AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

I am fairly new to this poultry hatching thing and becoming addicted VERY fast. In fact we have not eaten an egg for weeks because every single egg that gets laid (chook, turkey, peafowl, guinea fowl) immediately gets put in the incubator.

Unfortunately it is seeming that my turkey hens may be too young and some of my (ex battery) hens too old and I am throwing away about 50% of my eggs at the 7 and 14 day mark as infertile. It seems like such an incredible waste (wish there was a way of telling whether they were fertile before incubating).

It has been my understanding that an incubated egg would not be safe to eat after sitting in temps of 37.5 degrees for a week or two. But recently I saw a clip on people eating boiled eggs that had been incubated with quite developed embryos in them (blerk! - apparently an Asian delicacy). So it got me to wondering that if it is safe to eat an egg that had been semi-incubated (i.e. with a developed chick inside), maybe it would be safe to eat a non-fertile egg that had been incubated? Even if I could feed them cooked up to the dogs I would feel better about the wastage. But don't want to make the doggies sick.

I'm not talking about the quitters, just the eggs that obviously weren't fertile to begin with.

Anyone ever given it a go?

subject title answer regards non developed incubated eggs (my opinion) = = I wouldnt risk the potential for illness

some may find it ok to eat a nearly fully developed embryo as it is basicaly a living creature by then, but me = too small and a bit too 'crunchy' for my liking I think

I boil up the eggs that are clear at day 7 and feed them back to chickens or the hens , but not at day 14 I just pitch those,
I couldn't eat the almost developed one's either much rather a decent roast rooster.

My opinion also - I wouldn't risk it. My dogs' opinions -scavenge them out of the compost and eat them regardless of development. I do feed the dogs any eggs candled out clear at about 10 days. When I was getting so many infertile Sussex eggs I began to worry about over feeding eggs to the dogs.

Thanks for the responses, everyone.

I've decided to fry up the next lot of seven-day infertiles, that way I will be able to see and smell before making a decision about feeding them to the dogs. Obviously if it's stinky or off-looking then no-go.

If I can utilise at least some of these eggs I'll feel much better about the wastage. Currently I hurl the infertiles over the fence into our spare paddock - it always amazes me how far an egg can bounce - most of them bounce three or four times and then come to rest still unbroken.

Ha ha doggo, the woofers do think the most revolting things are delectable treats, don't they? Some of the stuff I have caught mine eating make me literally heave.

I do the exact same thing and have even fed the boiled eggs to other chicks and they love the egg I would never use egg that have any serious development of a chick

I wouldn't risk eating them or feeding them to humans something about fertilised incubated eggs that is not quite right for me

Possibly cooking them up only for other animal consumption if you don't like the wastage.

Yep they are perfectly fine for the chooks to eat or the chicks as I do

I would not eat them either

I boil them up too and yep only for the birds inc the canary's

I always wondered if you could but was not keen to try them myself