The girls and I showed the grandkids how to candle eggs today. I knew I should definitely be able to see something by now so I disconnected the incubator and carefully took it into the hallway bathroom, the darkest room in our home.

I wrapped my hands around the top of my spotlight to create a cradle for the egg. This way I can hold it safely and securely while minimizing the amount of light that could escape from around the egg. Most of my eggs are colored and that pigment makes it tougher to see through than a white egg.

Out of all 55 eggs, I only had one with a blood ring. This means the egg failed early in the development process. The rest of the eggs were obviously developing or clearly empty.

This egg light up like a lantern. The light passes straight through because there is nothing growing in there. This egg was most likely NOT fertilized. Unfortunately, we had several of these.

In this image you can clearly see an eyeball! Theres a baby in there!

This egg appears to be a little further along than the other one. Most of the eggs are full like this with the exception of a few. Some appear smaller than this. I’m a little worried that some of them may be further along than others. That could be a problem. Eggs have to be turned until a few days before they hatch. Typically, on day 18 we take the eggs out of the turner and allow them to set. Hatch time for chicken eggs is 21 days. If we disrupt the process, we loose the chick. I’m planning to check them one more time before day 18 to see if any of our chicks need more time being turned.

If you watch closely you’ll see this little guy wiggling around in there!

This little guy was cuttin’ a rug in there!

This is the spotlight I used to candle the eggs. For a small light, this thing is incredible. It shines FAR out and allows me to see clearly all the way across my property from my porch. It came with a wall plug base as well as a car charger. Chris keeps one in each truck and mine stays on my night stand.

Out of 55 eggs we started, I have 28 viable chicks in process. I’ve moved them to the middle of the incubator to help maintain constant temps and humidity consistently. The 27 in this box will be trashed.

Ultimately, I have to wonder if this means that I need a second rooster in the hen house. It’s possible! The rule of thumb is one rooster per 12 hens. That’s what I have in the chicken shack. The hen house has a 20/1 ratio and that would explain a lack of productivity. Before I try this again I’ll consider splitting the hens up one more time and putting another rooster to work. I happen to have a few running around.

It just so happens that I have a broody hen in the hen house. Maybe I’ll enlist her skills this season. I’m still waiting to see if the old wives tale is true. So pointy eggs become roosters?? If so, I won’t be hatching any more of them for sure!

Y’all be sweet,

Bena ❤️🐝