Thread formerly known as Hatch day is today

[Goin Quackrrs]

Goin Quackrrs... it wasn't a stinker. I thought it was but there was no smell whatsoever. Then after I logged off BYC.. about 25 minutes later that discolored egg pipped. Boy, have I got so much more to learn!

Good news on the little pipper!
I am in Kitsap, Port Orchard.

Stressing really bad. Had an East India make a small external pip last night when I went to bed. He was still active when I checked on him at 2am, now there is no notice nothing. I've tried talking to it and lightly tapped it once and nothing. What do I do?

I try so hard to not let them worry me. Hang in there and be patient. They are so slow to hatch.

Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been on here much. Been super busy! We have been getting so much rain here lately sometime's I swear my house moved to Washington, lol. My run and pens are flooded, I've spent the last month digging ditches in a futile effort to get it drier for the birds. Now the city has started work on storm drainage, which I hope should help once they are done, but in the mean time my fence has been taken out and my birds are having be in their muddy coop and yard 24/7. Plus no fence=no being outside getting anything done since I have 2 toddlers, I can't watch them to make sure they are staying in the yard while in the coop.

But the ducks do love it, lol. My chickens haven't laid in 3 weeks though, they aren't doing well with it. So I really wish I could get it taken care of soon!




I've got 12 olandsk dwarf, a couple d'uccle, 18 or so call eggs, and 6 goose eggs in the incubators. And a dozen guinea eggs are on their way to my incubator too.

If your house moved to Washington, then where did Washington move to? It's been dry and warm here which is very strange after the past few years....

Hands are off! And yes, I do have the Genesis!!! Thanks for the reassurance- I'm happy to hear it's the best tabletop incubator ever. I'm thoroughly enjoying hatching ducklings! I actually want to do it this summer too but I don't have a place to keep them as pets. And I don't know if it's wrong to hatch them and send them to their farm after.

Oh, the humidity has stabilized! Woo hoo!

Trust me, once you start, you won't stop. But hey, you've got a good support group here. I started hatching for my employer (a small farm). It became addicting. I probably need a hatching egg intervention.

So look who made it out of her shell all by herself while Mum was at work!! I saw her little pip hole earlier and by God it was so hard to leave her. Came back at midday and there she was on the other side of the bator all by herself! (sorry pics a bit blurry, couldn't get her to stay still!). Below she's in the brooder with her chick buddies.

I can see dark spots in my other eggs, and wings - can't hear anything though, and I could the other day. I guess this is why they say hatching is so nerve-wracking, I'm sure they're still fine, but I just need reassurance!!! Don't want to take them out and candle. They're not due to hatch till Friday so I'll hang on till then and see what happens!

Welcome, sweet baby!

Oh, and I had a gosling hatch today.

I adore goslings so much. They are the sweetest babies out of everything I've hatched!

Thanks Julie NKC!

Well, I came in this morning to THREE adorable, cheeping, active ducklings!!!! Two Pekins and 1 Rouen. They are just precious!




But my fluffy yellow one has strange looking feet. What can I do?

Congrats on the little ones. I saw your update on the pekin baby's feet. They lay strange sometimes. And they're so terribly awkward when they're learning to waddle.

Long night. 1 baby hatched, the other died in the shell trying to get out. Hope the others make it out alive. My first loss and I'm heart broke

I'm so sorry about your baby. I know how disappointing it is to lose a baby in lockdown.

I am so sorry to hear that Michelle.

I, too, think my last 4 duck eggs are dead

. I heard one of them chirping away in there the other day and nothing for over 24 hours, no pipping or anything. I had a feeling they were dead and I just candled and nothing. It looks like they drowned? The air cell is much bigger on one side, almost going down the whole side of the egg.

I upped the humidity and was spritzing with water because the first one was shrink wrapped. They were hatching 5 days early so hadn't gone into lockdown. It was a bit all over the place at the end because we randomly had eggs under our hens that needed to be brought into the incubator, so we've been hatching for a week, hence the bator has been opened and closed on and off for the last week. Not good, and got the same results.

It's heartbreaking, and even worse thinking it's possibly something I did. But that's the way it goes. I am grateful we have 3 healthy little chicks and one duckling - better than nothing, eh?

I'm so sorry that your hatch didn't go as planned. I've been there many times. I've had ducklings zip and try to push out of the egg and suffocate themselves. There are so many things that can go wrong with a hatch.

Cute buggers! What kind of Gosling?
So you are at two extremes ! Pouring Rain or Scorching Sun

I have only 3 Emus, lost a few in hatch & lost one for some unknown reason. I have one sold this weekend, and will keep 2 males to eat later this year.

I am mainly hatching Goslings this year. Getting a very beautiful flock of Dewlaps (Buff & Grey) & Some Dewlap White Africans & Brown Africans. I have been buying eggs from IanUtah this year. She has like 30 geese, Remember when she rescued all those from Cali?


Yes they can but I use VERY VERY shallow wading pools with a few accessible ramps. They are cute but not to smart as babies and will drown easily.

Heya RG!

Well I love hatching the goslings! They are my fave! Except Emu's ~ THEY ARE THE BEST when they hatch ~ which actually makes them less fun, because they are so hard to hatch

If you want eggs from me just Hollah! You know I will hook ya up

I have In LD today
6 Misc. Duck,
6 cayugas,
2 Embden goose,
1 Roosevelt goose,
1 Sebastopol
2 WHITE PEACOCKS !,
1 African Dewlap (that I reallly want to be a boy),
2 Grey/Buff Dewlaps,
And 2 Fritter Goose eggs!


I have staggered over the next couple weeks....
12 Cayuga from my flock ~ C'mon BLUES !!!
60 African & Chinese Goose eggs !
7 Roosevelt Goose Eggs
17 Dewlap Goose eggs
&
29 OHIKI's !!!
And I think thats about it???

My Franklin & Roosevelt Pair
FRANKLIN




ROOSEVELT

(my fun project pair)

My Sebbie Pair Tootsie & Rollie

TOOTSIE



ROLLIE

Beautiful geese! What the heck is a Fritter goose?

Sounds like the Master Bator is full. Mine are crammed as well. 50 Goose eggs, over 3 doz turkey eggs, a couple doz bantam chickens, 5 doz duck eggs... and my much-desired, locally purchased (finally!) Saxony Duck eggs! Hopefully I get some action on those local Saxony babies, I haven't had good results with shipped eggs this year.

So far I have 5 beautiful black east indie babies. Sure hope the other 7 eggs are viable

Congrats on your 5 babies! Fingers crossed for the others to come along shortly.

I've hatched 4 goslings and 2 muscovies this week. Got a few chicken eggs and some shipped Saxony eggs in lockdown and I need to go lock down the Pilgrim goose eggs that I set for a friend who woefully overestimated the capacity of her bator. Will probably get some hatching eggs in trade for incubator service.

 

[michellemcfeely]

I have a question. How do you all handle the humidity when you are doing staggered hatches when you go into lockdown?

 

[EJPedrazzi]

I have a question. How do you all handle the humidity when you are doing staggered hatches when you go into lockdown?

Good question. I'd like to hear an answer to this from some experienced hatchers too please! I think this is why my duck hatch was so low. We suddenly had staggered hatch times due to our hens not being able to hatch their eggs so I brought them in and I think this compromised the ducks unfortunately

 

[RiverGoddess]

Ok, I figured out what a roosevelt goose is (gorgeous!), but what the heck is a fritter goose lol?
Yay!

LOL sorry easier to keep track of my goose eggs !


A Fritter goose ~ Utah named her Goose "Beignet" (I could never pronounce it or spell it

)

So she sent me pics (hope you don't mind)




So as a butt she sent me an email ~


Beignet (English pronunciation: /bɛnˈjeɪ/; French: [bɛɲɛ], literally bump),[1] synonymous with the English “fritter”, is the French term for a pastry made from deep-fried choux paste.[2] Beignets are commonly known in the U.S. as a dessert served with powdered sugar on top; however, they may be savory dishes as well and may contain meat, vegetables, or fruits.[2] They are traditionally prepared right before consumption to be eaten fresh and hot. Variations of fried dough can be found across cuisines internationally; however, the origin of the term beignet is specifically French. In the U.S., beignets have been popular within New Orleans Creole cuisine and are customarily served as a dessert or in some sweet variation. They were brought to Louisiana in the 18th century by French colonists,[3] from “the old mother country”,[4] and became a large part of home-style Creole cooking, variations often including banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city.[5][6] Today, Café du Monde is a popular New Orleans food destination specializing in beignets with powdered sugar (served in threes), coffee with chicory, and café au lait.[7] Beignets were declared the official state doughnut of Louisiana in 1986.[8]

~~~

So my reply was ~ Oh their FRITTER EGGS !

I have a question. How do you all handle the humidity when you are doing staggered hatches when you go into lockdown?

I run the same humidty, with all my eggs, but my bator gets up to temp REALLY fast. So I do not recommend it for everyone

 

[michellemcfeely]

Good question.  I'd like to hear an answer to this from some experienced hatchers too please! I think this is why my duck hatch was so low.  We suddenly had staggered hatch times due to our hens not being able to hatch their eggs so I brought them in and I think this compromised the ducks unfortunately 

I'm thinking that is what happened with my east indie eggs. I broke down today and ordered a 2ns incubator to move eggs to for lock down. Hopefully this fixes my problem.

 

[geezlouise]

be patient. they need to do it themselve per everything i have read.

 

[qwackers]

So look who made it out of her shell all by herself while Mum was at work!! I saw her little pip hole earlier and by God it was so hard to leave her. Came back at midday and there she was on the other side of the bator all by herself! (sorry pics a bit blurry, couldn't get her to stay still!). Below she's in the brooder with her chick buddies. I can see dark spots in my other eggs, and wings - can't hear anything though, and I could the other day. I guess this is why they say hatching is so nerve-wracking, I'm sure they're still fine, but I just need reassurance!!! Don't want to take them out and candle. They're not due to hatch till Friday so I'll hang on till then and see what happens!

So cute, congrats! :-D glad they finally Made it! Yeah im sure the others are just doing it the traditional way lol of waiting!

Ok, here's a question... Can ducklings swim? If so, when can they start? We bought them little swimming pools but want to make sure it's ok to use.

I put mine in the kitchen sink from day 2 with warm water just for a few mins and gradually made it a little longer each time. Now they are getting so big they are in the bath! One of them has figured out how to pull the plug out!

Thanks Julie NKC! Well, I came in this morning to THREE adorable, cheeping, active ducklings!!!! Two Pekins and 1 Rouen. They are just precious! But my fluffy yellow one has strange looking feet. What can I do?

Gorgeous, congratulations! So glad they're ok

Long night. 1 baby hatched, the other died in the shell trying to get out. Hope the others make it out alive. My first loss and I'm heart broke

Really sorry so hear that, try not to beat yourself up about it. Sending hugs.

I am so sorry to hear that Michelle. I, too, think my last 4 duck eggs are dead . I heard one of them chirping away in there the other day and nothing for over 24 hours, no pipping or anything. I had a feeling they were dead and I just candled and nothing. It looks like they drowned? The air cell is much bigger on one side, almost going down the whole side of the egg. I upped the humidity and was spritzing with water because the first one was shrink wrapped. They were hatching 5 days early so hadn't gone into lockdown. It was a bit all over the place at the end because we randomly had eggs under our hens that needed to be brought into the incubator, so we've been hatching for a week, hence the bator has been opened and closed on and off for the last week. Not good, and got the same results. It's heartbreaking, and even worse thinking it's possibly something I did. But that's the way it goes. I am grateful we have 3 healthy little chicks and one duckling - better than nothing, eh?

I hope they didn't die? I'm not sure how you can tell either apart from not hearing or seeing anything. Fingers crossed.

So far I have 5 beautiful black east indie babies. Sure hope the other 7 eggs are viable

Sooty haven't been on much been super busy. Congrats on everyones hatches and good luck with the rest. Those geese are beautiful!

 

[JSelvaggi]

Good news on the little pipper!



Trust me, once you start, you won't stop. But hey, you've got a good support group here. I started hatching for my employer (a small farm). It became addicting. I probably need a hatching egg intervention.



Congrats on the little ones. I saw your update on the pekin baby's feet. They lay strange sometimes. And they're so terribly awkward when they're learning to waddle.

I'm so sorry that your hatch didn't go as planned. I've been there many times. I've had ducklings zip and try to push out of the egg and suffocate themselves. There are so many things that can go wrong with a hatch.

Hey there Goin Quackrrs,

I am so proud of my babies. And yes, I don't want to stop. Is it common to hatch ducklings for a farm and return them? I've been wondering if I can find a farm by me but who knows. And you were totally right about my Pekin baby's feet!!! It stood up just minutes after and his feet were just fine! Whew... I'm like a worried mother!

I feel so blessed that my hatch went well but it breaks my heart to know that so much can go wrong. I worry if it hadn't gone well. =(

I put mine in the kitchen sink from day 2 with warm water just for a few mins and gradually made it a little longer each time. Now they are getting so big they are in the bath! One of them has figured out how to pull the plug out!

What a smartie pants!! I have small little bin for their pool. I considered putting just enough water that they can kick their feet but stand as soon as they get tired. Although I don't know how high that'd be... Or will that not work?

 

[Iain Utah]

LOL sorry easier to keep track of my goose eggs !


A Fritter goose ~ Utah named her Goose "Beignet" (I could never pronounce it or spell it

)

So she sent me pics (hope you don't mind)




So as a butt she sent me an email ~


Beignet (English pronunciation: /bɛnˈjeɪ/; French: [bɛɲɛ], literally bump),[1] synonymous with the English “fritter”, is the French term for a pastry made from deep-fried choux paste.[2] Beignets are commonly known in the U.S. as a dessert served with powdered sugar on top; however, they may be savory dishes as well and may contain meat, vegetables, or fruits.[2] They are traditionally prepared right before consumption to be eaten fresh and hot. Variations of fried dough can be found across cuisines internationally; however, the origin of the term beignet is specifically French. In the U.S., beignets have been popular within New Orleans Creole cuisine and are customarily served as a dessert or in some sweet variation. They were brought to Louisiana in the 18th century by French colonists,[3] from “the old mother country”,[4] and became a large part of home-style Creole cooking, variations often including banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city.[5][6] Today, Café du Monde is a popular New Orleans food destination specializing in beignets with powdered sugar (served in threes), coffee with chicory, and café au lait.[7] Beignets were declared the official state doughnut of Louisiana in 1986.[8]

~~~

So my reply was ~ Oh their FRITTER EGGS !

I run the same humidty, with all my eggs, but my bator gets up to temp REALLY fast. So I do not recommend it for everyone

Yup, that is how she got the nickname Fritter.

I got her to mate with my production Toulouse gander named Chicory and I have fond memories of having chicory coffee and beignets at Café Du Monde.

 

[Goin Quackrrs]

I have a question. How do you all handle the humidity when you are doing staggered hatches when you go into lockdown?

LOL sorry easier to keep track of my goose eggs !


A Fritter goose ~ Utah named her Goose "Beignet" (I could never pronounce it or spell it

)

So she sent me pics (hope you don't mind)




So as a butt she sent me an email ~


Beignet (English pronunciation: /bɛnˈjeɪ/; French: [bɛɲɛ], literally bump),[1] synonymous with the English “fritter”, is the French term for a pastry made from deep-fried choux paste.[2] Beignets are commonly known in the U.S. as a dessert served with powdered sugar on top; however, they may be savory dishes as well and may contain meat, vegetables, or fruits.[2] They are traditionally prepared right before consumption to be eaten fresh and hot. Variations of fried dough can be found across cuisines internationally; however, the origin of the term beignet is specifically French. In the U.S., beignets have been popular within New Orleans Creole cuisine and are customarily served as a dessert or in some sweet variation. They were brought to Louisiana in the 18th century by French colonists,[3] from “the old mother country”,[4] and became a large part of home-style Creole cooking, variations often including banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city.[5][6] Today, Café du Monde is a popular New Orleans food destination specializing in beignets with powdered sugar (served in threes), coffee with chicory, and café au lait.[7] Beignets were declared the official state doughnut of Louisiana in 1986.[8]

~~~

So my reply was ~ Oh their FRITTER EGGS !

I run the same humidty, with all my eggs, but my bator gets up to temp REALLY fast. So I do not recommend it for everyone
I use seperate hatchers.

Hey there Goin Quackrrs,

I am so proud of my babies. And yes, I don't want to stop. Is it common to hatch ducklings for a farm and return them? I've been wondering if I can find a farm by me but who knows. And you were totally right about my Pekin baby's feet!!! It stood up just minutes after and his feet were just fine! Whew... I'm like a worried mother!

I feel so blessed that my hatch went well but it breaks my heart to know that so much can go wrong. I worry if it hadn't gone well. =(


What a smartie pants!! I have small little bin for their pool. I considered putting just enough water that they can kick their feet but stand as soon as they get tired. Although I don't know how high that'd be... Or will that not work?

I don't know how common it is to hatch for a farm and then return the babies. I know there are people on Craigslist here that offer hatching services. I do special hatches for friends and of course, my boss who has enabled me way too much!

Yup, that is how she got the nickname Fritter.

I got her to mate with my production Toulouse gander named Chicory and I have fond memories of having chicory coffee and beignets at Café Du Monde.

Great story about Fritter!

I've got exciting news: I have a Saxony egg pipped from shipped eggs I thought were toast. That said, it's wrong-way. Darn messed-up air cells!