Best way to incubate shipped eggs?!?

[BlueO]

Hello everybody! So I ordered some goose and duck eggs. I have hatched shipped duck eggs before, but never goose eggs(i’ve never hatched goose eggs in general). What has worked with you for any shipped eggs? They should be here on the 25th so I need info soon. I’ve heard some people leave them upright in the incubator for two days before they start turning to help with air cell, but I’ve also heard people put them straight into turning. I am very confused at this point and just wondering what is worked for you all. Also there Sebastopol eggs which I’ve heard are very hard to hatch in an incubator. I’ve been waiting two years to get goslings and really don’t wanna mess this up.


Any help would be very appreciated! Thank you!

 

[BlueO]

Any one?

 

[Slothinc]

I haven’t ever hatched duck or goose eggs so I would hate to give bad info. I have hatched lots of shipped chicken eggs though, and for me, the biggest factor of success is how they are handled in shipping. If the air cells are destroyed (look like a completely free floating bubble in water) then they never hatch. If the air cells are good then they do tend to hatch. I’m just saying that because in my case, I always set the eggs even if the air cells are bad, but no matter how I incubate them I don’t have success.

If the air cells are good, then I have had the best success with turning right away, and having them upright. I hope your eggs arrive safely and you get some lovely little goslings!!!

 

[BlueO]

I haven’t ever hatched duck or goose eggs so I would hate to give bad info. I have hatched lots of shipped chicken eggs though, and for me, the biggest factor of success is how they are handled in shipping. If the air cells are destroyed (look like a completely free floating bubble in water) then they never hatch. If the air cells are good then they do tend to hatch. I’m just saying that because in my case, I always set the eggs even if the air cells are bad, but no matter how I incubate them I don’t have success.

If the air cells are good, then I have had the best success with turning right away, and having them upright. I hope your eggs arrive safely and you get some lovely little goslings!!!

Thank you! Good to know! When I hatched my call ducks I got 9 eggs and almost every one had the bubble floating all around and 8 developed.

 

[Slothinc]

Thank you! Good to know! When I hatched my call ducks I got 9 eggs and almost every one had the bubble floating all around and 8 developed.

Oh my gosh that is so awesome!! I don’t know why but mine never make it when they have the watery air cells. Sometimes they get early blood rings but never develop much more than that - and I’ve tried every method from not turning to even having broody hens try them. It sounds like whatever you did last time was perfect - I would stick with what you did

Edit: I will add for clarification that I’m talking about when the air cells are not in tact at all. I have had some where the air cell is jiggly and moves a bit and those tend to hatch fine. But this year I got several boxes where it looks like the eggs were just shaken like maracas, and the air cell has been broken up into multiple bubbles and looks awful. These batches are the ones that never make it for me.

 

[BlueO]

Oh my gosh that is so awesome!! I don’t know why but mine never make it when they have the watery air cells. Sometimes they get early blood rings but never develop much more than that - and I’ve tried every method from not turning to even having broody hens try them. It sounds like whatever you did last time was perfect - I would stick with what you did

Thank you! I have tried to hatch goose eggs before, but had no success. Only one of them had any air in it at all. None of them developed it all in all just rotted away. Then I only had three eggs though, this time I’ll have a dozen. Hopefully it’ll work better this time! Thank you for replying!

 

[Slothinc]

Thank you! I have tried to hatch goose eggs before, but had no success. Only one of them had any air in it at all. None of them developed it all in all just rotted away. Then I only had three eggs though, this time I’ll have a dozen. Hopefully it’ll work better this time! Thank you for replying!

So sorry about your last attempt with goose eggs. Prayers for a good hatch this time around. I know how nerve wracking it is to try and hatch shipped eggs

 

[BlueO]

So sorry about your last attempt with goose eggs. Prayers for a good hatch this time around. I know how nerve wracking it is to try and hatch shipped eggs

Thank you! The last time I tried to hatch calls was very nerve-racking and rather discouraging it made me never want to incubate again! but then I realized I had no ducklings to pet and started up again! Call ducks are hard to hatch, which was half the problem. three of them died in hatch. I hatched five ducklings then two just randomly died so I was so terrified the whole time that my last three ducklings would die but eventually they grew up and are all fine now. I love hatching but it can be terrifying at the same time.

 

[SourRoses]

This is just what has worked for me...

With loose air cells, keeping them upright the whole incubation period. When the embryo begins to develop the veins help stabilize the air cell, so some people lay them down after 3-5 days, but I didn't think it helped enough.
So I put the eggs in cartons and cut each down in length so they would fit side by side.
They still need something like turning, so after the third day I hand rotate the eggs to go from leaning one way in the cartons to leaning the other way. If the eggs fill the whole carton cell then the whole incubator can be tilted with wedges shifted from one side to the other or a DIY tilting table tray.
A 15% difference in egg orientation is enough to count for turning. It not only keeps the embryo from sticking but moves vital nutrients into accessible range.

For big eggs like Goose, unless you already have custom cartons you may find a DIY solution that works to keep them upright like cardboard tubes, foam of some kind (pool noodles?), etc. You just want to make sure the egg has minimal contact with the object so most of the surface of the shell is exposed to the air for gas exchange. It also shouldn't be something hard like a mug, cup, etc. because any bumps in the turning process will bang the egg against it.
If using something with carboard, keep a close eye on it for signs of deterioration from the humidity, and be prepared to replace.

I've gotten about a 40% hatch rate with displaced air cells with this method.

 

[ILoveMyDucks123]

Have you had any luck with you shipped eggs? Are they developping?