12th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-Along

[sayga]

My hatch is nearly complete. Check out this SuperFloof. Most chicks are pretty fluffy but this one is insanely fluffy. I think it needs to be named Santa.
One egg has not pipped yet so I think it’s likely not going to. I have 16 live healthy chicks, 1 vigorous chick who hatched from the wrong end and has an umbilical hernia, but I think it will make it if I can keep the others from pecking it (it’s alone in the incubator for now), and 1 unpipped egg. The one with the hernia (or whatever) is looking better already than these photos. I saw it hatch at 3:30am. I thought I’d have to assist but I didn’t. We had this issue once before and after a week, it dried up and fell off. I figure it can safely stay in the incubator until tomorrow morning, giving it 24+ hours for that to harden and dry out a bit and also for the fluff to cover it a bit, so it’s less visible and less likely to bleed if pecked.

 

[AmesHillFarm]

Went ahead and removed 9 dried fluff balls to the brooder set up. Was going to put them outside in the enclosed portion of my chicken tractor, but night temps have been below freezing, worried that even with the brooder plate we could end up with chick-sicles. So, brought a livestock water tank in and made a cover from a piece of futon we had left over from another project. Nice and heavy so cats can't get in.

Now to wait for the later hatchers! 8 more pips last check.

 

[chicken1234]

Mystery duck # 2 just hatched moments ago! This is the egg I thought was a runner duck. This is seriously SO much fun!

 

[Rysktal]

Quail people: How long can the quail chicks stay in the incubator? It's been about 26 hours since the first chicks emerged. Eggs are still pipping and hatching. I'm nervous to open the lid and lose humidity.

 

[ronott1]

Quail people: How long can the quail chicks stay in the incubator? It's been about 26 hours since the first chicks emerged. Eggs are still pipping and hatching. I'm nervous to open the lid and lose humidity.

They can come out as soon as they are dry.

You can open the lid to remove the chicks. You do want to minimize the time you open the lid though

 

[CluckNDoodle]

My hatch is nearly complete. Check out this SuperFloof. Most chicks are pretty fluffy but this one is insanely fluffy. I think it needs to be named Santa.
One egg has not pipped yet so I think it’s likely not going to. I have 16 live healthy chicks, 1 vigorous chick who hatched from the wrong end and has an umbilical hernia, but I think it will make it if I can keep the others from pecking it (it’s alone in the incubator for now), and 1 unpipped egg. The one with the hernia (or whatever) is looking better already than these photos. I saw it hatch at 3:30am. I thought I’d have to assist but I didn’t. We had this issue once before and after a week, it dried up and fell off. I figure it can safely stay in the incubator until tomorrow morning, giving it 24+ hours for that to harden and dry out a bit and also for the fluff to cover it a bit, so it’s less visible and less likely to bleed if pecked.

Oh my goodness! That one chick is ALL FLUFF!!! SO CUTE!

The hernia is pretty bad so I do hope it absorbs some more in the incubator! Was the navel sealed around it already or does it just look that way in the pictures?

 

[ronott1]

My hatch is nearly complete. Check out this SuperFloof. Most chicks are pretty fluffy but this one is insanely fluffy. I think it needs to be named Santa.
One egg has not pipped yet so I think it’s likely not going to. I have 16 live healthy chicks, 1 vigorous chick who hatched from the wrong end and has an umbilical hernia, but I think it will make it if I can keep the others from pecking it (it’s alone in the incubator for now), and 1 unpipped egg. The one with the hernia (or whatever) is looking better already than these photos. I saw it hatch at 3:30am. I thought I’d have to assist but I didn’t. We had this issue once before and after a week, it dried up and fell off. I figure it can safely stay in the incubator until tomorrow morning, giving it 24+ hours for that to harden and dry out a bit and also for the fluff to cover it a bit, so it’s less visible and less likely to bleed if pecked.

Congratulations!

Went ahead and removed 9 dried fluff balls to the brooder set up. Was going to put them outside in the enclosed portion of my chicken tractor, but night temps have been below freezing, worried that even with the brooder plate we could end up with chick-sicles. So, brought a livestock water tank in and made a cover from a piece of futon we had left over from another project. Nice and heavy so cats can't get in.

Now to wait for the later hatchers! 8 more pips last check.
View attachment 2597876View attachment 2597877

Brooder plates work very well!

View attachment 2597891
Mystery duck # 2 just hatched moments ago! This is the egg I thought was a runner duck. This is seriously SO much fun!

The duckling looks very nice!

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Quail people: How long can the quail chicks stay in the incubator? It's been about 26 hours since the first chicks emerged. Eggs are still pipping and hatching. I'm nervous to open the lid and lose humidity.

Take them out. I'm not quail people but I know everyone says 24 hours max for quail so that's what I've always done when hatching quail.

 

[DucksAreBest]

The second duckling just hatched, so my hatching is complete!

Congrats!

 

[Rysktal]

Take them out. I'm not quail people but I know everyone says 24 hours max for quail so that's what I've always done when hatching quail.

Thank you. My gut is saying take them out!