Advice on What Went Wrong--Hatching Experts, I Need You!!!

[Loghousemom]

Are those cochins LF or Bantam. Most Cochins have to go through a laying cycle, sometimes 2 before they will become broody. Once they do, they are determined.
There are a lot of incubators out there, it depends on just how much you are willing to spend. If you think you are going to do this on a regular basics it pays to buy one that is more expensive. Remember that you generally get what you pay for. The difference is that more expensive ones have more automatic feathers & generally hatch better with less attention.

When I bought them I was told they were giant white. 2 are pretty decent sized birds, but one is smaller. I wouldn't say bantam but I don't really know. I have only had chickens since May last year, and have so very much more to learn! I think I want one with a turner since in the winter I am often away from the farm being transportation for my human kiddos.

Here are some pictures of them all together for comparison.

 

[my sunwolf]

What sort of incubators are you all using?

i do not have one yet, but am thinking it will be the next investment for the chickens. I really was hoping to get a good broody when I bought my Cochins, but so far they are not interested, so I am starting to look into the incubators.

I was lucky to find lots of other "bird" supplies lying around the farm when we bought the place, and I am sure I probably tossed some things inadvertently not knowing what they were at the time... But some things I saved and they have thus far been helpful like feeders and troughs and such

I'm jealous of the poultry supplies on your property

We did have a shed and a little scrap lumber when we got here, but not much else. The Cochins I've seen go broody very frequently are the bantams; with LF it's more about strain, individual, and/or luck. Old English Game hens go broody fairly reliably, are very hardy, and are great mothers, but if not tame they teach the babies to be wild (which has advantages and disadvantages).


About the awful hatch: wanted to let everyone know that I bought a nice meat thermometer yesterday that can be recalibrated. I calibrated it today and it was spot on, so I stuck it in the incubator and turned the incubator on. Well, my digital incubator thermometer and the meat thermometer still read the same temperature, which re-verifies that the Genesis 1588 thermometer is correct.

However, since all the signs (hatching on Day 19, late-development deaths) point to a too-high temperature, I have adjusted the temp on the incubator from 100˚F to 99.8˚F in the hopes that it might make some sort of a difference. Let me know if you think this is a terrible idea.

I've been playing with humidity and have got it to stay pretty steady. Tomorrow afternoon/evening I'm going to set 14-20 eggs, both from my flock and a friends' mixed banty flock. Wish me luck.

I will keep just as detailed notes as the last hatch in the hopes of developing a "what not to do" guide for hatching eggs. Thank you for all the great conversation surrounding nutrition, temp, humidity, etc. during incubation on this thread so far.