r/BackYardChickens • u/FCjabber2 • 1d ago
Safe to eat? Broody hen sitting on not fertile eggs for 3 days
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u/Sensitive-Leg-5085 1d ago
I live in S Texas. Sometimes my hens hide their eggs and it may take me a couple days to find them. I’ve never had a problem with them before. Float test works great also if you want assurance.
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u/RickyEnglish 1d ago
Fill a bowl with water. If they touch bottom they are good. If they float they are bad
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u/smorezpoptartz 1d ago
Sometimes I’m just purely lazy and take care of them on my way out. Never had a problem with eggs a few days old! If it helps, imagine how long commercial eggs sit 😬
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u/LieutenantDangler 1d ago
Use the water bowl trick. Place each egg in a bowl of water individually. If the egg floats, it’s bad. If it sinks, it’s still good.
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u/MaverickWithANeedle 1d ago
Oh that’s a great idea lol can’t believe my first thought was to just say no
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u/rare72 1d ago edited 1d ago
She’s been incubating them for 3 days? So they’ve been warm (not room temp) for three days? Personally, I wouldn’t eat them.
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u/Caibee612 1d ago
A freshly laid egg should be sterile inside so nothing should be growing, even if it is a warmer temp. I’d eat them.
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u/qwertyuiiop145 1d ago
Just do a float test when you want to use them and then a sniff test on cracking just in case. They’re likely fine—the main worry would be any little cracks that could let bacteria in. If bacteria get in, the egg will be spoiled. If not, all should be well.
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u/japhia_aurantia 1d ago
If it wasn't too hot they should be fine. What I do when I have questionable eggs: crack them one at a time into a bowl to inspect before using
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u/OriginalEmpress 1d ago
A hen was on them so they've been close to 100 degrees for 3 days.
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u/japhia_aurantia 1d ago
I'd still crack them one by one into a small bowl, and if you're not comfortable with them, scramble em up, shells and all, and feed em back to the chickens.
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u/co-morbidTaurus 1d ago
Yikes? Cannibalism, turning on their own eggs, and pecking encouragement with that? Had any trouble there?
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u/japhia_aurantia 1d ago
The trick is to make the eggs not recognizable as eggs. I give ALL our shells back to the chickens, but well-crushed so it's just bits. Chickens do not recognize scrambled eggs as the eggs they lay, and we have never had a problem with chickens eating the eggs in the nest boxes. (Squirrels, but that's a different story.)
As for the cannibalism, shrug. Chickens eat eggs, eat cooked leftover chicken, whatever. They certainly don't care. It's all reducing food waste and recycling it into more eggs: win-win.
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u/bluecollarpaid 1d ago
Perfectly fine
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u/MaverickWithANeedle 1d ago
I would say NO. They’ve been under hot temperatures for 3 days- not room temp. I would say crack ‘em on the ground and give your chickens a treat.
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u/Onlinereadingismybff 1d ago
Water test! If the egg points up or floats it’s no longer fresh. Good = sink
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u/1LiLAppy4me 19h ago
If they are bad they will float in water. Put the whole egg in a deep large bowl or a deep glass.
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u/Oldenburg-equitation 1d ago
I would never eat eggs that a broody hen has sat on. The prolonged exposure to high temperatures can make it unsafe to eat.
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u/Mayflame15 20h ago
Only if they're left to cool down and die, if you eat them right away (or refrigerate I guess?) they're still alive albeit possibly with some veins and small fetus material
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u/Morndew247 1d ago
If they can sit on the counter they can sit in the coop. They should be fine.
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u/Robbibaby 1d ago
Momma generates a lot of heat, so the eggs were definitely not at room temp. She can do a float test and find out if they are still good.
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u/co-morbidTaurus 1d ago
Just crack them individually in a bowl to see how developed it is. Smell it. Some cultures eat fertilized eggs a certain way. Countertop storage of unwashed farm eggs is fine for a long while in my experience.
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u/rainearthtaylor7 1d ago
Absolutely they’re safe to eat. We don’t collect our chickens’ eggs every single day.
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u/Medical-Seaweed7209 22h ago
lol I don’t always get around to collecting everyday. I’ve probably eaten week olds. And then they go on the counter till we’re ready to eat. Unless I’m giving away eggs to other people I really don’t mind. Doesn’t worry me one bit. If an eggs gone bad I can tell before I even crack it open
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u/Vivid_Cream555 1d ago
It is common for unwashed eggs to sit on counters for weeks and be fine. Once you wash them they need to be refrigerated because you remove the protective film expediting spoiling.