Donated Eggs

We have been looking on-line, trying to find a place where we can purchase fertilized eggs for Gena to sit on.  (read original post HERE!)  After finding a couple of places, we were disappointed to find out that we missed the "order by" date for the eggs we wanted.  Since we couldn't find what we were looking for, we were going to try and break Gena's broodiness, until I remembered something....my sister has hens AND roosters.  Why not get the eggs from her? Soooo, that is what we are going to do.  Their hens and roosters are both Rhode Island Reds.  They were our first choice last year but they were not available.

Since we are getting "donor eggs" we need to be careful in keeping them viable until we are ready to use them.  My sister actually has one of the eggs with her on her trip to the grocery store,  She was afraid someone would cook it while she was gone!  LOL  She is going to send me a picture of the egg in the car....I can't wait to see that!  ROFLOL!

We need to collect as many eggs that we want to try and hatch first, being sure to follow these guidelines, which I found on the Mississippi State University website; MSU Cares

Hatching Egg Storage Period

Eggs saved for hatching are very perishable and their viability is greatly affected by the quality of storage conditions. If properly stored, the number of hatching failures can be kept to a minimum. It is recommended that most eggs be stored no longer than 1 week. Storing eggs longer will produce a greater incidence of hatching failures.

The maximum storage period for chickens is about 3 weeks. Some turkey eggs will survive for 4 weeks, but quail will have difficulty developing from eggs stored longer than 2 weeks.

Hatching eggs should be collected soon after lay and maintained at 50-65* F. The eggs must not warm to above 65* F. unless they are being prepared for immediate incubation. Relative humidity in the storage facility should be maintained at 70 percent and daily egg turning or repositioning is recommended to prevent the yolk from sticking to the inside surface of the shell.

 We'll keep you posted on the process!