Perplexed with my duch incubation failures

[comp6512]

I have a Hova bator with the fan. Temperature is stable at 99.5. Humidity around 65%, and 75% for the lockdown. Using an automated turner.

First batch - 4 ducks out of 12 eggs.

Now (day 28), 1 duck peeped but died. The rest are not even peeping, that's out of 8 eggs.

Eggs are from my peckins and are fertile. I candled twice and saw development. But looks like around week 3 they quit.

What am I doing wrong?

 

[babymakes6]

Are you sure your thermometer is correct? Have you calibrated your hygrometer? Sorry this happened, hopefully someone else will be able to help better.

 

[TriciaHowe]

I hatch out LOTS of ducks and don't run my humidity that high.... Make sure your hygrometer is calibrated correctly. Do a search on here and you will find out how. You will be surprised how off some of them can be..... My hatches have run 100% so far this year (on ones that made it to day 25), I do have some early quitters which is to be expected.
Good luck to you!

 

[galanie]

I am copy/pasting from another post I made with instructions for checking the hygrometer. It's VERY important that you know how accurate it is:

You check the accuracy of the hygrometer with salt and a plastic bag. Get a large zip lock or some sort of plastic bag that you can seal air tight. Put some salt in a bowl (doesn't really matter how much, I'd say about 1/4 cup) and add enough water just to make it like wet sand. Put the hygrometer in there with the salt and wait at least 8 hours, and if you wait longer, even 24, it's ok. BTW, you don't have to put it IN the bowl with the salt, just put it in the bag.

Check the reading. It should say 75%. If it doesn't, then just add or subtract to the reading to get the correct humidity. For instance, if it says 70%, then add 5 to the reading whenever you check it. If it says 85, then subtract 10 when you check it. So if it's off by 10, and says 34%, then your humidity is really 44%.

 

[comp6512]

No, I have not calibrated it. Will do that.

But - you guys think automated turner is not a problem? I think I read here that eggs should lie flat. But I don't think they hand turn at the hatcheries?

 

[TriciaHowe]

I don't have turners in my bator's but only because I fit in more eggs without.... When I did have turners I can't remember noticing a difference in hatch rates. I would drop your humidity down to 50% and then bump no higher than 60% when hatching. Make sure you have at least one plug open. Your humidity will JUMP when they start hatching because ducks are so wet when they hatch. This should help a bit. And you know, don't help. Ducks take forever from pip to hatch (can be 48 hrs).

 

[Gypsy07]

Humidity at 65% sounds very high to me. Why did you choose to run the incubation with it so high?

 

[comp6512]

That's what I read....... I think