Adventures in Incubating Shipped Eggs

[oregonkat]

Maybe not quite yet. Working on it.

This is great, I have been waiting for ages to be able to call someone 'Mad Morrigan' . If you haven't seen the movie 'Willow' you wont get the reference.

 

[Morrigan]

I have had pretty good success with Papa's eggs in the past. I have wanted to hatch some of his Lavender Maran project eggs and I will get around to it in the future I expect. Anyway, do you have an independent, calibrated hygrometer and thermometer for your incubator. This is important and I would not trust your instruments on the incubator, they are usually quite wrong. Marans like a dryer incubation humidity anyway so keeping it in the 30 - 40% range should do well.
I wouldn't candle again until day 10 myself, I know, I know its soooooo hard to wait. Be prepared to lose the scrambled ones and I would keep the saddles upright through hatch if possible. This is just IMHO but I have had more success with them upright than on their sides but other folks say different. Good luck with the hatch, please keep posting your progress!

I never really calibrated my incubator. I made a half-hearted effort last year with the temperature, but I could never get any 3 thermometers to agree with one another, although the incubator was certainly within the general range.

I'm banking on the fact that I've had several good hatches with this bater (Brinsea 20) by just "following the factory instructions" and factory settings. I might lower my humidity a bit, however, as I've heard that marans like it drier.

 

[WVduckchick]

Whoa. Any words of wisdom to explain the difference?

Well, the 100% was black copper Marans from SC to WV. Packed very well, post office was good to me that time. 18 eggs, one quit very early, 17 locked down, 17 hatched.
Then 2 shipments from PA to WV, physically closer, cream legbar and royal palm turkey eggs. Both well packed, but looked like the post office played soccer with the boxes. First shipment a turkey egg was crushed. Most air cells were major wonky. Some developed but all eventually quit. 2nd shipment, I finally hatched 2 of 16 cream legbars.

So the words of wisdom is to check not so much the distance travelled, but the route they will travel. Avoid big postal hubs if possible.
Almost every shipment I sent out this year had great hatch rates.

I'm trying to be done with shipped eggs for the season, but those cuckoo bluebar chickens on ebay keep calling to me..... I hate when they do that!!

You don't expect me to stop you, do you?!

I never really calibrated my incubator. I made a half-hearted effort last year with the temperature, but I could never get any 3 thermometers to agree with one another, although the incubator was certainly within the general range.

I'm banking on the fact that I've had several good hatches with this bater (Brinsea 20) by just "following the factory instructions" and factory settings. I might lower my humidity a bit, however, as I've heard that marans like it drier.

Love my Brinseas, but the Advance EX is still a bit low. I have it set on 100.7 I think, to maintain 99-100 atop the eggs.
And yes, Marans do seem to do better at lower humidity because of the dark dense shells.

 

[Morrigan]

This is great, I have been waiting for ages to be able to call someone 'Mad Morrigan' . If you haven't seen the movie 'Willow' you wont get the reference.

Don't know the reference, but "Mad Morrigan" has a certain sound to it.

Logging off now. After to leave room to dream good egg dreams.

 

[oregonkat]

You don't expect me to stop you, do you?!

Never! Never, I say!!

 

[cppeace]

I have my very first shipped eggs in my incubator now. I let them sit for almost 48 hours before putting in. My incubator hatched 90+% with my duck eggs a couple years ago.
Hope we both have luck!

 

[SavKel&RynKel]

I'm confused... Your account says your from california...but you claimed 400 miles was not in driving distance?

Ryn.

 

[Morrigan]

I'm confused... Your account says your from california...but you claimed 400 miles was not in driving distance?

Ryn.

I'm a wimpy Californian.

Eggs look the same this morning. I bumped the RH down to 38%

 

[Morrigan]

My Spaniel is obsessed with the incubator. I typically set the incubator up downstairs, in the basement/wine cellar/man cave room, an area of the house where the dogs generally don't go. Last year Spaniel followed me down during hatch and learned that the strange yellow noisy thing on the counter can contain small, peeping birds. After we removed the incubator last year he spent a couple of mournful days sniffing around the room wondering where they went. Yesterday, he saw me carry the incubator down the stairs, followed me down, and is laser locked on that thing. I had to shoo him out this morning as I began to worry he knock it over.

This is what obsession looks like.

 

[Anndie]

Your dog is VERY funny I have been hatching shipping eggs for many years. Started out with crappy hatch rates and my last hatch was 10 out of 14 hatched. So here is what I have settled into. I am from Oregon, I do not buy eggs past the Mississippi, that is my line in the sand When i get them I candle for cracks, immediately gently wash them, and set them in the incubator, no turning for 2 maybe 3 days depending how scrambled they are. Reasons.... I wash because i do not want bacteria in the incubator , I start incubating immediately because I do not know how old the eggs are when I. get them. I have found that shippers are not always what they seem to be. I know people disagree with me on some of this, but this has given me the best hatch rates.