After 0 % hatch rate-- Trying again

[ThaJuicyJuice]

After 12 of the Orpingtons I ordered and incubated, none hatched. I watched those eggs like it was nobody's business. It was like I had definitely gone broody. They all were at different stages of development, in fact two looked like they died at day 20 or 21.

Really trying to get my urban farm going here.. so added the auto-turner to the hovabator this time and will be wiring up the pc fan. Trying with Copper Marans and Ameraucanas this time. We'll see with this group. I do know that I am not going to be watching these like a crazy person though. Monitor temps and let nature do its business.

 

[RidgesideBeauty]

Best of luck to you... my first hatch was not so great too. I set 17... I got 4 hatches,plus one I helped because I was just so desperate at that point I figured why not (would die without help, might still die with help and did, but I tried). All of my losses were late incubation ones... it was horrible.

I have two eggies in the incubator on day 14 and doing well (unexpectedly set them... their mothers were killed by a raccoon... along with all four surviving babies

). And the dozen I ordered a month ago will be arriving this week for my official second attempt. I'm getting an assortment because I'm still breed-experimenting.

It sucks, doesn't it?

 

[wannabchick]

Want to wish u the best

That sucks

Were your eggs shipped before
Also dot forget to let them set 12- 24 hours before incubating them

My last group, I thought I would try something different, put all the eggs in without letting them sit for awhile..and only 3 out of the whole grow has been left in the bator, lock down is in a day

So crossing my fingers..all 3 will hatch, and my goal..at least one boy, one girl to keep

Yep, I actually want a roo out of this group

But not all Roos..lol

So good luck

 

[JAHVREM]

it stinks to lose hatch after hatch...i have, and i hate it.

find myself tossing them on the ground, breaking open, trying to figure out what happened.

this is my 3rd or 4th year using an incubator.

i know the following:
eggs not mailed have a higher hatch rate
eggs must settle b4 tossing in the bator
temperature consistancy is a must.
you have to be able to verify the accuracy of your thermometers.
and the thermostat must hold the temp.

finally, you can drown your chicks with too much humidity.
you have to be able to accurately measure humidity.
less is better early, 40-50%, and more is better 18-21 days. 72% seems best during lockdown.

you must use good fertile eggs.

it took me many attempts to get to this point.

i lost a batch of 48 eggs due to too much humidity.

i hatched a batch after finally calibrating, just after above catastrophe, 21/29 eggs, from banjoejoe, mailed from OKLAHOMA to cincinnati in JANUARY!!

i've lost a ton of money, i've hatch a ton of chicks.

cant wait til this season. have about 60 eggs at different stages right now.

keep at it, good luck!!

 

[pkw]

I wish you lots of luck this time. My last 2 hatches were complete failures. I turned around and put more eggs in the incubator. One more week and hopefully I will have some new chicks.

 

[mstricer]

I was having horrible rates also. I have a hova-bator, someone on here suggested that I read the manual thoroughly, I did and guess what I had a hatch 7 out of 7.

Goes to show ya the directions are there for reason. Maybe if u hadn't done this u should. I felt really dumb when it did work. So now I have 10 shipped egss and 5 of my own in the bator and following the directions to the T. I guess I will find out if it works on shipped eggs. ( I hope so seeing how they are Blue Marans and my own FBCM.

 

[Gypsy07]

Quote:
This is the one of the best answers I have ever seen on BYC. Read the instructions, carefully, then follow them! If everybody here did that, I'm sure our collective hatch rate would go right up, and yes I absolutely do include myself in that!

To the OP: Not suggesting that you haven't read your instructions or anything like that, I just really liked mstricer's honesty. I was exactly the same when I started incubating. Had a couple of crap hatch rates and was blaming the cheap bator that wasn't the Brinsea I'd really wanted but couldn't afford. But of course it was mostly my own fault...

 

[mysbev]

So if one is using eggs from their own chickens, when should you take them from the coop and place them in the incubator? The day they are laid? Do you wash the eggs prior to placing in incubator? Help!!!

 

[Willowsong69]

Quote:
You can wait a week to 10 days to gather a clutch of eggs (just like a hen would do) before setting them in the incubator. If the eggs are clean, do not wash them. If there is poo on the egg, chances are any bacteria would have already entered the egg before the protective bloom had a chance to harden. You can wash your eggs with antibacterial dish soap in VERY warm water. If you were to use cold water the negative pressure in the egg would draw the water in from the outside also increasing the chance of drawing in harmful bacteria. The rule of thumb is keep your nest boxes clean so you don't have to wash your eggs. Take a paper towel or rag and wipe the egg off if you need to.

Good luck.

 

[Willowsong69]

Quote:
If you have an incubator that is foam without a fan, your temps should be closer to 102. Also...too much humidity can make your chicks drown in the shell. Hatching is a tricky business. I hope you have better luck on your next hatch. Keep us posted.