After the eggs have been laid it is important to get them in the incubator quickly! Temperature fluctuations for the eggs can be damaging so once you take away mommas’ body heat it is important to get the eggs moved into a stable temperature area soon. I usually have egg boxes made up and ready to go that have been sitting in the incubator. That way they are already at temperature when I need them. To find out what I use for egg boxes click here.

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Something I do that not everyone does, is that I separate the eggs from the pile. This is usually a very simple process to pull them apart, I will sometimes leave groups together if I don’t feel comfortable separating them. It is possible to tear the egg so you do need to be careful. Again, this is not necessary but is something that I have always done.

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I separate the eggs for a couple reasons but one main reason is so that if an egg dies I can easily remove it without it affecting any others. I will note that healthy eggs shouldn’t be affected by a dying egg that may be molding but I just like taking them out of the equation anyway.

 

CANDLING

Before I put the eggs into the egg box I candle them. This is done by holding a flashlight up against the side of the egg and checking to see if there is a visible embryo or veins. Infertile eggs will be clear while fertile eggs you’ll be able to see some veins and they usually have a bit of a reddish tint to them as well when you candle them. If there were any slugs in the clutch I just throw those away immediately. Slugs are usually discolored and have a slimy feel to them and are more deflated as well. Once all of the fertile eggs are put away in the egg box I get them transferred to the incubator and the wait begins!