# fertile eggs, when will they hatch?



## silkiechick (Nov 8, 2008)

i have 3 pairs of frillback pigeons and haven't had them to long so need a question answered. 2 pairs had 2 eggs ea in first nests and those were not fertile after candleing after they sat for about a mth so i tossed them all. well 1 pair is on the second nest now and both eggs have candled spider veins so i'm doing the happpy dance for them!! however i don't know when to expect the babies to hatch. how long does it take for frillbacks to hatch? what day do u start counting incubation? poultry i know but pigeons is another story,lol.

thanks for any help!!
silkie


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*usually 18 days*

It can be as little as 17 and as many as 19 or 20 but with normal temperatures and normal incubation, it is 18 days for all domestic pigeons. Many doves are less.

Bill


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## silkiechick (Nov 8, 2008)

they r inside house pets so temp stays steady here. what day do i count from the day first egg was laid or 2 days later when second egg was laid? for poultry it is 21 days and i don't start counting till 24 hours after set in one of the gqf's so i wasn't sure how to calculate that. my birds r brooding them not me so i'm very excited for them it will be their first babies for me. mom and dad r takeing turns nesting and doing great!!


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

about 18 days from when the second one was laid, or when they start to sit on them, they start to develope only after they get the heat from them sitting and usually they will start that after the second egg is layed, but..I had a pair that sat the first egg and that meant the second was behind the first, so the second baby was smaller than the first, and that is not good as the big one will hog all the feedings from parents, this can happen with young birds when first starting out...so ..lol...prob more info than you wanted but I just kept on typing........


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## silkiechick (Nov 8, 2008)

u can chat away all u want,lol. i breed cockatiels and exhibition poultry so i'm all for learning more about the new loves of my life. i want to learn as much as i can on them. i wanna know for definate what colors they r called to, does photobucket work on this forum so i can post pics? would like to know for definate colors and what colors babies maybe. for these 2 eggs mom is a black and dad is a form of almond. oh and they have been sitting since first egg was laid so i figured hatch would be speratic and that would happen.


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*Spirit wings is right*

Many pairs will begin to incubate as soon as the first egg is laid which puts one a day or so ahead even two days. You can take the first egg if you want and store it until the second is laid but you could miss the second one and they would begin to incubate it and put the first egg behind. It's simplest to let mother nature take it's course and let them do it. Normally works out OK.

It may be best to post your "what's this" questions over in the genetic forum.

Bill


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## jbangelfish (Mar 22, 2008)

*Any incubation begins at a certain temp*



silkiechick said:


> they r inside house pets so temp stays steady here. what day do i count from the day first egg was laid or 2 days later when second egg was laid? for poultry it is 21 days and i don't start counting till 24 hours after set in one of the gqf's so i wasn't sure how to calculate that. my birds r brooding them not me so i'm very excited for them it will be their first babies for me. mom and dad r takeing turns nesting and doing great!!



Just what that temp is, I'm not sure but most forced air incubators are set around 99 3/4 degrees and still air incubators are set as high as 103. This is because for a still air to reach the proper temperature at the bottom, it must be higher at the top. Of course, it takes some time for the eggs to reach the temperature required for incubation to begin but it is not likely very long, certainly not 24 hours. Too high of a temp will hatch them too quickly as they will run out of oxygen faster and they may not fully develope before they need to get air. This makes them pip and often dry in the shell before the yolk sac can be absorbed. Too low temp and they can take too long to develope but the outcome is they same, they are unable to stay sealed long enough to absorb the sac. About 1/2 degree margin of error won't matter too much but it will affect the exact timing of hatch, just not enough to hurt.

Bill


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## Guest (Dec 19, 2008)

I would start counting 18 days from the time your hen started to sit on the eggs


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## Pegasus (Feb 6, 2007)

Seeing this thread makes me start counting too, man  why you have to do that? ...I know 2 of my hens will be laying eggs sometime next week...I thank so much to a great person in here...I will be posting the pic soon as the egg comes out...


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## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

silkiechick said:


> does photobucket work on this forum so i can post pics? would like to know for definate colors and what colors babies maybe.


Yes .. copy your photobucket http link and then click on the image icon at the top of the message here (little sqaure icon with the mountain in it) and paste your link .. take out the http that is already in there and then paste yours.

Terry


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

silkiechick said:


> i have 3 pairs of frillback pigeons and haven't had them to long so need a question answered. 2 pairs had 2 eggs ea in first nests and those were not fertile after candleing after they sat for about a mth so i tossed them all. well 1 pair is on the second nest now and both eggs have candled spider veins so i'm doing the happpy dance for them!! however i don't know when to expect the babies to hatch. how long does it take for frillbacks to hatch? what day do u start counting incubation? poultry i know but pigeons is another story,lol.
> 
> thanks for any help!!
> silkie


just wondering why you are hatching in the winter? babies can get chilled when the parents stop sitting on them 24/7, which can be about 8-12 days old.


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## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

When my hens lay the first egg, I write down the date, add 19 days to it and that's when they hatch 99% of the time. So, you can count 17 days from the second egg..........
I actually pull my first egg, replace with a plastic egg and take the egg in the house. On the second day, I give the hen the first egg back after she lays her second egg. Both eggs then hatch within just a couple of hours of each other. 
I keep a chart on the wall in my loft with Sire/Dam, Egg date (laid), Egg hatch date and once the babies hatch, I keep up with how many days old they are.


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## Pegasus (Feb 6, 2007)

Lovebirds said:


> I keep a chart on the wall in my loft with Sire/Dam, Egg date (laid), Egg hatch date and once the babies hatch, I keep up with how many days old they are.


Now that's what I call "A" breeder...Some don't have time to keep up on daily basis about their birds that's why they lose interest and whatever not...I even jot down the daily exercise they do...I think it's fun to keep track on their daily lives...


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## silkiechick (Nov 8, 2008)

actually i didn't plan for them to have babies till spring but they decided to do otherwise.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

silkiechick said:


> actually i didn't plan for them to have babies till spring but they decided to do otherwise.


need some wooden eggs!....they are a must with pigeons....


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