster than normal. If an egg is kept in the correct conditions, they can remain good for up to 2 weeks. Sometimes they can last longer than that- but after a week viability begins to decline faster. So I wouldn't want to leave eggs much longer than 10 days ideally.
If they've been in very cold temps, they won't last as long.

Side note, those feathers are so pretty!

 

[BarnyardChaos]

In my most recent hatch, I included six eggs that had been refrigerated for at least 24-48 hours. I let them sit on the cabinet overnight, then popped them into the incubator (along with 33 more that had not been refrigerated) in the morning. Five of those six hatched - about the same hatchability rate as the rest of my eggs without refrigeration. One of those five hatched a full day earlier than anything else.

I only collect eggs in the late afternoon, and daytime winter temps were averaging 30-40-deg-F. So nearly all eggs that went into my incubator were chilled at some point.

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

Side note, those feathers are so pretty!

Thanks! One with more black I *think* belongs to one of my SLW. The one with more white belongs to a BYM cockerel whose mama is a SLW. He’s growing in his adult feathers and so dropping a lot of feathers, but he has many feathers that surprise me in particular because they have so much black on them! So I think it’s possible both feathers are his. Here’s a pic Smudge. He’s the white one.

 

[blessedflockmama]

Late to add to this post but to encourage just the same. I sent a girlfriend of mine eggs for eating. They were stored in our basement, unwashed in whatever position they were placed there by my children. They then travelled in egg cartons 8 hours with no special care (eating eggs) and then sat in her basement for another week. She ended up with an incubator and on a whim put in 5 of the eggs from our batch (easter egger mostly) and all 5 developped fully. Life is awesomely powerful.