12th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-Along

[Derangedplanet]

I know right? Thankfully none exploded on me until I tossed them outside, but you could smell them as soon as you opened the incubator. Never had chicken or duck eggs be that bad before I caught them. True though, all the other eggs that hatched, hatched fine with no issues. Didn’t seem affected by the stink bombs.

I've wondered if it maybe had to do with the fact they usually aren't kept on the ground. So maybe the nutrient profile they have access to and the wires on the bottom of the cages makes for a different result than others?
Only one full on exploded. The others just smell explosions. But always horridly gross smelling.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Would colored pencil rub off easily?

All pencil rubs off to me unless it's a grease pencil.. but sharpie or any other crayola non toxic marker if you like is good.. avoid red.. NOT because red attracts pecking.. actually anything out of the ordinary attracts pecking and blood when discovered how delicious and rich it is creates a frenzy of excitement that attracts others attention who may join in and have havoc ensue.. Their combs are red, their wattles, etc.. the reason I avoid red marker is simply because during hatching as the shell gets pipped and starts to fall away it *can* look like a blood vessel was pipped causing undue alarm. So I use black, blue, green.. whatever is available and easy to see at a quick glance.. to it the whole quick glance thing.. under a broody.. I mark the egg with a band in each direction all the way around the egg. You might try different "band" styles.. like 3 bands in the same direction.. top, middle, bottom.. respectively.. if ya catch the general drift. The marker quickly evaporates without clogging pores.. I've hatched hundreds of chicks using them without issue YET.. but pencil under a broody, and issues ensued including collecting the wrong egg and not realizing until the next day when I went to put them in the fridge.. it was too late for that embryo.. and my hard lesson is one I'm sharing so you don't ever have to face that sort of easily avoidable accident!

I'm in. Got my 2 incubators filled.

Welcome! Which bators.. capacity please?

Dirty is relative anyway.

Exactly what I was thinking as I ran through labeling just now.

So I ended up with 35 eggs to set.. in my 42 egg bator, that has two prior hatches to this one already going..

I'm such an attention to detail, over thinking type person.. and we all know what happen when you add cold stuff to a warm bator.. temp drops.. SO also knowing that older, stored eggs can take an extra hour + to hatch over "fresher" eggs.. I decided to set HALF at 11 am PST.. which has dropped my bator to 84 degrees and it's back up to 90 (forced air) within 15 minutes.. Which won't effect the eggs I'm setting per say but the others already well developing.. IF too far for too long.. deformities DO happen, as seen in prior power outages.. hence my consideration for extra efforts.. Now I wonder if I should set the other half at noon or wait for temp to return a little longer and set the other half at say 1? Or recognize I do my my best and whatever, whatever anyways.

did an experiment and the washed eggs did about the same as the unwashed.

My results reflected approximately the same outcome.

That makes 3 jam packed incubators!

Same question as above.. capacity please? What's that mean.. are they cabinet bators!

 

[kelseyk]

Oh my goodness, how did I not think of that?!

I am totally just guessing! Lol! I have only been doing this for a year and everyone seems to have their own abbreviations. I could be totally off.

 

[Derangedplanet]

Tornado warning or not, Anne boleyn came through with one more egg! So I'm setting 3 eggs. One will just be 2.5 hours behind the noon set haha. She even laid it on her lay box. First time doing that in the few weeks she's been here.

 

[BullChick]

So I ended up with 35 eggs to set.. in my 42 egg bator, that has two prior hatches to this one already going..

So, go get seven more!

 

[BullChick]

I am totally just guessing! Lol! I have only been doing this for a year and everyone seems to have their own abbreviations. I could be totally off.

When you first start with chickens, you learn everything and retain it. Then, like calculus, you forget it all! I have had splash bantam Am.

 

[BullChick]

All pencil rubs off to me unless it's a grease pencil.. but sharpie or any other crayola non toxic marker if you like is good.. avoid red.. NOT because red attracts pecking.. actually anything out of the ordinary attracts pecking and blood when discovered how delicious and rich it is creates a frenzy of excitement that attracts others attention who may join in and have havoc ensue.. Their combs are red, their wattles, etc.. the reason I avoid red marker is simply because during hatching as the shell gets pipped and starts to fall away it *can* look like a blood vessel was pipped causing undue alarm. So I use black, blue, green.. whatever is available and easy to see at a quick glance.. to it the whole quick glance thing.. under a broody.. I mark the egg with a band in each direction all the way around the egg. You might try different "band" styles.. like 3 bands in the same direction.. top, middle, bottom.. respectively.. if ya catch the general drift. The marker quickly evaporates without clogging pores.. I've hatched hundreds of chicks using them without issue YET.. but pencil under a broody, and issues ensued including collecting the wrong egg and not realizing until the next day when I went to put them in the fridge.. it was too late for that embryo.. and my hard lesson is one I'm sharing so you don't ever have to face that sort of easily avoidable accident!

Welcome! Which bators.. capacity please?

Exactly what I was thinking as I ran through labeling just now.

So I ended up with 35 eggs to set.. in my 42 egg bator, that has two prior hatches to this one already going..

I'm such an attention to detail, over thinking type person.. and we all know what happen when you add cold stuff to a warm bator.. temp drops.. SO also knowing that older, stored eggs can take an extra hour + to hatch over "fresher" eggs.. I decided to set HALF at 11 am PST.. which has dropped my bator to 84 degrees and it's back up to 90 (forced air) within 15 minutes.. Which won't effect the eggs I'm setting per say but the others already well developing.. IF too far for too long.. deformities DO happen, as seen in prior power outages.. hence my consideration for extra efforts.. Now I wonder if I should set the other half at noon or wait for temp to return a little longer and set the other half at say 1? Or recognize I do my my best and whatever, whatever anyways.

My results reflected approximately the same outcome.

Same question as above.. capacity please? What's that mean.. are they cabinet bators!

I am so sorry you’ve had issues. Depending on the circumstances, such as what day of incubation, chicks usually make it despite a cool down. We all have our experiences though.

 

[BesideStillWaters]

Soooooo... I decided to candle the eggs to make sure I didn't have any double yolk eggs in the incubator. (Don't want to try to hatch something that has a high chance of dying on me.) I discovered this one has a small crack:

It's been in the incubator for three hours. Any chance it will hatch or should I pull it out? I had one last year that I didn't realize had a crack in it and it never started to show signs of life.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I am so sorry you’ve had issues. Depending on the circumstances, such as what day of incubation, chicks usually make it despite a cool down. We all have our experiences though.

It was many hatches back and several years ago while I wasn't home for 8 hours +.

Silkie hatch rate was 50% that round, (4/8) much lower than usual. And 50% of those (2/4) had very bent, sort of folded under feet (for the first and only time ever).. it didn't seem so bad when little but discomfort grew with age and limited roosting.. I WISH I had culled at hatch.. but I figured I harvest them anyways.. Chick shoes might have fixed it.. but they to easily become mixed in with breeding stock. The bent foot pullet went to a disabled pet home and boy was harvested. The other 50% that survived were GOOD in all aspects!

I NOW get text alerts when a power outage is reported in my neighborhood.. noting one time it was no big deal I waited all day and when I finally called I was the first to report it. So no guarantees.

I haven't secured a generator just YET.. even then.. we do our best and party bout the rest!

 

[BullChick]

Soooooo... I decided to candle the eggs to make sure I didn't have any double yolk eggs in the incubator. (Don't want to try to hatch something that has a high chance of dying on me.) I discovered this one has a small crack:
View attachment 2568396

It's been in the incubator for three hours. Any chance it will hatch or should I pull it out? I had one last year that I didn't realize had a crack in it and it never started to show signs of life.

It can be sealed up with nail polish, super glue or wax.