ABOUT TO SET 24 MARANS EGGS! ANYONE ELSE SETTING EGGS? DEC. 14-16, Hatch Jan. 3-5th.

[CALI CHICK]

I have not candled yet. I have learned with welsummer and marans eggs it's best to wait until at least day 10. They are just too dark to tell anything early on. Plus I ordered a new egg candler off ebay that for some reason hasn't showed up yet. Imagine that....the post office being busy this time of year. I've stopped shipping eggs until after the holidays. Too many delays.

How did your's look when you candled?

It was really too early.

I did see something in 4 of the 6 eggs but not the big "red spider veins" like I was hoping. The other 2 were possibly clear, but I've had clears end up with embryos I couldn't see. Knowing me -I will probably candle again tonight or when it's still dark tomorrow morning. Today is Day 5 and I've had good success candling this early in the past...........plus I'm just so excited to see if anything is developing.

I bet those eggs are difficult to see into! The Wellie eggs are dark enough but some of the maran eggs can be dark brown.

Hmmmm, I was wondering about incubation temperatures in the winter??? I read someplace that they should be lower during the winter so the tops of the eggs don't get too hot? However, I have a circulated air HovaBator so the temperature should be even throughout, right? I am running it a little under 100 (about 99-99.5) but maybe I should be running at 100*? I really love my HB and have never had any temperature spikes in it. It holds the humidity right on as well.

I am awaiting shipped eggs from a few different states...supposedly should arrive today but tracker is not updating...i am hoping to set about 40 eggs tomorrow or friday depending on arrival...they will need to rest at least 6-8 hrs before i set them too...i have wheaten/blue wheaten ameracaunas, olive eggers, easter eggers, few welsummers, paint and splash bearded silkies and a few 'mystery' eggs for fun (-; this will be my first incubation...always have used a broody before. new incubator is running a steady 100F past few days...thinking of doing a dry incubation the first 17-18 days and then hiking the humidity for hatch...lots of people have had luck with this and fewer 'stuck' chicks...however i am in the desert and my reading on hygro. is 18 % without water...suppose i could mist them every other day as some do. what do you think? GOOD LUCK on your hatch. I am going to try to take some pics from set to hatch and upload them here.
Cindy in AZ

I did a dry hatch once (for the first 18 days) and would NOT recommend it.

I also used shipped eggs and feel that the air cells are too delicate and shaken up because of the travel. I had 4 of 16 hatch and the rest were still fully formed and dead in their shells. The aircells were possibly too big-I don't know? You could run lower humidity (around 25-35%) and just make sure the aircells are growing (but not so much that the chick has no room to grow) when you candle at intervals. I often mark a line around them with a pencil.
By the way, your humidity might be lower than the 18% that your hygrometer is reading. Mine will only go down to 16% even if the incubator is bone dry and it's in the middle of summer here in California.
Hope you get your eggs today. You're going to need a BIG brooder for all those babies.

 

[CALI CHICK]

I candled again tonight!

There was definite veins in 4 of the 6 eggs.

The other 2 still look clear, but I will keep them in until Day 10 when I candle again.

 

[bwalden]

I candled again tonight!

There was definite veins in 4 of the 6 eggs.

The other 2 still look clear, but I will keep them in until Day 10 when I candle again.

Congrats! Sounds like you are coming along well with yours then. I may try and candle this weekend if my new candler arrives.

 

[bwalden]

Got my new egg candler in this morning. I think will candle Sunday evening.

 

[newbiechix]

I don't have a candler, but have heard you can get good results with a flashlight and a toilet paper tube, so I'm going to try that. I've been looking around at various sites to see photos of what the eggs should look like if they're developing correctly. Anyone have favorite sites with images they'd like to share?

 

[bwalden]

I don't have a candler, but have heard you can get good results with a flashlight and a toilet paper tube, so I'm going to try that. I've been looking around at various sites to see photos of what the eggs should look like if they're developing correctly. Anyone have favorite sites with images they'd like to share?

It all really depends on the egg. If they are light colored eggs (white, light brown) a flashlight and tube will work great. If they are darker eggs it's a little more difficult to tell even with a so called good egg candler. The link below shows some pretty good pics of various stages on some lighter colored eggs.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...g-candling-pics-progression-though-incubation

 

[CALI CHICK]

Got my new egg candler in this morning. I think will candle Sunday evening.

I don't see how you can wait so long!

I don't have a candler, but have heard you can get good results with a flashlight and a toilet paper tube, so I'm going to try that. I've been looking around at various sites to see photos of what the eggs should look like if they're developing correctly. Anyone have favorite sites with images they'd like to share?

I've never invested in a candler either. The eggs I've incubated have all been ivory to brown, though. Another idea for a homemade one is putting a bright light inside a box...I use flourescent bulb so it doesn't produce as much heat but still gives a very bright light. I also recommend a maglite flashlight. Here is a picture of 2 candlers that I put next to each other -with the egg in the center- so I can get direct light onto the egg. The 1st photo is an embryo.



I think this 2nd picture is an infertile RIR egg from my Rhodie!

 

[Stef82]

I'll join! Just recently got a trio of Lavander silkies (hens are showgirls as well) and they laid three eggs. They are not broody, so I put them in the incubater. Looks like 2 out of 3 eggs are fertile! Due to hatch Jan 6-8th

 

[bwalden]

I'll join! Just recently got a trio of Lavander silkies (hens are showgirls as well) and they laid three eggs. They are not broody, so I put them in the incubater. Looks like 2 out of 3 eggs are fertile! Due to hatch Jan 6-8th

Welcome Stef82. Good luck with yours!

 

[bwalden]

I don't see how you can wait so long!

I've never invested in a candler either. The eggs I've incubated have all been ivory to brown, though. Another idea for a homemade one is putting a bright light inside a box...I use flourescent bulb so it doesn't produce as much heat but still gives a very bright light. I also recommend a maglite flashlight. Here is a picture of 2 candlers that I put next to each other -with the egg in the center- so I can get direct light onto the egg. The 1st photo is an embryo.



I think this 2nd picture is an infertile RIR egg from my Rhodie!

Lol! This is my 4th hatch this year. I don't get too excited anymore I guess. I like to just check my temps a couple times a day and leave them be. Now after lockdown I'm excited. But with Marans and Welsummers it's so difficult to tell anything until at least day 10. I think by me doing it at day 7-8 I'm really a little earlier than I usually do it but what the heck. With the Holidays and all next week I just figure Sunday will be the best time I have to have a look. Btw love the improvised candlers! Looks like they work just fine. I don't have much in my new one. 15 bucks off of ebay, free shipping.