Not looking good...

[Lolo76]

I posted last week about my "surprise" (earlier than expected) clutch, with 4 eggs from a Lesser x Mojave pairing... they've been in the incubator since then, but unfortunately it looks like one or two of the eggs are going bad.

The egg marked #1 was suspicious from the get-go; as you can see in the original thread's photos, it was a bit crinkled and clear when I pulled it from mom's tub. Now it's almost completely clear, starting to mold/smell, and only shows a few veins inside. Should I just toss it now, or wait a little longer? And if you agree it's a hopeless case, should I freeze it before throwing away? Egg #2 also has a few moldy spots and clear shell, but looks better than the other (especially when I candled it). So what should I do with that one, especially considering it's attached to another egg? Thankfully the other two look alright, but my BEL odds are getting smaller & smaller.

Here's the bad one:


And the other suspicious egg:


These two look okay for now... they do have small windows, but these haven't gotten any bigger since the first day or two.

[bcr229]

I agree with your assessment of #1. Sprinkle the rest with some Gold Bond Foot Powder to combat the mold, it won't hurt the eggs.

[anicatgirl]

I follow a guy on FB who just cut a clutch and he had a fully OK live baby in an egg he had fought mold with. I would just fight the mold and hope the baby makes it.

[Lolo76]

Thanks for the replies! I did put foot powder on the eggs, and mold doesn't seem to be growing... but that egg (#1) is starting to STINK, so I don't really want it in there for much longer. Should I just put it in the freezer when I get home tonight? Still unsure about #2, but I'll let that one hang around since it's attached to another.

[Albert Clark]

What type of incubation medium is that? Do you think there may be too much water in the medium? Yeah, I think egg #1 is too much of a risk to the rest of the clutch. Kudos to you for your hard work.

[dr del]

It's perlite or hatchrite.

I'd think about putting a grid under the eggs as they look as though they are getting wet from somewhere?

[Lolo76]

It is hatchrite, and the egg tub doesn't look particularly wet. I've tried "substrate-less" incubation in the past, and it caused me to lose most of a clutch... so I'm a little hesitant to do that again! I'll check the humidity when I get home, but this method & incubator have served me well for many clutches now.

[Lolo76]

Update: Sadly, it looks like my (already small) 4-egg clutch is only going to have one good egg - if I'm lucky. First I discovered it was actually #2 that stank, while eggs #1 & 3 were molding fast and not candling well. So I tossed the stinky one, and left the others just to see what happened over the next few days. But #4 is the only egg that seems viable at this point, and I'll probably throw out the others soon.

Better hope the odds gods are REALLY shining down on me, as I will have just one shot at my BEL.

Here's how they look now - blech!


And the viable one (I hope):

[Albert Clark]

Wow, tough call man. What type of incubator is that? I know how you feel when you say you had a bad experience with substrateless and declining to go that way now. Hang in there!

[Lolo76]

Wow, tough call man. What type of incubator is that? I know how you feel when you say you had a bad experience with substrateless and declining to go that way now. Hang in there!

Thanks. I'm bummed, but it was a miracle to even get ONE egg out of this girl (long story) - so I'll take what I can get!

That's just a cheapo Little Giant incubator, but it's always gotten the job done thus far. And whether or not you were implying anything, I should mention these eggs were doomed before I even put them in there... actually could explain why she didn't coil them, which I questioned in my original post after she laid. Oh well. :-/