eggs have not hatched

[krazykatz13]

I have 7 peacock eggs that are in an incubator. They were laid every other day starting on May 5. I have kept the temp around 99.5 with very little fluctuation. The eggs were candled in the first days just because this is my 1st time and i was curious. The light went all of the way through. After about 2 weeks I candled them again and there was an air bubble at the rounded end and a blob in the middle. A few days later I candled them again and there was still the bubble and a larger blob. The blob seems to be growing but today is day 30 for the first eggs and no sign of hatching. Should i be worried?

 

[MinxFox]

Yeah 30 days is kinda long... Do they smell bad? When you candle the eggs and you hold them still do you see the blob moving? I can see the peachick moving inside when I candle mine. Keep a very close eye on them to make sure they don't ruin the other eggs. Have you been turning them a few times a day? Oh and do you see veins when you candel...I have had bad eggs that went to day 30 and they would have a dark mass inside but that didn't mean it was a peachick. I would crack them open outside and it would all just be smelly egg and no peachick or a very small dead one that died early in development.

 

[Kedreeva]

The incubation period for peas is 28-30 days, so while 30 days is a little later, I wouldn't be incredibly worried (wouldn't go breaking into any eggs yet or anything). When you candled, did the dark go all the way to the bottom from the air sack? At this point it should fill almost the entire egg except the space of the air bubble. Sometimes you can see a small space at the pointy end of the egg, where the yolk sack is sitting, still being absorbed. If I don't hear anything (no peeping, no cracks in shells) by day 32 or 33, then I will crack open the egg and see what went wrong, but before then I like to give the benefit of the doubt if nothing smells bad.

 

[frenchblackcopper]

All of my pea eggs seems to hatch on the 26th day.Some people hatches out in 28 days.One thing you can try is hold the egg next to your ear and listen,you may lightly "tap" the egg with your fingernail,then listen closely for a chirp or a pecking from inside the egg.I've had many peachicks chirp around day 24 and not pip until a day or so later,,another trick is to use an LED flashlite,,take the egg in a very dark room,,hold the egg air sack towards you and tip the egg upwards so the pointy small end is up,,if you hold the flashlite over the airsack area,you can see the chick move inside the egg if it's still alive,,but 30 days is not looking good

 

[krazykatz13]

I have had the eggs on an automatic turner from the beginning. I tried to candle them again to look for movement but I am not sure if they are moving slightly or if it is just wishful thinking on my part!! They do not smell and the blob has definitely gotten bigger over time. I can see a small space at the tip of the most recent egg but not at the oldest egg. I tried to hear a peep or tapping but heard nothing. I may give them a few more days and if no change, I may try to gently crack the egg and see what happens.

 

[frenchblackcopper]

If you crack and pick open a small hole on the egg,do so on the air sack end,and if the chicks still alive inside you will see it move,,but if it's not yet broken into the air sack space you will need to cover your opening up with a damp paper towel until the chick actually pips the egg,,otherwise the membrane will start to dry out and encase the peachick and it will dry to the chicks feathers entombing it before it can get out.

 

[AugeredIn]

Don't crack the egg. Do what frenchblack copper suggests. Open a hole at the large air sac end. You will be able see if anything is moving from that opening. If you open it any other way, you most likely will adversely affect the final absorption of the yolk into the abdomen. Make sure that you do cover the end with a damp paper towel until they penetrate into the air sac area. Once they penetrate the air sac area they will need time to finish absorbing the yolk before the rest of the egg can be opened.

 

[krazykatz13]

Ok I picked a small hole into the 2 oldest eggs, which should have hatched today. The air sac was still a large gap and the membrane was dry. The chicks did not move at all when I made the hole so I opened it completely. The chicks were dead but the liquid around them was like mucous. The were developed, although one appeared to be alittle more so than the other in that the yolk was smaller and not attached to the egg. I have 5 more eggs and the next one is due to hatch in a few days. Any ideas on what could have gone wrong and suggestions to save the last 5?

 

[frenchblackcopper]

We all wonder why this sometimes happens to chicks,,,they develope almost to the point of entry into the world,,then for some unknown reason they die.I've often wondered if it's anything to do with handling them.You take the eggs out several times during incubation to candle them and see development,ect,,,I find myself bringing out a entire tray at once and candling some eggs several times that I gave the benefit of the doubt to before.I wonder if slight "jarring" of the egg may cause it to quit? Many times mother nature has her own way of weeding out the imperfect and this may be the reason some stop.I believe this is the main reason they die,,something is wrong with them and they are at the stage of growth where this "anatomical" imperfection comes out,,maybe it has to do with bacteria-immunity or a germ? It can be on the microscopic level,something may have been on the eggshell that thru the incubation process grew,multiplied and then entered the inside of the egg and membrane like a virus.I personally would like to know if large hatcheries experience this sort of loss and what percentage that number really is.Granted the controlled enviornments of hatchery stock is much more stringent disease and sanitation wise than ours,but I'm sure this type of loss isn't fenced just to individuals on a much smaller scale.Hatcheries faces the same uncontrollable forces we do such as weather fronts moving in,pathogens brought onto property unknowingly,,either thru direct unforeseen ways,ir by natures changing enviornment.

 

[Fowler Hencock]

On the other hand, perhaps it's not enough jarring. If you think about natural incubation, the hen is regularly turning her eggs by kicking them around with her feet, and knocking them together. That's multiple hits per day, for 26 to 30 days. But most chicks hatch this way.

I think most late stage deaths are caused by not enough humidity. The chick needs maximum moisture, to be able to wiggle around inside and unzip it's way out. Consider it the difference between swimming in water, and swimming in quicksand.

About the time differences in the number of days before hatching, generally the hotter the incubation temperature, the sooner the hatch. Eggs maintained at 100 degrees should hatch a day or two before eggs maintained at 97 degrees.