How to count chicken incubation days????

[yeshuaisiam]

Ok, I keep reading that on day 18 to lock down chicken eggs. Here's the question, do you count the lay day as day 1?

Example 1

L
L O
A C
Y K
Day 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21


Example 2
L
L O
A C
Y K
Day N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21



Note the difference between example 1 and example 2 is that the day the chicken lays either IS or IS NOT counted.


Every chicken book states to lock down on Day 18, whatever that means. LOL

If a chicken laid an egg at 1pm in Example 1 it would be on Day 1
If a chicken laid an egg at 1pm in Example 2, it would be Day 1 approx 24 hours from lay (let's just say)

Help!

 

[junebuggena]

You don't start counting till you start incubating. The day an egg is laid does not count unless you take that egg and put it straight into the incubator the day it's laid. Eggs do not spontaneously develop. They must be incubated, either in an incubator or under a broody hen.
I set eggs in an incubator March 5. Today is 8 of incubation.

 

[MeepBeep]

There is no definitive answer, people do it both ways... Lockdown is not a necessary part of incubation nor does it have to be timed exactly on day 18 at the stroke of midnight... Lockdown was created as a mental minder, to remove the eggs from turners or turn turners off and to possibly increase humidity levels for an easier hatch, as long as you do that before they actually hatch you are fine, be it day 17, 18, 19, 20 or even day 21 before they hatch...

 

[yeshuaisiam]

Question, what if an egg is laid and that day it is 60F outside, will it still develop (assuming fertilized) once incubated?

 

[MeepBeep]

Question, what if an egg is laid and that day it is 60F outside, will it still develop (assuming fertilized) once incubated?

Nothing will happen at 60°F...

Pretty much nothing happens the for several hours after laying, even if incubated at the proper temp... If you collect the eggs within a reasonable time on the day they are laid for all intents you can consider them not started...

 

[yeshuaisiam]

I guess I should re-word my question.

Will 60F temps "kill" the fertilized egg? For instance, if a chicken lays an egg (let's assume fertilized) at 12pm, and it is cool outside 60F and I pick it up at 7pm will it ruin it's chances of developing/hatching because it was in 60F temps for so many hours?

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I guess I should re-word my question.

Will 60F temps "kill" the fertilized egg? For instance, if a chicken lays an egg (let's assume fertilized) at 12pm, and it is cool outside 60F and I pick it up at 7pm will it ruin it's chances of developing/hatching because it was in 60F temps for so many hours?

No. My last hatch last year I stored my eggs inside and they stayed between 60-68F I had my first 100% hatch.

You start counting 24 hours after you set your eggs. Chicken eggs need 21 days of INCUBATION. They don't have 1 day until 24 hours later. If you set eggs on monday at noon, you start counting day 1 Tuesday at noon and day 2 Wednesday at noon and so on. Lock down is generally day 18 for chicks. MeepBeep pretty much covered that.

 

[junebuggena]

No. As long as it's not frozen, an egg can remain viable for up to two weeks.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

At 80F you will see sporadic development in eggs.

 

[yeshuaisiam]

Thank you for the great information. I was collecting eggs several times a day and immediately incubating them. I'm sure it disturbed the temps some with the other eggs. So after I collect eggs, I can store them at 60F and wait 5-6 days Makes things much easier.