Chicken Egg Candling...?

Question

I just candled my three day old eggs that I've been incubating with a piece of cardboard and a flashlight. The eggs were mostly clear with a dark patch floating around at the top. There weren't any spots or anything like that, just this dark patch.

Do you think they're infertile?

I guess I'll candle again in a few days but I'm so worried...

Answer 1

I'm assuming that you have a rooster doing the rooster thing?

I'm also assuming that you are either incubating them yourself or you have a hen that is wanting to sit on them?

My friend who incubated eggs for me last year waits 5 days before candling eggs.

I've tried to incubate my own eggs that I knew were fertile and in the early days of starting my own homemade incubator. . . which really didn't work well so I ended up losing the eggs,I could see the air sack and I could actually see a black spot about the size of a peaat about a week into the process.

As time went on and I was beginning to realize that my homemade incubator wasn't going as well as I had hoped and planned,I began to crack open those eggs and sure enough,I had achieved some kind of embryo growth.

I think what you are seeing is what would be the air sac.  

Provided your rooster has been doing the rooster thing and provided your incubator or hen is working properly,try candling at about a week of incubation.

Answer 2

That dark spot is the yolk. It takes at least 7 days to see veins or not. Put them in them in the incubator and stop opening it or they won't ever develop.

By the way, the easiest way to candle is use the brown toilet center of a toilet paper roll on top of the flashlight. It sets snugly on top and focus's the light really well.

Answer 3

you have to give them more time, give them a week or so...

Answer 4

Don't worry... Very few eggs can be candled that soon, most need to be left until days 5-7 (some even day 10 if it has a thick or patterned shell). The dark patch is the yolk and a good start. I have some eggs I recently paid alot of money for and I was so worried that they were unfertile candling every day (not recommended as you should candle them as little as possible). It wasn't until day 5 that it suddenly was obvious and they are nice pale shells so quite easy to see in. Candling (chickens with 21day incubation) is ideally suppose to be done on days 7 or 8, 12 or 13 and lastly on days 17 or 18 before they are no longer turned. Don't hold the light on too long as unless its LEDs it gives out excessive heat. But I'm sure they'll be fine :-)