Hatching Chicks: Learn About Candling Eggs
Are you hatching chicks with either the incubator method or the broody hen method? I strongly recommend candling your eggs and marking any fertilized ones. Candling is an essential part of the process, helping ensure healthy development and allowing you to monitor the progress of the embryos inside the eggs.
If you are using the broody hen method, it’s important to mark the eggs she’s sitting on. Hens can sometimes hoard extra eggs—especially if she’s given a few more than she can handle. Don’t be surprised if she takes other hens’ eggs to sit on, so be diligent about marking the eggs she is incubating. Hens can usually handle 6-10 eggs just fine. I personally like to use our bantam hens to hatch eggs. These little hens are great for this task because they are so dedicated to their role. Interestingly, we allow our bantam hen to hatch larger, full-size eggs, and this tends to work well since she is naturally smaller and won’t lay as many eggs herself. We collect eggs over several days, and once we have enough, we give them to her to sit on. It’s fascinating to see how she manages to flatten herself out to cover all of them.
How Long Will it Take For the Eggs to Hatch?
Eggs typically hatch in 21 days, plus or minus a day or two, depending on factors like temperature and humidity. During this time, you’ll want to avoid disturbing the hen too much, but monitoring the eggs through candling is important to ensure all is progressing well.You’ll be amazed at how she can handle eggs of different ages. Eggs that were laid on different days, sometimes several days apart, can all develop and hatch almost simultaneously. It’s truly a miracle of nature!
How to Candling Your Eggs?
Candling eggs is a simple and important part of hatching—it’s how you check whether an egg is developing properly. You shine a bright light (flashlight) through the egg to see what’s going on inside without cracking it open.
What You Need:
- A bright flashlight or an egg candler (a small device made for this purpose)
- A dark room
- Clean hands, Patience and gentleness
Candling Tips:
- Be gentle—don’t shake or rotate too fast
- Candle in a warm, draft-free space
- Always wash your hands before and after handling
- Mark the good eggs with a pencil (don’t use ink).
Candling eggs is a crucial step in the incubation process, allowing you to monitor embryo’s development and identify any issues early on. To assist you, here’s a visual guide illustrating what to look for during candling at various stages
Egg Candling Visual Guide
Day 5-7 Early Development
What to Look For: A small dark spot (the embryo) with spider-like blood vessels radiating outward. Significance: Indicates a viable, developing embryo.
Day 10-14: Mid-Incubation
What to Look For: A larger dark mass filling more of the egg, with visible movement and a well-defined air cell at the wider end. Significance: Shows continued healthy development
Day 18: Pre-Hatching
What to Look For: The egg appears mostly dark as the chick occupies most space; the air cell is larger, and movement may be limited. Significance: Chick is positioning itself for hatching; avoid further candling to prevent disruption.
Unfertilized or Non-Developing Eggs
What to Look For: Egg remains clear with no visible embryo or blood vessels. Significance: Indicates infertility or early embryo death; such eggs should be removed to prevent contamination.
Eggs with Blood Rings
What to Look For: A distinct red ring inside the egg. Significance: Signifies embryo death; these eggs should also be removed.
Why Mark Eggs?
- Track Development: Helps you monitor which eggs are progressing.
- Identify Rotation: Essential for manual turning—marking helps you rotate them evenly.
- Avoid Confusion: If you’re adding more eggs later or hatching different breeds, marks prevent mix-ups.
How to Mark Eggs Safely
- Use a pencil – It’s safe and won’t seep through the shell. Avoid ink, markers, or anything with chemicals.
- Simple marks work best – A light “X” on one side and an “O” on the other is common for turning. You can also write the date or a number for identification.
- Keep it gentle – Don’t press hard or scratch the shell.
Conclusion
Candling isn’t just practical—it’s awe-inspiring. There’s something deeply rewarding about watching the tiny flicker of life inside an egg and knowing you’ve played a part in nurturing it. With patience, care, and a steady hand, candling becomes more than a chore; it becomes a meaningful step in the journey from egg to fluffy chick.
So, grab your flashlight, find a dark corner, and enjoy the process. Each egg holds a story—and with candling, you get a front-row seat to watch it unfold.
Enjoy your baby chicks!!! 🐥
Want to learn more about raising chickens view my post Raising Chickens For Beginners.
