# Egg fertility problem



## Summersun (Jul 13, 2014)

So I am not exactly sure where this belongs so please move it if its better somewhere else.

I'm having problems with all my eggs not being fertile or not developing babies. My mom and I put some chicken eggs in the incubater from our chickens (bantom and full size hens). My dad said not to put water for first half of incubation so when nothing hatched I blames that. We reset but put chicken eggs, duck eggs my mom bought and pheasant eggs. I told my mom not to mix and all we got was one chick. She tried again this time putting turkey eggs from turkeys we got a couple months ago and chicken eggs. Nothing! None hatched and they didn't even start to develop. So I kept thinking it was us or our incubator. 

So we decided to let the turkey sit. Well they keep breaking the eggs. She will lay a couple eggs then one gets broke and ate. Then lay 1-2 more and one gets ate. We finally pulled the last 4 and we cracked them to investigate. They aren't even fertilized! There is two toms and 3 hens and we see one of the toms trying almost every day to breed. 

So we broke some chicken eggs. Not fertilized! We have about 15 bantom hens with 3 roosters and about 8 big hens with 2 roosters. I don't understand why the eggs aren't fertile. Most of the stock is young (1-2 yrs old including the turkeys).


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

On the chickens, what breeds? Some breeds are so heavily feathered they need to be clipped for fertilization to occur. Think Cochins and Silkies. 

You can try controlled breeding. Put your birds together in breeding groups. See if those eggs are fertile, if not then suspect something isn't right with the male. 

Did you not just rescue a bunch of these birds from some where else? That could be playing a part in the problem. That just might need more time to build back up.

And depending on where you live, where your incubator is set up you do need water in the beginning. If I put my incubator out in my coop in the Summer in S. TN I did not need to add water since the humidity outdoors was so high. Inside it needed water because the interior environment was too low in humidity.


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## Summersun (Jul 13, 2014)

Actually almost ALL the chickens were killed this spring by a neigbors lab. So most are hens we purchased in the last 5 months. Reg chickens are Americanas, production reds (these are our older hens that survived should be 3-6 yrs old), the new ones are just barnyard mixes except one polish, and a couple buff colored that I forget what they are called. 

The bantoms are a japanese type that are white and black, some little red ones, one silkie and a several frizzles. 

The turkeys are the newest and were the rescues in rough shape. We got two groups about 2 weeks apart. Firsy group is bourbon reds and a couple royal palms. These are 1 yr olds, were in ok shape and are eating their eggs as soon as they are layed. There is 2 toms and 3 hens in a big pen 10x60ft. Then a trio in a smaller pen that just started laying and so far aren't eating them. They have two eggs. We have had them about 6 weeks.

The second set was 2-3 yr olds from someone else. These were in terrible shape. They were kept in small 5x8 pens in pairs or trios and fed poorly. There is a pair of whites that we have penned alone, hen isn't laying. A pair of royal palms and a trio of sweetgrass. The sweetgrass are the ones laying. They are with the royal palms so 5 turkeys in a 10x60 pen. They started laying about 2 weeks ago. We are getting 1-2 eggs a day but all have been broken except 4. They are the ones that let them add up a couple days and then eat a couple. Their condition had already greatly improved in the past 4 weeks and we see the toms mounting the females.


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## Summersun (Jul 13, 2014)

Ohh and I'm in NM and incubator is in house. We have low humidity even outside so needs water. Only the first set wasnt watered. Other two times we have kept humidity between 45-50 and most of the eggs haven't developed at all.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

I think I told you once before, I don't know turkeys. But on your rescues it sounds as though the girls shells are not thick enough. Add supplemental calcium if you haven't already. Give them time, if they were in poor conditions it can affect egg quality. 

In the heat they may not be breeding as often or at all right now. Especially if they're all over a year old. With age comes smarts.

And make sure everyone is mite free. Nothing like mites draining blood and nutrients to affect the whole bird.

Don't say this to your Dad, but you were right and he was wrong. You need even more water than I would here in the humid south.


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## Summersun (Jul 13, 2014)

A little update. We have continued to collect their eggs and a couple have been fertile when we checked them. So we sent about 7 eggs to my cousin since he has a broody chicken. We are hoping at least a few hatch. Also one pair of bourbon reds are laying and not breaking or eating the eggs, so she currently has 3 eggs and we are going to let her sit. But she only lays every 2-4 days.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

This was a good post. It shows that sometimes changes, poor conditions like the turkeys came from and temp can affect fertilization. Sometimes it is a disease process but its best to do what you did, be patient.

Please report how those eggs do.


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