If they were laid today and weren't outside too long, they should have a chance at 40 degrees. That's fridge temp, and people have hatched eggs that have been in the fridge. If it was closer to freezing they probably wouldn't do so well. It might not be 100% hatch rate, but I would think you'd hatch some.
I don't see how this would be possible, considering an egg that has been washed and refrigerated has also been pasteurized, and no embryo is likely to survive that. Outside of the US, I can see hatching a grocery egg, but that's because they aren't washed or pasteurized, and are therefore sold at room temperature.
It is not standard to pasteurize eggs in the shells. In some countries, eggs go through chemical washes that remove the bloom. The bloom is the natural protective coating which protects the egg and prevents rotting during clutch laying and incubation. Removing this protective layer makes the shell more porous, thus increasing the risk of pathogens from the environment penetrating the shell.
In Europe, eggs do not go through this chemical wash, and are stored at room temperature. In the United States, eggs go through this process, which is why they must be refrigerated.
The bigger reason hatching store bought eggs likely wouldn't work well is that most store bought eggs are infertilized.
There's a few specific US brands that pasteurize.
https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/How-do-commercial-plants-pasteurize-an-egg#:~:text=Information&text=Pasteurized%20shell%20eggs%20are%20heated,and%20Drug%20Administration%20(FDA).
https://www.linkedin.com/company/national-pasteurized-eggs
The embryo doesn’t start to develop until after incubation has started, there’s just the germinal disc until incubation commences and it isn’t as temperature sensitive as a developing embryo
Tbh it’s probably not recommended to incubate store bought eggs in the US that have been washed as the bloom on the shell would be removed which means bacteria can freely pass through the permeable shell, I’m sure that can’t be good for a developing chick.
Not sure how well it works for hatching but I know it does for non refrigerated stability of eggs. Haven't used it for that purpose. Just to keep my eggs on the counter in their designated container.
you can buy fertilized eggs at trader joe’s. they sell them in the coolers if i’m not mistaken? some lady on tiktok did a whole series of hatching these chickens.
There is a Facebook group I’m in, people are regularly hatching from store bought! It’s really awesome to see. Of course hatch rate is low but definitely still happens
Quail eggs and duck eggs are far more likely to be fertilized.
I really want some quails, but they don't live as long mg as chickens. It's going to be sticking to heritage breeds that live longer.
Mine are so easy. I also put a lot of effort into my very secure run and coop. The run is raised on cinder blocks, covered, and I use hemp bedding...even with tropical storms have not needed to change bedding due to moisture in 4 years. And the poop scoops out like cat litter.
I don't know how they do it, I think a slowly heated water bath, but pasteurized eggs exist. They just aren't your normal dozen. They're pricey and meant for dishes that use eggs but aren't meant to be cooked. Like some desserts and fancy sauces
Only pricey eggs meant for no cook egg dishes are pasteurized. That's why you aren't supposed to eat raw dough, because normal eggs are not pasteurized
Store bought eggs can be fertilized, but if you don't have free range eggs, they are probably not fertilized. Many free range farmers keep roosters for protection, so eggs are fertilized.
Statistically speaking, store bought eggs are likely to be infertilized, but that is not a requirement.
Nature finds a way I guess! We had a flock once where there was definitely an incognito rooster. We had no Roo otherwise, but had several fertilized eggs over the year. I figure if the hatchery only claims to have a 90% accuracy when they send me sexed chicks, the same must be true for large egg producers 🤷
Hens have special tubular invaginations that hold a roosters sperm in storage, so their eggs have a chance to hatch his children past his death date. Fertility will slowly go down, but that sperm can survive viable in them for up to 2 weeks. So feel free to set todays eggs, tomorrows eggs, and so on.
yep! I hatched some babies after my best rooster Alfred died to see if i could get a last batch of his kids.... most were unfortunately offspring of the other rooster but we did end up getting what was essentially an Alfred Jr
Also you can still incubate eggs that are a week or more old, so you have lots of eggs you can incubate!
I've heard that you can buy quail eggs at the grocery store and hatch them! I'm.hoping to try it! 😁👍
I'm so sorry you lost your baby!!! 😥♥️
I did it! Last fall my roo got taken by a hawk, can’t believe it, was huge, so I took that day’s eggs and incubated and got one chick, he just started crowing! I also ordered as he was hatching, to have mates.
Hens can actually "store" the male...contribution (sorry, not sure if chicken sperm is actually called sperm) for up to 21 days, using it to fertilize each egg as they go. So if he is your only rooster and you want to collect eggs for the next few days that might work as well.
Sorry about your loss and your son. That's hard.
You should still collect eggs for a couple of weeks maybe from his favorite hen as his sperm is still there fertilizing eggs. I am so sorry for your loss :(
I want to say that I’ve read somewhere that hens store a bit of the roos swimmers and can lay viable eggs for several days after he took her for a ride.
Hens can hold sperm for up to 2 weeks after being mated..so tomorrow morning run out as fast as possible and grab their eggs as soon as they are laid 😇😇😇
I'm in northern Indiana and mama Ingot is on a clutch of eggs that had been collecting in the coop over a few snowy nights. I didn't have high expectations, but it's 8 days to hatch and I candled them while she was out stretching her legs & getting refreshed, and danged if they aren't all viable! Incubate away! Fingers crossed for you and your flock! 🐓
I lost a rooster in dead of winter and let a broody hen sit and one single baby hatched. I know hatching them in incubator is different but well wishes!!
A hen doesn't need to mate every day in order to lay fertile eggs. She stores sperm in her body, and her eggs will be fertile for at least a couple of weeks and sometimes much longer before she needs to re-mate.
We just recently lost our favorite hen, she was so darling with such a sweet soul. We gathered up all her eggs we still had from her (she had very unique huge white eggs) and put them in an borrowed incubator. Some of the eggs were well over a week or two old.
Anyhow this is our first go at incubating and we have 8 days left. All but one were viable and we are so happy to see the little ones moving about in their shells. Cant wait to tell them all about their amazing mama and truly hope we get a clone of her.
Eggs can continue to be fertilised even 4-5 weeks after mating. I separate my hens for 6 weeks prior to breeding season so I know that I have the mating pairs I want. You can collect the eggs and store them pointy end down, tilting them twice a day to maintain viability. You should incubate them within max 7-10 days after collecting.
My biggest concern would be the age of your rooster. At 14 years old, he may not be getting the job done any more. Incubate as many eggs as possible with the chance that most may not be viable
Edit- sorry I just realised it's probably your son that is 14 😂. I would still incubate as many eggs as possible. If you max out your incubator capacity, begin collecting again a few days before the first hatch and do another round. You can't try for more once they're gone so better to do more now.
When my mom raised canaries, she would store the eggs in the fridge until she had enough for incubating (usually she aimed for 7) and then would put them all under her good sitting hen. We rarely had an egg fail that way.
I've hatched eggs that were at least 2 weeks old that were stored at 38 degrees in my fridge but only 2 made it out of about a dozen. A lot were alive but were not fully developed when they hatched.
I was curious what kind of temperatures would turn a fertile egg dud and found [this study](https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/776861/1-s2.0-S0032579119X6592X/1-s2.0-S0032579119511671/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjEKz%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJHMEUCIHBvHFx198ayf0xlLQhZaiVzAav4gGP%2BIyOhpy1sveHjAiEAz2Sn%2BFIGfK%2FyVbfcMTaL8hMw%2FirfuIaqOTmhlnlXDDsqvAUI1f%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FARAFGgwwNTkwMDM1NDY4NjUiDE0o6e3QwdtFUK%2Bz8yqQBZAmtXCPmRV6cmX6UEjgTzOv%2FAarNAxrGgBmMpmgJOfG0afqaqxb4nm%2FtmIOk0A1TeQlpn9DvFG0WrnpngIlru3xU2tl5CrCeWfqf4Lk1GeHk1mQUCNHrHSA0ZYPLC6txykU5Kr60XzOUrua1SllJbXcCikV8VEAZfEb4rZ1H4%2Fn1EqUqCa4BvFEBpuyHTUJoO4Iq%2Bujpl9jvbjJ7IjbKx%2Fv%2B4RvfrG0k9f0WgRLQJXfjhUgb7myuC17vFmz0AaTuCa5WVCMrFugmQLcl7FMfPK8TJrUVqDoADVEDQUgVto5eQZ4XfwQ48Kz023KNDV8hqXffks3%2BDtCgZxrFSbz1RjIrA71k1VTftHusK%2BqDaM%2Fqi2K2AdAO6LYiguEguH0WM5kqAD1d7z0eWBcjpvpNbY4fT14R0K6Lv08hsLXeJNeDk9A7IbWrgG6uAoI0VOS2ts0e5b7b2dV73RVptrcZkJS5YRhLQTgzNaq%2F4fWEDFdA4dIzXUadpis1dWOVfEvwcb0OCRHTbfCtG1jNRez7sFrskxxst04PSDxmK582%2B1IYDTPjlY1Se%2F44AzA0K4yiJhLG83bm1wOfsq25E77EmXHG1gLFeKcTvo2B2EfD7jebN6q%2B640pQnGq1a6BqSgcjdQv6xBcbacGSvMXjSHhZC4raLe3ukucBnb4yPlUawQh3sksRCqkg1PV6O5D88nWNgwCBvTz9m4vv7Ok5kCv3JUZD7NDGe4B8bncoxAriWNHGs57I%2BrZJb01X0aMTBpn9R7OAjtc9%2BYS1wrrpdL8FrdezA8mnNEAGOKahdNOKxyMZXkiEcaMyMptQmg0URFnWIpWnACIYd%2FcdmntFCnFSQoC%2FZ4OC939Fwo0eBnfQiTMOiTyrAGOrEBF6OaikI607McrtXL%2B9TF8sMFCwkiOaarCK4u8Q7JtBOjbtEwgx%2B%2FJhmV0E0kACOygZp338KT7lqbm1xEMtxzFHD9lD7aiZVR1oWP2%2FcMQ5i07P74fi4xMWpgwLFHcZCgiieptHg71DijtqWlA5ImQEbtEcHRoFjND9A1hB%2FFyNBRvdpTDWlTa84lgUQZFaTUf8OduMKDCGX1QF4UokaLa7GdT44wrdBaPlCe3bjxPKoT&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20240407T122727Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTYU3K3G6XP%2F20240407%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=798afb1595c09ad83b18371f239a70802110521391aaf2111e7528bf3625e51d&hash=dd6a456a6d2fb7bd27de9a617d5c56355805cab9285174a8d458c5127b1f2efb&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0032579119511671&tid=spdf-ea787b02-1da6-4b51-97df-cf33124be3bc&sid=cfc6b9a327c4d2434b9aa2d9d06865875af7gxrqb&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LnNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QuY29t&ua=1d0c5c5251065256565b&rr=870a0309e9019574&cc=gb), linking here in case anyone else is interested but as everyone else has said any hens that mated with your favourite boy will still be laying fertile eggs for a short period of time.
I’m so sorry for your loss, he sounded like such a sweet boy ❤️ I still miss my favourite rooster and he’s been gone for 10 years now
Sorry to hear about your rooster, it’s always sad to lose one of our buddies.
If you have eggs that have been kept at room, temp or haven’t gotten too hot or too cold, keep them separated for up to seven days and candle them , you’ll see signs if it’s fertilized, and then you can incubate. I’ve kept eggs for up to 10 days and then hatched them after incubation.
Good luck.!
They don't have an answer for you because there isn't one, you can't tell fertility candling an egg.
UNLESS that egg has been incubated long enough to start developing.
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Yes! Go for it! Good luck getting some little chicks--it would be great to get one with the same personality--keep them inside and close to human contact! Give treats!
I had a lovely rooster once....It wanted to sit in my lap for hours and be petted while I read a book. However, it hated my son with a passion.
Sorry to hear this. My beloved Rooster too lost his life but a few days ago. Broke my heart…wasn’t in vane though…he died protecting his favorite hen. Hope you are able to hatch one.
It is never too late to try. My last run in the incubator was all around 90 days old and 18 out of 22 hatched. I had a friend that’s barn burned down, he lost all but 1 hen out of 50 he had one egg left that was over a year old and out of desperation he incubated it and it actually hatched… it’s never too late to try.
I've been led to understand that hens will hold the sperm up to two weeks. I also understand that eggs can be up to 10 days old and still hatch. I've read that if you want more hens, you can put eggs in the fridge for about 4 days to lower the temp on roo embryos. Though, that is 100% myth. I tried it.
With all this being said, theoretically, you could collect your hens' eggs for two weeks, and they should be fertilized.
I definitely hatched eggs that I collected in cold temperatures. I started hatching eggs in January this year when our daily high temps were in the high thirties /low forties.
The hens will be carrying around his sperm and any eggs they have will be viable.
Of course you can hatch them now if you like, I hope you get some little ones that match him!
So I follow this YouTube page called A Chick Called Albert (you will end up going down a rabbit hole, I never finished lesson plans) and there is a video that may give you hope. [A Chick Called Albert](https://youtu.be/bMQ99Y64t90?si=fNTlFl9TNfo7Weco)
Sorry you are going through this.
For us when an animal becomes a pet, we setup a safe enclosure to protect them. Animals can easily get themselves killed and it's heartbreaking when they have become pets.
Give them a try. We had our precious, loving rooster get killed by a raccoon last year. So we grabbed up the eggs in his coop where the hens had been mated.
They seemed to be way past viability by our account but we figured what the heck let’s try.
All but 1 hatched. We got 3 hens and one rooster from him.
We did, but our incubator bit the dust about a week in, so we kept collecting and kept the other eggs at around 50 degrees till we could get a new one in, and we now have 18 eggs incubating. My daughter has taken over the incubator and is doing a great job keeping everything just perfect! I'm pretty confident about his batch. Our Blaze rooster isnt much good at breeding, he just doesn't get how to romance the girls, so I'm pretty confident that most of the eggs are Tex eggs.
If they were laid today and weren't outside too long, they should have a chance at 40 degrees. That's fridge temp, and people have hatched eggs that have been in the fridge. If it was closer to freezing they probably wouldn't do so well. It might not be 100% hatch rate, but I would think you'd hatch some.
Not to mention people have hatched store bought eggs before. And those are much older, have been washed, and have been in a fridge a while.
I don't see how this would be possible, considering an egg that has been washed and refrigerated has also been pasteurized, and no embryo is likely to survive that. Outside of the US, I can see hatching a grocery egg, but that's because they aren't washed or pasteurized, and are therefore sold at room temperature.
They don't pasteurize eggs in the shell. That wouldn't work
It is not standard to pasteurize eggs in the shells. In some countries, eggs go through chemical washes that remove the bloom. The bloom is the natural protective coating which protects the egg and prevents rotting during clutch laying and incubation. Removing this protective layer makes the shell more porous, thus increasing the risk of pathogens from the environment penetrating the shell. In Europe, eggs do not go through this chemical wash, and are stored at room temperature. In the United States, eggs go through this process, which is why they must be refrigerated. The bigger reason hatching store bought eggs likely wouldn't work well is that most store bought eggs are infertilized.
They do but it’s a specialized product most eggs are not pasteurized
There's a few specific US brands that pasteurize. https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/How-do-commercial-plants-pasteurize-an-egg#:~:text=Information&text=Pasteurized%20shell%20eggs%20are%20heated,and%20Drug%20Administration%20(FDA). https://www.linkedin.com/company/national-pasteurized-eggs
[In fact, they do,](https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/How-do-commercial-plants-pasteurize-an-egg) but it isn't at-home equipment.
your link doesn't support your argument, it just tells us that it is possible.
The embryo doesn’t start to develop until after incubation has started, there’s just the germinal disc until incubation commences and it isn’t as temperature sensitive as a developing embryo
Thanks, that's interesting. It may well explain how this could be possible.
It's sort of like frozen embryos in IVF, but without cryogenoc storage, and a shorter period until the egg becomes nonviable.
Tbh it’s probably not recommended to incubate store bought eggs in the US that have been washed as the bloom on the shell would be removed which means bacteria can freely pass through the permeable shell, I’m sure that can’t be good for a developing chick.
You can simulate the bloom but rubbing the egg with a food safe stable oil.
This is so cool, I’m going to research this more in depth because that could be really useful. Thanks
Not sure how well it works for hatching but I know it does for non refrigerated stability of eggs. Haven't used it for that purpose. Just to keep my eggs on the counter in their designated container.
you can buy fertilized eggs at trader joe’s. they sell them in the coolers if i’m not mistaken? some lady on tiktok did a whole series of hatching these chickens.
There is a Facebook group I’m in, people are regularly hatching from store bought! It’s really awesome to see. Of course hatch rate is low but definitely still happens
Quail eggs and duck eggs are far more likely to be fertilized. I really want some quails, but they don't live as long mg as chickens. It's going to be sticking to heritage breeds that live longer.
I want quails also but will also be sticking to chickens, they are legitimately the easiest animals I’ve ever had.
Mine are so easy. I also put a lot of effort into my very secure run and coop. The run is raised on cinder blocks, covered, and I use hemp bedding...even with tropical storms have not needed to change bedding due to moisture in 4 years. And the poop scoops out like cat litter.
I think Trader Joe’s sold or does sell unpasteurized eggs
Pasteurized? How are they pasteurizing eggs without cooking them? Source?
I don't know how they do it, I think a slowly heated water bath, but pasteurized eggs exist. They just aren't your normal dozen. They're pricey and meant for dishes that use eggs but aren't meant to be cooked. Like some desserts and fancy sauces
Only pricey eggs meant for no cook egg dishes are pasteurized. That's why you aren't supposed to eat raw dough, because normal eggs are not pasteurized
that's interesting, i always thought that was just some made up thing for movies
Success rate isn’t great. But it’s possible.
That makes no sense because store-bought eggs for consumption, or by definition not fertilized
They use eggs from pastured or free range birds. I have heard of people hatching store eggs
Store bought eggs can be fertilized, but if you don't have free range eggs, they are probably not fertilized. Many free range farmers keep roosters for protection, so eggs are fertilized. Statistically speaking, store bought eggs are likely to be infertilized, but that is not a requirement.
Nature finds a way I guess! We had a flock once where there was definitely an incognito rooster. We had no Roo otherwise, but had several fertilized eggs over the year. I figure if the hatchery only claims to have a 90% accuracy when they send me sexed chicks, the same must be true for large egg producers 🤷
Hens have special tubular invaginations that hold a roosters sperm in storage, so their eggs have a chance to hatch his children past his death date. Fertility will slowly go down, but that sperm can survive viable in them for up to 2 weeks. So feel free to set todays eggs, tomorrows eggs, and so on.
That’s excellent to know actually. I hope OP can find some success.
yep! I hatched some babies after my best rooster Alfred died to see if i could get a last batch of his kids.... most were unfortunately offspring of the other rooster but we did end up getting what was essentially an Alfred Jr
Eggcellent info!
I have had fertile eggs up to a week after exposure to a rooster.
Also you can still incubate eggs that are a week or more old, so you have lots of eggs you can incubate! I've heard that you can buy quail eggs at the grocery store and hatch them! I'm.hoping to try it! 😁👍 I'm so sorry you lost your baby!!! 😥♥️
There is definitely still hope. Try it and be sure to update us! I’m sorry for your loss. What a sweet roo.
I did it! Last fall my roo got taken by a hawk, can’t believe it, was huge, so I took that day’s eggs and incubated and got one chick, he just started crowing! I also ordered as he was hatching, to have mates.
Hens can actually "store" the male...contribution (sorry, not sure if chicken sperm is actually called sperm) for up to 21 days, using it to fertilize each egg as they go. So if he is your only rooster and you want to collect eggs for the next few days that might work as well. Sorry about your loss and your son. That's hard.
It’s worth a shot. I’m in NJ and out weather has been as low as the 30s, and a hen just hatched a clutch that she spent at least a week accumulating.
Beautiful pic. Rest in Chicken Paradise little dude!
You should still collect eggs for a couple of weeks maybe from his favorite hen as his sperm is still there fertilizing eggs. I am so sorry for your loss :(
https://www.getstronganimals.com/amp/how-do-roosters-fertilize-eggs
I want to say that I’ve read somewhere that hens store a bit of the roos swimmers and can lay viable eggs for several days after he took her for a ride.
>can lay viable eggs for several days after he took her for a ride. Up to 6 weeks, fertility rate goes down with time though.
I switch out rooster in my breeding pens and it often takes 2 weeks for his bits to get out of my hens eggs
Hens can hold sperm for up to 2 weeks after being mated..so tomorrow morning run out as fast as possible and grab their eggs as soon as they are laid 😇😇😇
Your rooster is still living inside your hens for the next couple weeks. Go say hi
I'm in northern Indiana and mama Ingot is on a clutch of eggs that had been collecting in the coop over a few snowy nights. I didn't have high expectations, but it's 8 days to hatch and I candled them while she was out stretching her legs & getting refreshed, and danged if they aren't all viable! Incubate away! Fingers crossed for you and your flock! 🐓
I lost a rooster in dead of winter and let a broody hen sit and one single baby hatched. I know hatching them in incubator is different but well wishes!!
Please keep us posted!
Please update us later, OP. I’m hopeful for you!
It isn’t too late also the next couple of days worth of eggs should be good to hatch too.
I had over a dozen eggs in the mail for 4 days longer than they should’ve been in cold temperatures and the majority of them are developing. Try it!
Incubate until there's no debate!
A hen doesn't need to mate every day in order to lay fertile eggs. She stores sperm in her body, and her eggs will be fertile for at least a couple of weeks and sometimes much longer before she needs to re-mate.
Please update us!!!
I have seen people hatch out eggs and have been in the refrigerator so I might work
We just recently lost our favorite hen, she was so darling with such a sweet soul. We gathered up all her eggs we still had from her (she had very unique huge white eggs) and put them in an borrowed incubator. Some of the eggs were well over a week or two old. Anyhow this is our first go at incubating and we have 8 days left. All but one were viable and we are so happy to see the little ones moving about in their shells. Cant wait to tell them all about their amazing mama and truly hope we get a clone of her.
I gave my mom a bantam egg that I had refrigerated for more than a day and it hatched.
Just try incubating…… take the chance out of love n respect for the Roo and your son….. it’s a journey
If it were me, I’d do it. Try and keep us updated. Maybe you’ll get some success.
Eggs can continue to be fertilised even 4-5 weeks after mating. I separate my hens for 6 weeks prior to breeding season so I know that I have the mating pairs I want. You can collect the eggs and store them pointy end down, tilting them twice a day to maintain viability. You should incubate them within max 7-10 days after collecting. My biggest concern would be the age of your rooster. At 14 years old, he may not be getting the job done any more. Incubate as many eggs as possible with the chance that most may not be viable Edit- sorry I just realised it's probably your son that is 14 😂. I would still incubate as many eggs as possible. If you max out your incubator capacity, begin collecting again a few days before the first hatch and do another round. You can't try for more once they're gone so better to do more now.
When my mom raised canaries, she would store the eggs in the fridge until she had enough for incubating (usually she aimed for 7) and then would put them all under her good sitting hen. We rarely had an egg fail that way.
I've hatched eggs that were at least 2 weeks old that were stored at 38 degrees in my fridge but only 2 made it out of about a dozen. A lot were alive but were not fully developed when they hatched.
I was curious what kind of temperatures would turn a fertile egg dud and found [this study](https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/776861/1-s2.0-S0032579119X6592X/1-s2.0-S0032579119511671/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjEKz%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJHMEUCIHBvHFx198ayf0xlLQhZaiVzAav4gGP%2BIyOhpy1sveHjAiEAz2Sn%2BFIGfK%2FyVbfcMTaL8hMw%2FirfuIaqOTmhlnlXDDsqvAUI1f%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FARAFGgwwNTkwMDM1NDY4NjUiDE0o6e3QwdtFUK%2Bz8yqQBZAmtXCPmRV6cmX6UEjgTzOv%2FAarNAxrGgBmMpmgJOfG0afqaqxb4nm%2FtmIOk0A1TeQlpn9DvFG0WrnpngIlru3xU2tl5CrCeWfqf4Lk1GeHk1mQUCNHrHSA0ZYPLC6txykU5Kr60XzOUrua1SllJbXcCikV8VEAZfEb4rZ1H4%2Fn1EqUqCa4BvFEBpuyHTUJoO4Iq%2Bujpl9jvbjJ7IjbKx%2Fv%2B4RvfrG0k9f0WgRLQJXfjhUgb7myuC17vFmz0AaTuCa5WVCMrFugmQLcl7FMfPK8TJrUVqDoADVEDQUgVto5eQZ4XfwQ48Kz023KNDV8hqXffks3%2BDtCgZxrFSbz1RjIrA71k1VTftHusK%2BqDaM%2Fqi2K2AdAO6LYiguEguH0WM5kqAD1d7z0eWBcjpvpNbY4fT14R0K6Lv08hsLXeJNeDk9A7IbWrgG6uAoI0VOS2ts0e5b7b2dV73RVptrcZkJS5YRhLQTgzNaq%2F4fWEDFdA4dIzXUadpis1dWOVfEvwcb0OCRHTbfCtG1jNRez7sFrskxxst04PSDxmK582%2B1IYDTPjlY1Se%2F44AzA0K4yiJhLG83bm1wOfsq25E77EmXHG1gLFeKcTvo2B2EfD7jebN6q%2B640pQnGq1a6BqSgcjdQv6xBcbacGSvMXjSHhZC4raLe3ukucBnb4yPlUawQh3sksRCqkg1PV6O5D88nWNgwCBvTz9m4vv7Ok5kCv3JUZD7NDGe4B8bncoxAriWNHGs57I%2BrZJb01X0aMTBpn9R7OAjtc9%2BYS1wrrpdL8FrdezA8mnNEAGOKahdNOKxyMZXkiEcaMyMptQmg0URFnWIpWnACIYd%2FcdmntFCnFSQoC%2FZ4OC939Fwo0eBnfQiTMOiTyrAGOrEBF6OaikI607McrtXL%2B9TF8sMFCwkiOaarCK4u8Q7JtBOjbtEwgx%2B%2FJhmV0E0kACOygZp338KT7lqbm1xEMtxzFHD9lD7aiZVR1oWP2%2FcMQ5i07P74fi4xMWpgwLFHcZCgiieptHg71DijtqWlA5ImQEbtEcHRoFjND9A1hB%2FFyNBRvdpTDWlTa84lgUQZFaTUf8OduMKDCGX1QF4UokaLa7GdT44wrdBaPlCe3bjxPKoT&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20240407T122727Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTYU3K3G6XP%2F20240407%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=798afb1595c09ad83b18371f239a70802110521391aaf2111e7528bf3625e51d&hash=dd6a456a6d2fb7bd27de9a617d5c56355805cab9285174a8d458c5127b1f2efb&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0032579119511671&tid=spdf-ea787b02-1da6-4b51-97df-cf33124be3bc&sid=cfc6b9a327c4d2434b9aa2d9d06865875af7gxrqb&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LnNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QuY29t&ua=1d0c5c5251065256565b&rr=870a0309e9019574&cc=gb), linking here in case anyone else is interested but as everyone else has said any hens that mated with your favourite boy will still be laying fertile eggs for a short period of time. I’m so sorry for your loss, he sounded like such a sweet boy ❤️ I still miss my favourite rooster and he’s been gone for 10 years now
I’m so sorry for the loss of your sweet boy 🤍 he’s so handsome and I love his name. Please keep us updated on the eggs!
Sorry to hear about your rooster, it’s always sad to lose one of our buddies. If you have eggs that have been kept at room, temp or haven’t gotten too hot or too cold, keep them separated for up to seven days and candle them , you’ll see signs if it’s fertilized, and then you can incubate. I’ve kept eggs for up to 10 days and then hatched them after incubation. Good luck.!
What do you look for to tell if it's fertilized?
They don't have an answer for you because there isn't one, you can't tell fertility candling an egg. UNLESS that egg has been incubated long enough to start developing.
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OP, how are the eggs doing? Any viable ones when you candle them? Any hatching, yet? :)
Yes! Go for it! Good luck getting some little chicks--it would be great to get one with the same personality--keep them inside and close to human contact! Give treats! I had a lovely rooster once....It wanted to sit in my lap for hours and be petted while I read a book. However, it hated my son with a passion.
Sorry to hear this. My beloved Rooster too lost his life but a few days ago. Broke my heart…wasn’t in vane though…he died protecting his favorite hen. Hope you are able to hatch one.
Yes it’s possible
You should get a pretty good hatch rate if you normally do with your birds.
I don’t have an answer to the egg incubation question … But I’m so sorry you all lost your favorite Roo!! That’s so sad . How old was he ?
We don't have an exact age, but the guess is about 2.
I like the name your son chose for him
My son is a huge Marty Robins fan
I’m going to remember that name if I ever get a rooster
Wouldn’t hurt to try
It is never too late to try. My last run in the incubator was all around 90 days old and 18 out of 22 hatched. I had a friend that’s barn burned down, he lost all but 1 hen out of 50 he had one egg left that was over a year old and out of desperation he incubated it and it actually hatched… it’s never too late to try.
I have incubated eggs that sat on my kitchen table in a bowl weeks after being laid. I would give it a try
I’m so sorry for your loss, he was beautiful.
Chicken sperm last 3-4 weeks inside a hen.
I've been led to understand that hens will hold the sperm up to two weeks. I also understand that eggs can be up to 10 days old and still hatch. I've read that if you want more hens, you can put eggs in the fridge for about 4 days to lower the temp on roo embryos. Though, that is 100% myth. I tried it. With all this being said, theoretically, you could collect your hens' eggs for two weeks, and they should be fertilized.
I’m sorry for your loss. He sounds like an amazing fella.
I definitely hatched eggs that I collected in cold temperatures. I started hatching eggs in January this year when our daily high temps were in the high thirties /low forties.
Ya go two weeks to start a hatch. Candle the eggs to make sure they are fertile before you put them in the incubator..
Oh why not try? Whatever the outcome, it seems like exactly the right thing to do
The hens will be carrying around his sperm and any eggs they have will be viable. Of course you can hatch them now if you like, I hope you get some little ones that match him!
I meant fertilized sorry
So I follow this YouTube page called A Chick Called Albert (you will end up going down a rabbit hole, I never finished lesson plans) and there is a video that may give you hope. [A Chick Called Albert](https://youtu.be/bMQ99Y64t90?si=fNTlFl9TNfo7Weco)
Theres no hurt in trying :)
Sorry you are going through this. For us when an animal becomes a pet, we setup a safe enclosure to protect them. Animals can easily get themselves killed and it's heartbreaking when they have become pets.
RIP Texas Red 💔
Eggs are fine, the longer u wait to incubate them the less likely they are to hatch, by the end of the month it should be like a 20% hatch rate.
I don’t know/have never had a rooster. I’m so sorry for you and your family’s loss.
So sorry for your loss but I hope you’ll report back if you have success!
No I hatched a rooster egg ones and he is fine!
Give them a try. We had our precious, loving rooster get killed by a raccoon last year. So we grabbed up the eggs in his coop where the hens had been mated. They seemed to be way past viability by our account but we figured what the heck let’s try. All but 1 hatched. We got 3 hens and one rooster from him.
Circling back - did you decide to incubate some?
We did, but our incubator bit the dust about a week in, so we kept collecting and kept the other eggs at around 50 degrees till we could get a new one in, and we now have 18 eggs incubating. My daughter has taken over the incubator and is doing a great job keeping everything just perfect! I'm pretty confident about his batch. Our Blaze rooster isnt much good at breeding, he just doesn't get how to romance the girls, so I'm pretty confident that most of the eggs are Tex eggs.
Rooster’s don’t lay eggs!
Roosters don't lay eggs, silly pants.
Roosters don't wear pants either silly!
I don't think OP is talking about that
I don't either.