I have a couple posts recently about this hatch, but I really need some other opinions on what went wrong. I have a staggered hatch going on, a set of 16 Salmon Faverolles shipped eggs, where 6 made it to hatch on Friday/Saturday and another 9 eggs from my own flock which 4 are currently out and looking 100% perfect, which the other 5 currently hatching.
The Salmon Faverolles are not perfect. Only 1 seems to be "normal". Two have twisted tibia(?), scoliosis, split wing, and were hatched with small divets in their beaks. A third has severe VVD. The other two have split wing. Of those with split wing, one is missing a 5th toe on one foot the other is "duck footed".
They also all keep getting pasty butt, which I have never had before, either.
See split wing above in 2nd to left (this one also has scoliosis)
This one has the back turned leg, VVD?
Severe scoliosis on chick on left and split wings visible on chicks on right.
Hole in beak in one with the worst scoliosis.
I have hatched over 100 chicks and have only had one deformity ever (cross beak).
I was leaning toward "too-high" temperature issue, but the fact that eggs from my hatch are completely normal and were in the incubator at the same time, I am thinking that was not the issue unless it happened on days 1-4. The thermometers have always said (99.5-100 forced air). I turn three-4 times a day and use a dry hatch method (it has always worked for me, with many 100% hatches from my own eggs). My thermostat turns the heat on at 98 and turns off at 102, but this cycles so quickly (every 10-15 seconds) that internal egg temperature should not have varied. However, since these eggs were medium sized and my eggs were large, maybe there was just enough of an impact?
I don't think it's breeder nutrition, nor breeder quality (she's NPIP and routinely hatches her own chicks for sale as well as hatching eggs).
Incubator was sanitized before use.
Is there some virus that can cause skeletal deformities? Could there be some toxin exposed from shipping? Borderline freezing temperatures?
Any other idea or thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks!
The Salmon Faverolles are not perfect. Only 1 seems to be "normal". Two have twisted tibia(?), scoliosis, split wing, and were hatched with small divets in their beaks. A third has severe VVD. The other two have split wing. Of those with split wing, one is missing a 5th toe on one foot the other is "duck footed".
They also all keep getting pasty butt, which I have never had before, either.
See split wing above in 2nd to left (this one also has scoliosis)
This one has the back turned leg, VVD?
Severe scoliosis on chick on left and split wings visible on chicks on right.
Hole in beak in one with the worst scoliosis.
I have hatched over 100 chicks and have only had one deformity ever (cross beak).
I was leaning toward "too-high" temperature issue, but the fact that eggs from my hatch are completely normal and were in the incubator at the same time, I am thinking that was not the issue unless it happened on days 1-4. The thermometers have always said (99.5-100 forced air). I turn three-4 times a day and use a dry hatch method (it has always worked for me, with many 100% hatches from my own eggs). My thermostat turns the heat on at 98 and turns off at 102, but this cycles so quickly (every 10-15 seconds) that internal egg temperature should not have varied. However, since these eggs were medium sized and my eggs were large, maybe there was just enough of an impact?
I don't think it's breeder nutrition, nor breeder quality (she's NPIP and routinely hatches her own chicks for sale as well as hatching eggs).
Incubator was sanitized before use.
Is there some virus that can cause skeletal deformities? Could there be some toxin exposed from shipping? Borderline freezing temperatures?
Any other idea or thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks!
