Goose Incubation & Hatching Guide - Completed!!!!

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I got 13 African goose eggs and I was wondering how to hatch them and if you spray them with a mist and also how many days do they stay in the incubator
This was posted on another thread by one of our experienced goose people.
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Hey Anna, Miss Lydia already posted the "bible" for hatching geese, but I'm happy answer questions since I want you to have a great hatch. I have had success by doing the following: maintaining 25% humidity, keeping them on sides and hand turning 3x daily, after 7 days, mist and cool eggs daily. I mark air cells with pencil on day 21. By day 25, I lay egg dip side up and stop turning. Once shadow rises above pencil line on bottom of egg (gosling moving into air cell), I lock down at 78-80% humidity and wait. If you have a kitchen scale, it is ideal to weigh eggs when setting them, then weigh on day 7, 14 & 21. Your ideal weight loss is 16% by day 28. You can adjust humidity and cooling periods based on checking weight weekly.








My menagerie includes 5 horses, 3 dogs, 3 cats, 29 geese (mostly dewlap toulouse & african) and 15 assorted breed ducks.
 
I have had success running anywhere from 35-50% humidity with duck and African eggs, but dewlaps do not lose enough moisture unless running closer to 25%. A lot also depends on how fresh the eggs are (judged by how large air cell is) at time of setting.

ETA: Of course I am no expert, having only hatched a 100 or so waterfowl during the 2012 & 2013 spring seasons.
 
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I kind of took the big plunge and ran two incubators from the get go. The first year I purchased dozens of shipped eggs, more ducks than geese. Then last year I was so excited to have my own breeders, I hatched about two dozen goslings, another dozen ducks and half dozen chicks.

This year, the only babies that will be hatched here will be by broodies. I threw away one bator and lent my remaining bator to my neighbor.
 

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