Lovebirds baby egg problems urgent.

Question
Hi there i have a pair of lovebirds that layed 3 eggs over 3 weeks ago now i would say and a few days ago they cracked 2 eggs one had red blood inside and the other seemed like yolk. i dont know why they did it and they have abondoned the 3rd egg so i took it out and put it in a bowl with a lamp and some material around the egg just to see if it will hatch as i dont have an incubator at the moment one is on the way, i wanted to know does this egg stand any chance of surviving now egg seemed cold sometimes and sometimes warm, i can see a big dark black patch inside does this mean its fertile should i continue what im doing and hope for the best or do you think it would of hatched by now if it was alive still is there any way i can open the egg up now and it could still live that way by hand feeding it immeditely or does the egg need to be left alone still just wondering if im wasting my time doing this everyday would be so greatful if you can reply back asap as i really would love this baby to hatch this is my first time with somethink like this many thanks Louise.

Answer
Hi, Louise,

For some reason, the expert you sent your question to could not answer.  I picked up your question out of the question pool.

Your pair abandoned their eggs because they weren't going to hatch.  Adult birds on eggs know what's going on inside their eggs long before we do.  It only takes 18 days from the date incubation begins for fertile, properly developed embryos to hatch.  They most likely cracked open the first 2 eggs because they knew nothing was going to become of them, and have also abandoned the 3d egg for this same reason.  You may see a dark spot inside this egg when you candle it, but the baby could have died in-the-shell and/or only partially developed before it died.  This could mean you have unhealthy parent birds, bacteria/germs of some sort in the nest, etc., that were passed on to the developing embryos inside the eggs.  Also, not all eggs laid are fertile to begin with.  

Since it's been over 3 weeks since these eggs were laid, the last one most likely won't hatch.  However, you would have to know the exact date this egg was laid and when incubation began to be sure.  Eggs must be incubated 24/7 at 98 degrees F, turned counter clockwise at least once every twelve hours, and have proper humidity in order for an embryo to develop properly and thus hatch.  If an egg cools down even for 10 minutes, it will not properly develop.  You should NEVER open an unhatched egg to help a baby out.  The baby will never survive.  There may be times when you need to assist a baby during hatching (baby may be having difficulty pipping its own way out of the egg....they get tired, egg shell can be too thick, etc., etc.), but you really have to know what you are doing in a case like this because doing too much too soon can kill a hatchling, i.e., if the egg sack isn't absorbed completely before hatching, a hatchling will die, you can remove the egg shell too far resulting in the baby bleeding to death.  It takes an individual with much experience and knowledge to do these types of things pertaining to hatchlings.

Chrys