Quote:
Originally Posted by
Iain Utah 
Erin, sounds like fertility is pretty good if you are getting those rates under a broody. It will be good to go through a new shipment to protect intact air cells for shipping, as I believe that is probably the missing key to getting high rates with shipped eggs. I'm super happy you want to learn how to improve shipped eggs and have happy hatching customers. I will figure out my hatching calendar (or someone I would trust to be the recipient of the eggs) and set a date to get a new set of eggs.
It would be awesome for you to also figure out how to incubate your eggs, as I understand that may be the easiest way to test fertility rates in the future prior to shipping eggs. One other tip for setting your eggs.... make sure your temp/humidity gauges are accurate. Also, the fluctuation between 35-40% for Celtic vs. 45% for my eggs is that our respective environment's humidity is totally different. That is why weighing the eggs and measuring weight loss is the better method for figuring out what humidity will work best for you.
Well I have good news....for me at least, I believe one of the girls have went broody!!
That is a perk for me I will put eggs under her in a couple days if she is being truely broody!!! YEAH!! If she is going broody then the others are sure to follow I bet.
Marty and Iain let me know asap when you would think you would like your eggs. And how many you could potentially want, just in case they become quitters I can save the day before(s). So far she is the only one though. Whatever I have left I will throw under her.
Fertility: That is why I am shocked as I'm reading how the eggs are duds. I believe also that it is the shipping. Hoping to all get out that the shipping strategy will work much better for everyone myself included!
Okay as for humidity I'm in IL. So I would assume mine would be close to Marty since she is in MO. So we will go with that. For 5yrs I figured why should I do all they work when I have perfectly good mothers to do the work for me. I have NEVER lost a gosling, ever...I love my mommys