Day 21 and nothing is happening.....

[Scottishnewbie]

I know! I know! I need to be patient, but I don't know HOW patient I need to be......it is day 21 and I have lovingly turned my little babies 5 times a day from day 1 - day 18 and then left them alone for the last few days.........I got up at 6am this morning hoping to see a 'wee something' but nothing, di nada, zippo, nowt............

have checked hundreds of times today and even taken the lid of the bater to make wee cheeping noises (JT thinks I have gone bonkers of course!) but nothing at all happening.

I thought I was supposed to hear wee cheeps and also see the eggs moving........

so have I just bought a dozen duds from ebay do you think?

is there anything else i can do?

thanks
SN

[Snadger]

Could be duds, but i would give them another 4 or five days 'just in case'
Don't do as i did and take the eggs away from a broody hen four days after they should have hatched to find chicks inside!

[RichmondHens]

As Snadge says, could be duds, but give them a few more days. You will hear them when they are ready to come.

[MaureenHall]

Fingers crossed that something will happen in the next day or so. Don't want to put a downer on things, but there's been a lot of duds sold on Ebay just lately. My friend bought a dozen from one breeder only to find out much later that the breeder just had 2 hens, no cockerel!!!! Think positive, YOURS WILL BE FINE

[CoraxAurata]

I have often looked jelously at all these reports of wobbling eggs, and cheeping pre-hatching, I usually get no clue until no.1 has at least pipped.... Keep waiting everything except the ducklings has hatched a few days to a week late up here both in the bator and under a broody....

On that note I have to go Broody hunting one of my hens stayed out last night and I'm pretty sure she's gone broody somewhere in the woods behind the house.... Can I find her before Mr Fox and freinds? Fingers crossed! She's one of my Original 3 girls, 1 disappeared last year :'(

[Polly Fouracre]

Hatching times can be affected by temperature, if the temp. is a bit low they will hatch later. Make sure you keep the humidity high.
Snadger, it may have been that the chicks were already dead in shell and you giving up didn't make any difference
Corax Aurata, I hope your girl turns up. Broody hens hide themselves pretty well and have no scent. I "lost" Mrs. Bantam last year and discovered that she had been hiding her nest only feet away from where the hens were fed.

[Scottishnewbie]

Thanks for the help folks...I will wait a few more days and see what happens. I've put a damp sponge in with them - should I maybe give them a spray like you do with duck eggs - would that help do you think?

I thought I'd checked ever so carefully and read all the feedback from the ebay seller - lots of good comments.....so maybe I'm just being impatient!!!

It was my son's birthday party yesterday and I soooo wanted him to be able to show his friends a newly hatched chick..........sad, sad, sad!!

[di]

Fingers crossed for you,ours under a broody were a couple of days late so don't give up hope!
There'll be other opportunities for your boy to show off his fluffy chicks...chances are even if they had hatched in time for the party,Mummy hen might not have felt ready to show off her babies anyway!
Good Luck!x

[Bephlam]

Have you tried putting the egg to your ear and listening for chirps?

Be patient...you'll get something! Thing Positive!!!

[Snadger]

Fingers crossed that something will happen in the next day or so. Don't want to put a downer on things, but there's been a lot of duds sold on Ebay just lately. My friend bought a dozen from one breeder only to find out much later that the breeder just had 2 hens, no cockerel!!!! Think positive, YOURS WILL BE FINE

Could be worse...........he could have bought them from Tesco's and sold them on!!!!!!!!!

[Snadger]

.............................
Snadger, it may have been that the chicks were already dead in shell and you giving up didn't make any difference
.....................

That's a consoling thought I must admit. It also gives me more confidence in the ebay seller...........at least two of the six WERE fertile!

[Scottishnewbie]

you aren't the first one to suggest the ebay seller just bought them in Tesco let me tell you!!

Tried to candle them tonight but the shells are brown so hard to tell and held them up to my ear but couldnt hear a thing

patience Laura, patience!!!!!!!

[Nicos]

anything yet????......

[julesapple]

I hope you've had some activity overnight.

Not sure ebay sellers could get away with buying eggs at Tesco and selling them on - would have thought some eagle-eyed person would have spotted the red lion marks! But any private egg seller's produce wouldn't have a stamp I guess.

Jules

[RichmondHens]

The eggs may have been perfectly fertile. But they tend to get joggled around a bit in transit and if dropped, shaken or roughly handled the egg contents will get broken within the shell (you cannot tell this from the outside) and then the embryo will not develop.

Where possible, try and collect your hatching eggs direct from the breeder. You are then in control of how they travel home.