Brinsea Mini Advance and humidity

morning! i candeled the eggs last night and all 7 have veins! Even the twins. They may not survive but im hopeful! Looks like im doing something right. again, thanks for the encouagement.

That is interesting about the cooling period being recommended to start at 7 days. I had not noticed that before in the instructions... Brinsea states that 'precise details' are not known about the days and duration of cooling, but the way I look at it, an incubator is just trying to mimic a broody hen and she is going to get off the nest in the first 7 days. Do studies show that broody hens not get off for very long in the first 7 days? Maybe they have fat reserves and they just get off to take a quick poop and eat a little and get back on relatively quickly during those first 7 days as compared to the remaining days? I dunno...

Seems like not much to worry about though. I'll probably still leave the cooling period set as standard from the beginning rather than risk forgetting to activate it on day 7... Just having a cooling period is something to which probably 98% of the eggs being hatched with incubators don't get subjected.

As an aside, I have eggs in a BMA and under a broody, both sets of eggs from the same two sources, and both 'clutches' set on the same day (and due Easter Eve, but didn't plan it that way). The eggs in the BMA are all fine with the 7-day check, but I don't know about the broody's eggs and I'm not going to check those - she can handle all that. It will be interesting to compare the hatches since the variables with both are so similar (although it is a small statistical population. <- nerd alert).

Grandma Sherri said:

morning! i candeled the eggs last night and all 7 have veins! Even the twins. They may not survive but im hopeful! Looks like im doing something right. again, thanks for the encouagement.

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That is such great news, Sherri!! Yay! You might read up on "assisted hatching" and gather whatever tools you might need to be ready to assist the twins, if need be. I do remember reading a thread where someone had had to assist, and successfully hatched both twins. I have read that often one, but not both, survive. Have you been reading up on hatching twins?

@ Nantahala, I like your "dueling hatches" between the BMA and your mama hen. I should think you could sneak the incubated chicks under the mama and have her raise them along with the ones she hatches. Is that your plan? surely would be easier on you! good plan!

I am not sure where Brinsea came up with starting the cool down a week into incubation. My guess is that is was a result of their own trial and error outcomes.

Best wishes to you both.