Adventures in Incubating Shipped Eggs

[Zinjifrah]

Thank you all for your help with incubation advice!! the eggs are dated. They are 2-12 days old. I will cull any eggs over 9 days old.
Karen

I wouldn't cull them. I'd set them, and see if they develop. The older they are, the less viable they are - but it does no harm at all to give them a chance!

 

[Cerise1924]

Well, it's Day 8 for my 14 shipped eggs. There are Speckled Sussex, Light Brahmas, Dominiques and Isabella Leghorns. The eggs weren't labeled, so I can only identify the white Leghorn eggs.

I candled last night, and only the two Leghorn eggs show beautiful spiderwebs. 9 eggs are clearly clear. Three are so porous that I can't see what's going on at all - the speckling is too heavy when I candle - but are possibly also clear.

It's quite disappointing to have only two viable eggs out of 14 at this early stage, but those two were 'extras' on the dozen purchased, so I am very grateful that they were included.

On the bright side, my 4 week old chicks from our earlier incubation are doing splendidly out in the run. The Svart Honas that I assisted are exceptionally friendly and hop up on my foot or arm when I go to visit.

Hope the week is going well, BYCers!

 

[Morrigan]

It would be! However, these were eggs I got from a local source, barnyard mixes, to see how much of the trouble I was having hatching shipped eggs was the eggs - and how much of it was on my end.

66% while not ideal, is not terrible either. Between the local source and your barnyard mixes, was there any difference in hatch rates?

 

[Morrigan]

Well, it's Day 8 for my 14 shipped eggs. There are Speckled Sussex, Light Brahmas, Dominiques and Isabella Leghorns. The eggs weren't labeled, so I can only identify the white Leghorn eggs.

I candled last night, and only the two Leghorn eggs show beautiful spiderwebs. 9 eggs are clearly clear. Three are so porous that I can't see what's going on at all - the speckling is too heavy when I candle - but are possibly also clear.

It's quite disappointing to have only two viable eggs out of 14 at this early stage, but those two were 'extras' on the dozen purchased, so I am very grateful that they were included.

On the bright side, my 4 week old chicks from our earlier incubation are doing splendidly out in the run. The Svart Honas that I assisted are exceptionally friendly and hop up on my foot or arm when I go to visit.

Hope the week is going well, BYCers!

That's a bummer to have so many clears. Have you contacted the seller?

 

[Zinjifrah]

66% while not ideal, is not terrible either. Between the local source and your barnyard mixes, was there any difference in hatch rates?

Well - the local source was my barnyard mixes. I got them from a woman who sells eggs for eating, but has a rooster as well. None of my own chickens are old enough to be laying eggs yet, and while I'd love to hatch some eggs from my EE's when they do start, I don't think my Serama boys are likely to get the 'job' done. I may see what things are looking like once my Sebright girls start to lay. Serama x Sebright = cute. Serama = EE would probably also be pretty nice. I can't help but imagine tiny chickens with a strut and puffy faces.

In a few days, I'll be ordering some shipped eggs from a show breeder of Ameraucana Bantams, who is helping to work on getting Lavender approved.

One of the mixes that hatched was EE x Cochin - that egg I could actually identify the source of, since it was blue! It's looking like it's going to have fluffy legs of a cochin plus the beard and muffs of the EE.

I have discovered that of the four eggs that failed, one of them looked like it came from the same hen that two other eggs appear to have come from, going by visual similarities in the egg and the resulting chick. Both of those chicks hatched with foot problems, which when coupled with the complete lack of foot or leg problems in the rest, inclines me to think the hen had a vitamin deficiency. One of them has a wierd 'tag' on its jaw, as well - there's another thread about that. It hatched from a very oblong egg.

The other three were extremely large eggs, two at 69 grams, the third at 68 grams. I didn't realize how prone extremely large eggs are to failing, but I think from what I've read, my results were pretty much textbook! 65 appears to be the largest size recommended for setting. Large eggs appear to be prone to either failure or pipping at the wrong end...

I had four eggs at setting that were over 65 grams. Two at 69 grams failed. One at 68 grams failed. The fourth was 67 grams, and pipped at the wrong end, but is a fat, healthy, active chick after assisting it out. Wrong end pipper:

 

[Cerise1924]

That's a bummer to have so many clears. Have you contacted the seller?

I did let them know on Day 6 that only 2 eggs were showing any signs of development, but I suppose sellers only guarantee fresh, well-packed and uncracked eggs. Buyer takes a risk with fertility.
I also contacted Papa's Poultry and let him know that 1) the eggs arrived with really large air cells, and I only had one hatch, and 2) that the 'Lemon Orpington' that hatched is a pure white chick, now fully feathered. I haven't had a reply yet.

 

[Cerise1924]

Well - the local source was my barnyard mixes. I got them from a woman who sells eggs for eating, but has a rooster as well. None of my own chickens are old enough to be laying eggs yet, and while I'd love to hatch some eggs from my EE's when they do start, I don't think my Serama boys are likely to get the 'job' done. I may see what things are looking like once my Sebright girls start to lay. Serama x Sebright = cute. Serama = EE would probably also be pretty nice. I can't help but imagine tiny chickens with a strut and puffy faces.

In a few days, I'll be ordering some shipped eggs from a show breeder of Ameraucana Bantams, who is helping to work on getting Lavender approved.

One of the mixes that hatched was EE x Cochin - that egg I could actually identify the source of, since it was blue! It's looking like it's going to have fluffy legs of a cochin plus the beard and muffs of the EE.

View attachment 1447881

I have discovered that of the four eggs that failed, one of them looked like it came from the same hen that two other eggs appear to have come from, going by visual similarities in the egg and the resulting chick. Both of those chicks hatched with foot problems, which when coupled with the complete lack of foot or leg problems in the rest, inclines me to think the hen had a vitamin deficiency. One of them has a wierd 'tag' on its jaw, as well - there's another thread about that. It hatched from a very oblong egg.

The other three were extremely large eggs, two at 69 grams, the third at 68 grams. I didn't realize how prone extremely large eggs are to failing, but I think from what I've read, my results were pretty much textbook! 65 appears to be the largest size recommended for setting. Large eggs appear to be prone to either failure or pipping at the wrong end...

I had four eggs at setting that were over 65 grams. Two at 69 grams failed. One at 68 grams failed. The fourth was 67 grams, and pipped at the wrong end, but is a fat, healthy, active chick after assisting it out. Wrong end pipper:

View attachment 1447897

Cute pics! That is fascinating to learn about the weight of eggs and hatching results. EE x Cochin sounds like a great mix.

 

[Morrigan]

Well - the local source was my barnyard mixes. I got them from a woman who sells eggs for eating, but has a rooster as well. None of my own chickens are old enough to be laying eggs yet, and while I'd love to hatch some eggs from my EE's when they do start, I don't think my Serama boys are likely to get the 'job' done. I may see what things are looking like once my Sebright girls start to lay. Serama x Sebright = cute. Serama = EE would probably also be pretty nice. I can't help but imagine tiny chickens with a strut and puffy faces.

In a few days, I'll be ordering some shipped eggs from a show breeder of Ameraucana Bantams, who is helping to work on getting Lavender approved.

One of the mixes that hatched was EE x Cochin - that egg I could actually identify the source of, since it was blue! It's looking like it's going to have fluffy legs of a cochin plus the beard and muffs of the EE.

View attachment 1447881

I have discovered that of the four eggs that failed, one of them looked like it came from the same hen that two other eggs appear to have come from, going by visual similarities in the egg and the resulting chick. Both of those chicks hatched with foot problems, which when coupled with the complete lack of foot or leg problems in the rest, inclines me to think the hen had a vitamin deficiency. One of them has a wierd 'tag' on its jaw, as well - there's another thread about that. It hatched from a very oblong egg.

The other three were extremely large eggs, two at 69 grams, the third at 68 grams. I didn't realize how prone extremely large eggs are to failing, but I think from what I've read, my results were pretty much textbook! 65 appears to be the largest size recommended for setting. Large eggs appear to be prone to either failure or pipping at the wrong end...

I had four eggs at setting that were over 65 grams. Two at 69 grams failed. One at 68 grams failed. The fourth was 67 grams, and pipped at the wrong end, but is a fat, healthy, active chick after assisting it out. Wrong end pipper:

View attachment 1447897

Those chicks are perfect "Easter postcard" level of cuteness.

Really interesting about egg weights. I've learned when hatching my own backyarders, that some hens lay better hatching eggs the others. Contrary to some of the popular wisdom some of my best chicks came from a Sussex who laid small eggs.

 

[NNYchick]

Yay my eggs are here before the heat wave. My P.O. called they have them waiting for me.

 

[NNYchick]

My small town post master was so funny when I picked up my eggs, he was a great eggsitter today. The girl at the counter couldn’t find them on the self with the other packages. He had put them back by his desk closer to the AC so they wouldn’t over heated or get bumped by being on the shelf next to the other packages moving in and out all day. If only they all were like that.