Yes, you can eat the eggs. It doesn't matter if they are fertilized or not. In fact, it is pretty difficult to tell the difference. The chick embryo in a fertilized egg will not begin to develop unless the conditions are right. It needs the warmth of a broody hen or incubator to start it on its way. And even then, it would not harm you to eat it... In some parts of the world partially developed embryos are considered a delicacy.

What you can do if you are still nervous it to crack each egg into a cup and take a look at it before adding it to whatever you are cooking. If it looks fine and smells fine... then it is fine.

With eggs, there is no taste difference in ferile/unfertile eggs, and as long as the eggs are fresh, no health issues, either. I've heard this myth before and I haven't a clue how it started!

The only visible difference in a fertile egg is a change in the blastodisc--the little whitish spot that indicates fertile/unfertile on an egg's yolk. In fertile eggs, this changes to a blastoderm and the spot's appearance changes. Good side-by-side pic here:

http://ohioline.osu.edu/b633/b633_10.html

There is actually a pretty cool page that explains the various parts of a chicken egg and the incubation process here, at Enchanted Learning (a way cool educational site for kids:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/birds/info/chicken/egg.shtml

I'm thinking you might be concerned about the white ropey strands inside the egg, the chalazae...? They are basically shock absorbers to keep the yold in place within the egg.

The presence of a blood spot in a fresh egg does NOT indicate fertility or the lack thereof, it's simply a small bit of blood that got inside the egg while it was forming--it is NOT the start of a baby chick. :)

A hen has to brood her eggs for several days before a chick starts to develop. As long as you collect your eggs daily and store them properly, there shouldn't be any problem.

Have fun with your chickens! :) I have a chicken info site here, it also might help answer questions for you:

http://home.earthlink.net/~velvetsparrow/VSChick.htm

Velvet ~:>

Best way to test if an egg is good or bad is to get some water in a clear glass, put the egg in and see what it does. If it floats, don't use it. If it stands on end it's still okay, but if it levitates or floats, don't use it. That way you won't be breaking any smelly eggs in your house. Yucko!

Merisepoo I don't know if thats true or not about chicken eggs,but there was a duck laying eggs in the lake, they were on the sand in about 6-12" of water? I didn't really like them scrambled, had a faint sulfer taste and kind of chewie. Thats interesting to hear about chick eggs, but they weigh X amount when laid nothing goes in or out of the shell, yet they go from weighing less then water to more ? PLEASE don't take it wrong taht I'm just being a wise acre. I don't realy question what you say, just caught my thoughts is all. Just because i have never heard of something doesn't mean it isn't a fact :)

Yikes I misread your post Merisepoo and sinse the shells are pourisis, maybe theres'a fine line on floaters and non-floaters? Theres a couple of other threads on here about the float test, that agree with what you said.

My understanding, giventake, is that as the egg ages, some moisture is lost through the porous shell and the air cell becomes larger. This makes the egg float -- at first partially, large end up and then later more completely. An egg that sinks and lies on the bottom indicates a very small air sac and therefore a recently laid egg.

I hope this helps.
{{gwi:39816}}

I thought the float test was right. And like Maggie said, the shell is microscopicly porous. (The chick embryo developing requires oxygen just as you or I do, so it gets it's air through the shell, and enturn Co2 and other gasses pass back out through the shell.) That is why, over time, the egg will float. It looses the volume of liquid within the shell, and is replaced by air.

Kevin