Incubating eggs to hatch about August 8th

[calichicken]

I would greatly recommend reading through this article:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/step-by-step-guide-to-assisted-hatching

It is great. It needs at least three read throughs to understand all the info. It is worth the time.

I have had two eggs, hatching under broodies, that pipped, and mostly zipped, and then got welded in. Those two needed to be quickly snatched away from the broody and soaked out of their shell.

However, it is rare that they need help, so yes, it is best to wait until tomorrow.

X2 so important to have this info when trying to decide whether or not to assist and I usually lean more towards giving it time.

 

[calichicken]

So here is my update after a very difficult weekend. 2 eggs in the bator on lockdown hoping to hatch Monday.

Picking up some 1-3 day old chicks for my broody Peep who has not given up calling for her baby and sitting without moving with no nest or anything there. Replaced her nest and put 2 eggs from the fridge for her to nest until I sneak the chicks under her tomorrow night. Hoping these babies will get her out and about again.

 

[Puddin Fluff]

Eggdropsoup. Be patient. That is the hardest part. That article is a good one. Sallysunshine really know her stuff.

Alaskan, I would be perfectly happy if I had all girls. We have 3 cockrels now that get along well. If we have more then we need to make decisions.

Calichick, hope your broody takes to the babies.

My last straggler is drying out in the bator. I will switchoff and cleanup this afternoon.

 

[duluthralphie]

EggDrop Soup:

Sorry about your chick not making it out of the egg. I hope the rest do well. I will echo what the others said, I read the article twice!


I sure hope you did not take my saying:

"I would be so worried about the one with the membrane intact and the hen picking at it. I would probably do something stupid like help it out,,,and kill it. Patience is not one of my virtues."


If you did I apologize, I was hoping what would stand out is the "and kill it" part. On the other side, some chicks are just not meant to hatch. It is natures way of culling the weak from the gene pool. When I was a kid growing up my family hatched a lot of chicks. It was always a tough call for my parents on whether to help a chick or not. I found with my hatch last week the same dilemma. I remember my Dad saying it is better for them to not hatch and die then help them out and have them die. Either way you will second guess your self, that is human nature.

I had one this year I put a moist paper towel on, when I autopsied the egg at the end of the hatch I found the chick had been dead for days in the shell. (it was an egg that sat next to my exploding rotten egg, and when we removed the egg to the hatching area we broke a large chip out of it.) I got the opportunity to see what a moist paper towel acts like in an incubator, I was not impressed even with the high moisture rate, it dried to the shell and to me seemed to wick moisture out of the egg. Next time I will have bacitracin around incase that happens again.

As I said patience is not one of my virtues, might I suggest handcuffs or a long drive before assisting the hatch. Do something to stop the temptation. and READ the article, it stresses patience also.


Calichicken, I am glad you found some chicks! Best of luck on tomorrows hatch.



Eggdropsoup:

Just a reminder of what I said for next time, this time is done, let it go:

"I would be so worried about the one with the membrane intact and the hen picking at it. I would probably do something stupid like help it out,,,and kill it.

 

[EggDropSoup]

Good news, all! I woke up this morning to find three hatched babies, all fluffy and peeping up a storm under Floris, and the fourth egg is pipping now. So--it seems I'll end up with four chicks of the initial 6 eggs I put under her. Not bad!! And, of course, they are very, very cute:

 

[duluthralphie]

Good news, all! I woke up this morning to find three hatched babies, all fluffy and peeping up a storm under Floris, and the fourth egg is pipping now. So--it seems I'll end up with four chicks of the initial 6 eggs I put under her. Not bad!! And, of course, they are very, very cute:

GRATZ they are so cute!

On a sad note for me, I listed my 9 baby pheasants on craigslist, it appears they have a new home coming. I will miss them, but am not set up for pheasant, I only hatched them because the eggs were cheap and I needed to try and get the incubator working right.

Now the sad note, I still have the 10th baby in the ICU, My mind says I need to dispatch it. My wife says we need to dispatch it. I just have not had the heart to do so. I Will today, I hope when the babies go. So much evil and cruelness in the world and I being a softy have a hard time doing a chick in

. Even butchering is hard to do, but I am a meat lover so I will do as much of my dirty work as I can, why pay others to do your distasteful job, It makes me appreciate where meat comes from more. Keeps me grounded.

I ramble enough, sorry a rambling day. I am just delaying the dirty job.

 

[EggDropSoup]

I'm sorry to hear about your chick in the ICU. I haven't read the whole thread, so I don't know what's wrong with it, but sometimes, there's just nothing to be done. That doesn't make it any less sad, though.

I also raised pheasants once--from chicks I bought at the feed store. About six of them were being pecked to death by the other chicks in the tank, so I asked the feed store guy if I could just have them, and he gave them to me. I had no clue what I was doing. I raised them in my apartment bathroom!! They went to live on a game farm once they started flying to the top of the shower rod.

 

[TeaChick]

@puddin, so excited for you! Hope your able to get more silken eggs (they were for your dd, right?)

@eggdropsoup, welcome! Hope all your eggs hatch for your broody!

 

[TeaChick]

Hope everyone's chicks do well. I'm sorry for the losses.

I have mixed news:
I lost that chick that was being such a loudmouth.
I candled my eggs last night (end of day 21) all the brown ones move. The white one did not, so I started the egg-topsy. The chick moved! So I quickly put it back in the bator with a wet paper towel.
They're all at least a day behind, but there's still hope.

 

[Chicksahoyfarm]

Reporting that my one survivor egg hasn't hatched and I am sure it won't. I think that the veins popped when my dog knock the incubator off the table. So it just slowly bled out making it ok when I candled once I got home but died shortly after. I'm giving it till the end of today but not any longer.