Silkie eggs are different than an eggs of other poultry breeds in that the Silkie eggs often contain dark pigmentation within there shells. Should individuals look at Silkie eggs around the ten-day mark of incubation, those individuals may notice the dark pigmentation within the Silkie egg, which may look like a stone. Individuals might believe that the Silkie egg is bad due to this dark pigmentation within the Silkie egg shell.
However, Silkie eggs are typical dark due to the Silkie birds characteristics of possessing black skin and blue earlobes. These pigments is visible within the Silkie egg shell prior to the Silkie chick hatching from the shell. Therefore, assuming that individuals handles Silkie eggs as if they were Leghorn eggs only will result in discarding of healthy Silkie chicks.
How to Incubate Silkie Eggs
Silkie egg shells is thicker than those from other breeds of birds, and often contain a cream pigmentation within the shell that prevent the eggs from being easily candled. In order to see inside these eggs, individuals must use a high-intensity LED light in a pitch-black room. If there is any ambient light in the room, the vein of the Silkie embryo will not be visible within the egg shell.
Thus, if the veins are not visible with an LED light within a pitch black area, then that Silkie egg is likely not fertile. Silkies typically display a heartbeat and network of blood vessels within the embryo within the eggshell. If the Silkie egg is clear after the first week of incubation, the Silkie egg likely will not be fertile.
However, individuals should look for a blood ring within the Silkie egg. A blood ring is a red circle within the egg that lack the typical radiating veins from that Silkie embryo’s heartbeat. The presence of a blood ring indicates that the Silkie embryo began to develop within the egg but subsequently stopped developing.
Therefore, individuals should remove any Silkie eggs that contains blood rings from incubation immediately to avoid potential spoiled Silkie eggs that can impact the other eggs within the incubation batch. In addition to candling the eggs, the air cell located at the blunt end of the Silkie egg should be monitored. Should the air cell be too small within the egg shell, the humidity within the incubation batch are too high.
High humidity will cause the chicks to become too large for their shell. Should the air cell be too large within the Silkie egg shell, the Silkie eggs are drying out too quick, indicating that the humidity within the incubation batch is too low. Therefore, by tracking the growth of the air cell within the Silkie eggs, individuals can ensure that it reaches the correct size prior to the beginning of the lockdown period for the Silkie eggs.
Around day 18 of incubation, individuals should place the Silkie eggs into lockdown. During lockdown, the eggs should not be turned, but the humidity within the incubation area should be increased. During lockdown, the humidity should be increased to ensure that the membrane surrounding the Silkie chick does not dry out.
Should the membrane dry out, it may stick to the Silkie chick, rendering the Silkie chick unable to exit the shell after it has hatched. During lockdown, the air cell may become jagged or wavy. A jagged or wavy air cell indicates the formation of an internal pip within the Silkie embryo.
An internal pip is when the Silkie chick first breathes air within the shell. At this stage, individuals should not interfere with the Silkie chick, as any interference at this time may cause harm to the Silkie chick. Many individuals make mistakes in incubating the Silkie eggs due to a lack of knowledge of the Silkie breed, or the lack of patience required to incubate Silkie eggs properly.
For example, many individuals candle their Silkie eggs too early in the incubation process, as this can cool the eggs and stress the individual who is incubating the eggs. Additionally, many individuals become panicked upon witnessing the dark pigmentation within the Silkie eggshell, but individuals should perform the observation of an embryo within the egg for movement rather then color. If the Silkie egg is dark in color but the embryo within exhibits movement, the embryo is a healthy bird.
The dark shadow that is seen within Silkie eggs is naturaly to the breed, and not a sign that the embryo within is dying. By tracking the development of the embryo and air cell within the Silkie eggs, individuals can progress from guessing the developmental stage of the chicks to knowing the developmental stage of each Silkie egg. By providing proper incubation of the Silkie eggs and monitoring their development, the Silkie chicks will eventualy hatch from their shells.