Average Hatch Rate Thread

[hdowden]

ok i dont have any hens and eggs wont hatch till around nov 7th but put what i have in incubator

Incubator Hatchers
#eggs: 21 + 0 =
#chicks: 0 + =
Incubator Hatch Rate =

haha i will be back with the rest when they hatch...my first ever hatch lets see what i get (4 already look like duds and 1 with a blood ring so i am down to 16)

 

[wrestling_mom]

of the last four hatches, approx a total of 70 eggs, ZERO hatched. Yep......NONE. all grew to various stages.....ALL died. I put 13 more in today for poops and giggles, and if they don't hatch, I am done until spring.

 

[Willum]

Hatched today 2-19-13:
Incubator only, no hens: 48 eggs
37 chicks
77% hatch rate.

culled 9 eggs at 10 days, (7 clear eggs and two with blood rings culled another 2 eggs at 14 days, (rotten smell coming from the incubator) which left 37 in the incubator, of which 100% hatched. No leg problems or other deformities. HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY!

Giving them all to my BIL tomorrow.

Willum
RIRs, RIWs, and Black Australorps

 

[Colourful]

That's fantastic! What sort of Incubator do you have?

 

[gapeach717]

I love this thread. I am reading (scrolling) numbers here and I see that 50s% is common for both natural and human done. And even though those numbers may not be massive, it appears that we are doing as well as humans as our chicken counterparts and that encourages me with my very first hatches going on as we speak. Once my first hatch happens next week I will be adding my first stats too! Thank you OP for a very helpful and heart easing thread!

 

[Willum]

I have a GQF Genesis with auto-turner. It is the newer digital type. The control unit first displays the set temperature, next it shows incubator temperature, and last it displays the humidity. GQF also has a newer type water tray which has easier access for filling (especially if you are using an automatic turner.) One channel labeled 1. and the second right next to it labeled 2. Fill #1. for the first 18 days, then fill both #1 & #2 for the last three days. Both trays filled ran the humidity at 65%. (There are additional water reservoirs in the center in case the two channels don't produce enough humidity.) I am happy with the results this incubator produced.
I gave all the chicks to my brother-in-law today, and plan one more hatch before getting some higher priced eggs; some that are more uncommon. So this was a test run. I am going to do the second run with a bit more egg info, weighing them before starting, then again at 7 days to see how humidity levels run. Anyway, it turned out good and I am really pleased with this hatch.
If you need any Australorps you know where you can get them

I guess it is summer there huh... enjoy.
Later,
Willum

 

[mitchells]

@Willum
If you include the eggs you culled I believe your hatch rate would be 67.3% very impressive!

In about two weeks my hatch will happen (hopefully). I have an older incubator with an electric turner and an old school thermometer. Same system with two bowls to fill with water.. However I have no humidity gage. Not sure if I will cull any eggs or bright them to check what's growing.

 

[Willum]

Hello Mitchells,
Oh, IDK. I figured it this way. I had 48 eggs that I put in the incubator and 37 chicks hatched. Do you not divide the number of chicks by the number of eggs to get %? If so, 37/48= 77.08333%. Is that not correct?

I have read that there are many variables which affect the rate of hatch. In particular there may have been two (or more) conditions that affected the rate on this hatch. Season; #1 these were early season eggs, and, #2 from a young flock (which could account for the 7 clear eggs.) It is possible that both were factors causing a lower hatch rate, but it's just speculation on my part. Unless the eggs are from ones own hens, it's hard to say to much about the eggs one buys unless you are very well acquainted with the person from whom you bought the eggs; even then "Stuff Happens," These were bought eggs, and again, I am happy with this hatch.

I candled because I have heard of eggs exploding and really did not want a mess. And, after the smell started, I sure wanted to get whichever egg was responsible out of there. The down side to Styrofoam incubators is they are somewhat hard to clean (compared to hard smooth surfaces) and require careful treatment to keep them from being scuffed or even broken.

OK, GOOD LUCK with your hatch. How many eggs do you have in the incubator? What incubator are you using? What breed are you hatching? Hope you have a great hatch

Willum

 

[mitchells]

Oh I'm sorry I misunderstood your post!! I thought that you didn't count the ones you removed from the incubator! What I great hatch rate!! Congratulations!!

I candled about 8 of my 36 eggs this evening. One was empty. One had a blood ring. And the rest had good air pockets and large dark spots in the middle (looked good to me). So I'm hopeful that I'll hit a 50% hatch rate. Interestingly enough the one that had blood rings was shaped slightly odd.

These eggs will be a surprise (barn yard combination of eggs). I got 3 dozen for 10$ from a lady. Not sure what brand of incubator. It's a square styrofoam one that my father had used when I was a young child.

 

[Willum]

OK, Mitchells; It's nice that you can use the incubator your Dad had used. Hope you have a great hatch.
I have heard, if you watch the air cells, you can pretty much tell if the humidity is correct. I printed off a picture (from somewhere??) of the way the cell was supposed to look at the various stages/days, and compared the picture to the eggs. I did reduce the amount of water after 10 days. (Then increased it the last three days.) I think it's hard to overdo humidity during the last three days, but ????? My incubator happens to have a big window, and if the humidity gets to about 60-70%, dropletts start to form on the window, and you know the humidity is high.

Good or not so, be sure to post after your hatch. Hope it goes well.

Willum