Chicken Story pt. 4 

You might be reading this and thinking, I thought she said they were due on Monday.  You were right, I did indeed say this. Now it is Wednesday morning and there are no chicks. We've checked dutifully every half hour or so but have always been disappointed. On Thursday, if there is still no chicks we are going to take one egg out of the nest and shine a flashlight through it. Apparently you can see the chick (or not) inside the egg that way. I hold out hope. 

However, there were 4 eggs she was not laying on, that were basically on the other side of the nest box. One of the other Columbian Wyandottes had sometimes got in there to lay her eggs so we assumed they were hers or whatever. So, we took those four without problem, she didn't cluck or peck or anything like she does when we try to take an egg from under her. I decided to just check with the flashlight trick, just to make sure and to see what it would do. Two of them I could see through. The other two I could not. And they were heavier than the others. With some hesitation we decided to crack them open because 1. They were very cold. 2. They were not under her so it would be useless anyway. The first egg was rotten. The second had a chicken embryo in it. Teeny tiny, with a large eye. Of course we were sad, but it's not like we killed it. 

So yes. That is the fourth part of the chicken story, and my least favorite. Part Five will be about: life, or death. Joy, or sadness. A wonderful hen mother, or a homicidal hen. Sickness, or health. Stay tuned. 

Sorry for the melodramatic ending there;-) Let me redo that. So yes. That is the fourth part of the chicken story, and my least favorite. Part five will be about chicks or no chicks! Hopefully chicks!