April 2020 Hatch-A-Long! All are welcome!

[jolenesdad]

I remove mine about an hour after they hatch. I never leave mine in because the brooder plate or heat lamp dries them off better than a humid environment.

They can stay in for 24 hours or so. They absorb the yolk and that supplies their food. I do like to give my chicks water an hour or so after they hatch because they're usually quite thirsty. I like to give them electrolytes too because they use their energy trying to get out and need a boost.

Everyone has their own way to do things.

last year my ducks were y’all enough they were drinking from my extra humidity bowls as soon as they were standing.

I like to take them out often but I am thinking my particular incubator doesn’t. Because of timing and engagements I had to let my January marans hatch stay in the bator and i had my first 100% hatch with zero assists.

My broody seems good. Four hatched under her so far. Incubator chick I’m going to check now.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

last year my ducks were y’all enough they were drinking from my extra humidity bowls as soon as they were standing.

I like to take them out often but I am thinking my particular incubator doesn’t. Because of timing and engagements I had to let my January marans hatch stay in the bator and i had my first 100% hatch with zero assists.

My broody seems good. Four hatched under her so far. Incubator chick I’m going to check now.

Whoo hoo!! Congrats on a great hatch!

 

[FortCluck]

last year my ducks were y’all enough they were drinking from my extra humidity bowls as soon as they were standing.

I like to take them out often but I am thinking my particular incubator doesn’t. Because of timing and engagements I had to let my January marans hatch stay in the bator and i had my first 100% hatch with zero assists.

My broody seems good. Four hatched under her so far. Incubator chick I’m going to check now.

Ducks are ridiculous... They love water the instant they're hatched.

 

[Fatimetta]

They're so precious! Did you candle to see if there is any movement? I've heard of chicks hatching successfully as late as day 25 but it's not common for them to hatch that late unless the temps were lower during incubation.

No I haven’t candled them.. one is a maran so I couldn’t ever see in it. The other had a chick in it at Day 14 but it wasn’t very big for day 14 so it may have died before that.. I could check tonight and see though.

 

[Minky]

I incubate and hatch shipped eggs in cartons. Works great. I feel it helped improve my hatch rate especially egg with wonky air cells. The pic is some Silkie/Showgirls I hatched last month. Some people like poking holes in the cartons but I've never found that necessary.

On occasion I will incubate shipped eggs on their sides if the air cells look excellent. In those cases I will also hatch on their sides.

Good luck on your hatch!

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Interesting....so mine were local (drove to get them, or my own eggs) and they have been upright in an out-turner.. do you think it would be ok to move to cartons? why do they punch holes in the cartons? Airflow?

 

[CluckNDoodle]

No I haven’t candled them.. one is a maran so I couldn’t ever see in it. The other had a chick in it at Day 14 but it wasn’t very big for day 14 so it may have died before that.. I could check tonight and see though.

From your description, it does sound like they must have quit earlier then. When you candle, if the air cells are still small I would toss them. They may even start to stink by this point.

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

Interesting....so mine were local (drove to get them, or my own eggs) and they have been upright in an out-turner.. do you think it would be ok to move to cartons? why do they punch holes in the cartons? Airflow?

For local eggs, your or others, hatching position is not as critical. You can hatch upright or on sides.

What do you mean by move to cartons? You want to try hatching upright? I'm a bit of a mad scientist. I love experimenting and trying new things. So I say go for it! But if that's going to cause you anxiety and second guessing the don't do it! Your call friend.

Yes, holes are added for increased airflow. I feel the cartons have enough airflow because the eggs don't fit super tight in them. Just my thoughts.

 

[Bookworm0124]

I’ve got a baby! Using the little giant for the first time. Not a huge fan. I can’t see much but I looks like another is on the way!

 

[CindyinSD]

How long can gosling's be in the incubator after hatching? It's been 34 hours for the first gosling that hatched but it's not completely fluffed yet. Just not sure how long they can go without food and water. If I wait until morning it'll be over 48 hours. It's head is pretty fluffed out but the rest of it's body is still damp

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Ft Cluck is right. I finally took my ducklings out and they fluffed right up. I also got a cotton towel out and soaked up a huge amount of water from the incubator. It stayed at 70ish even so, but the condensation on the lid stopped. Humidity really jumps with all those soaking wet babies flopping around the bator.

 

[CindyinSD]

Good question! I would like to know as well. Im on day 16. Setting up my brooder. Ive never used a heat lamp before- last time I got day olds I used a momma heating pad, but it was finicky for me, so its. heat lamp this time. What sort of height do I place the heat lamp at? knee hight? (2, 3 or more feet high?) Ive got to build something to hang it from tomorrow, so I was hoping for an approximate height from day 1 to week 3 By week 4 they should be in the barn with a cuddle box. Maybe even week 3...
Thanks

I give mine a heat lamp for the first several days, depending on how cold it is in the garage. I altered lids for my totes (used for smaller batches) like this:

I'm not using the totes right now, so their lids are doing double duty as covers for the stock tank brooder. I take off the wire guards that come with the brooder lamp and I place the lamp face down on the wire. No need to adjust in this case. The area below the lamp is their playground and (for the first couple days, their dining room. Water is further away on a wire-topped tub to keep things dry. (It's ducklings in there now.) They also have a brooder plate (infrared heater) to cuddle under. I took the lamp off today. (I've been using a black non-illuminating reptile bulb so it doesn't keep them awake.)

If you're using a tote with a heat lamp, you'll want it further up. You can build a frame from 1x4" scraps and staple on hardware cloth and sit that on top of a screened lid. Just be sure to make the frame big enough so no part of the lamp is closer to the wood than a couple inches. Also, mind the plastic isn't heated up, either.

Most heating pads available today have an auto-off feature that sabotages you after two hours. To keep your "mama heating pad" on duty, you have to cut out the switch (controller) and reconnect the wires without it. Then toss the controller you took out, unless you have a use for it.