Sample Collection & Shipping Instructions

Follow these instructions to collect your sample, then review the rules and shipping info below.

How to Take an Eggshell Sample

Eggshell testing lets you sex the chick using the shell it just hatched out of. It’s non-invasive and great for very young chicks — but it requires planning before lockdown.

What you’ll need

  • Egg dividers, hatching baskets, or anything that keeps eggs separated during lockdown
  • Leg bands or another way to ID each chick as it hatches
  • One small zip-lock bag per chick
  • A marker for labeling bags

Step by step

  1. Separate eggs at lockdown. Each egg needs its own compartment so the shell can be matched to its chick after hatch.
  2. Band each chick (or otherwise mark it) as you pull it out of the incubator, and assign it a Bird ID.
  3. Label a bag with that same Bird ID and place the eggshell inside as you remove the chick.
  4. Let the shell dry out fully. Critical — a wet membrane will mold in shipping and the sample will be unusable.
  5. Check the membrane. Look inside the shell. You should see the dried inner membrane still attached. Do not scrub it out — that membrane is what we actually test.
  6. Flatten gently (optional) so it ships easier in an envelope, or leave whole and ship in a small box.
  7. Seal the bag with the labeled Bird ID. One chick per bag.
Sending it inPlace all bagged shells in a padded envelope or small box. Write your order number on the outside. Do not tape the envelope shut.
Plan this BEFORE your eggs go into lockdown You need to be able to match each hatched chick back to its own eggshell, which means separating eggs with dividers at lockdown so the shells do not get jumbled together.
Blood on Paper must be on coffee filters OR plain printer paper. Nothing else.
OK to use
Clean coffee filters, plain white printer paper.
Do NOT use
Paper towel, toilet paper, napkins, tissue paper, cupcake wrappers, parchment paper, or used coffee filters.
Anything other than the two listed materials will either fall apart, contaminate the sample, or refuse to hold the blood properly, and we will not be able to run the test.
Rules that apply to every sample type
  • Do NOT tape your envelopes shut. We have to open them. Tape tears the envelope and can damage the samples inside.
  • Write your order number on the OUTSIDE of your envelope or package. You do not need to use the QR code — the order number by itself is enough. This is the single best way to prevent your order from being delayed or mixed up.
  • One bird per bag. Each bird gets its own labeled zip-lock bag with its Bird ID exactly as you entered it on the website. Do not combine birds, even siblings from the same hatch.
  • Do not reuse Bird IDs for multiple birds in the same order.
Ship all samples to:
The Silkie Lab
740 Shaw Road
Bailey, MI 49303
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