Hatching Shipped Eggs
Whether or not you’ve hatched shipped eggs in the past, every experience is unique. Even outside of weather and the actual travel time, there are lots or people and variables involved every time you receive a package.
Our Shipped Hatching Egg Disclaimer:
We pack all of our eggs carefully and tightly, wrapping each one in foam pipe insulation with fat end (air cell) positioned upward. When available and if there is space, we will offer an extra egg or two. We can never offer any guarantees on shipped eggs. Hatching rates vary from 0-100% depending on your location, post office handling, weather, your incubator settings and many other variables beyond our control. Even the freshest eggs under ideal conditions do not always develop fully and hatch. Please know that especially with shipped eggs, lack of development does NOT equal infertility.
If this is your first attempt at hatching shipped eggs, please do some research and feel free to contact us with questions.
Knowing that eggs are possibly one of the worst possible things to ship successfully, we do our best to package them carefully and pray for their safe arrival! Should your package or any eggs arrive damaged, please file a claim immediately. Once you are reimbursed, contact us to discuss your options for another batch.
Hatching out some of our own new stock from shipped eggs in our Nurture Right 360.
The average success rate for well-packaged, fertilized shipped eggs is between 50-75%.
Remember that hatching success or failure does not indicate lack of fertility or improper packaging. Even minor temperature changes during shipment, pressure changes, mishandling resulting in detached air cells, shipping delays and your chosen incubation techniques all play a role in hatching success. We are happy to offer suggestions, but hatching from shipped eggs involves many variables and is not an exact science.
Some of our shipped Ancona duck eggs from 2021 developing in the upright position in one of our Nurture Right 360 incubators. We had a 75% hatch rate for this batch!
Our Suggestions for Success:
There are about as many suggestions for hatching shipped eggs as there are breeds of birds! But here are a few general widely-accepted guidelines that have worked well for us:
Always wash your hands before touching fertile eggs! The less opportunity for bacteria to be absorbed through the shell, the better.
Candle your eggs right away to inspect the air cells. If the air cell moves, it has become detached and will need extra care (i.e. upright storage and less rotation). When we’ve received shipped eggs, we’ve found that air cells are rarely intact and typically suggest upright incubation as a precaution.
Allow eggs to rest for 24 hours with fat side up. Do not move, bump or rotate at all during this time. This allows the air cells to settle.
Make sure that your incubator(s) is already set up, warmed and ready to go. We love and recommend the Nurture Right 360 Incubator, but it does not have a built-in option for vertical incubation.
Depending on your incubator, an old egg carton with cotton balls in the bottom usually works well to modify. Make sure any turning (3-5 times per day) is very gentle, and no flatter than 45 degrees. The more vertical (upright) the egg stays, the better!
By the halfway point in incubation, the allantois membrane (temporary respiratory organ), which we see during candling as the network of blood vessels, should cover the entire egg. Which means you should see veining throughout the egg now, or very nearly. This is why during the second half of incubation, turning is far less crucial.
Lockdown as usual (3 days prior to hatch date). Remember that chicks hatch in 21 days, ducklings in 28 days, and Bantam breeds can typically hatch a little faster, around 18 days. When you go into lockdown, refrain from raising the humidity much (if at all) until you see external pips. Consider adding emergency external pips for darker eggs.
Please reach out with any questions or concerns, we’re always happy to help!
Drawing by Rosslyn!
