Solitary chicken - need advice

[sjp]

I've got an egg that's on day 15 that's cheeping and rolling about. up till this morning it was in the incubator it's under a broody now but I thought they didn't start to cheep until a couple of days before they hatch but as it's been 2 or 3 years since I've used a incubator I don't remember exactly the time line of an hatching egg it's a large fowl egg but only a small egg and the only one of 7 that started to develop 5 ebay eggs plus another one of mine were all clear on day 10

Edited July 22, 2015 by Guest

[Beantree]

You wouldn't normally hear cheeping until day 18 earliest Sjp. But I have heard of very early hatches of individual eggs and it may have something to do with the temperature the eggs were stored at before they went into the incubator? They will develop up to a certain point because I have seen considerably enlarged blastoderms on eggs stored at room temperature for a long period. All of our hatches have been a day early this year.

[sjp]

the egg was no more than 24hrs old at most I've had eggs hatch on day 18 before now when I've set eggs that were laid on setting day but I've also had 'fresh' eggs take 23 or 24 days to hatch

but I don't remember eggs moving or cheeping much before hatch day but as I said it's been a couple of years since I hatch without a broody

the egg hadn't hatched when the broody had her mid morning fag break today

[sjp]

well the egg has hatched some time in the last 24 - 48 hrs the chick is some were under the broody but said broody has turned into a right nasty little witch that's pancaked that tight to the nest it's going to be a very painful task for me to get at the other egg she's sitting on that I know isn't going to hatch before early August if it's a viable egg