How long should I wait for retained eggs?
So my beautiful pinstripe female had her first clutch on Friday. 5 eggs. But, she still has two or perhaps three eggs, she has not lain. She seems active enough, goodness knows she is sick of my peeking at her. How long should I wait for her to finish the job before I become concerned and make an appointment with the vet? I certainly don't want anything to happen to her.
Gale
Re: How long should I wait for retained eggs?
Did you already remove the other eggs from her?
Re: How long should I wait for retained eggs?
Is the egg closest to the vent noticeably larger than those already laid?
Is it quite far away from the vent or close to it?
Re: How long should I wait for retained eggs?
A few years ago, i had a female lay 1 egg, then 4 days later, another 11
(all 12 hatched just fine, and interestingly, all hatched at the same time)
Not saying this is the case with your girl, but they can hang on in there for quite a while with no adverse affects to either: the eggs, or mum
Re: How long should I wait for retained eggs?
Taking the eggs prematurely COULD be part of the reason she hasn't laid yet. Doing some research this season I found a lot of people saying that you have to be careful not to take the eggs before they're done laying or they could retain. Also, I think it might be a good idea to soak her in warm water a few times over the next couple days, as that might help to relax her muscles and aid in her laying. I've seen that [advice] a lot for females who seem to be retaining, and the vet would likely just advise that or give a shot of oxytocin and advise soaking, so give soaking a chance first.
If that doesn't help and she seems to be more swollen and very stressed in a few more days it would be a good time to take her to the vet.
Hope this helps at all!