Call Ducks Finally Hatched

[danegal2]

You have a lot of neat colored ducklings! I can't wait for mine to start feathering out, they look so cute.

 

[barnyard4H]

Hey guys boy I have been so busy looks like I missed some... I have lots of new photo's and news.

Will try and post later.

OK first of all the TIME doesn't matter, when they are ready they are ready.  Time is not a concerned doesn't matter if you put them in at 5 in the morning or 10 at night....  Let me see what day your on ok your on day 26th, you OK.  Don't rush this now.. LOL  Going slow is going to be the MAJOR thing, you can not rush them nor can you do anything to hurry the process.  If you rush them, accidents will happen...

I saw this and wanted to let you know that I had one hen who was sitting and two calls hatched. Mom was off the nest the following day of them hatching and there was still several eggs left. I was a little suprised she did not kick the eggs out Istarted to look over them and found most were bad. Although one had a pipp whole. So i pulled some of the shell away to see if it was still alive. Mom had been off the nest. It was and moving so tossed all the bad and put that egg back with anther that I was not sure. The next morning with mom back on the nest I lift up and saw egg still hadn't hatched. That night however I had a very small almost runt of a call duck born two days after the first two.
It is all on when they are ready. And when they are ready you get to be momma hen to help peck away peices of the shell when need be but not to rush even in nature it took that little call over 24hrs to hatch I know that is not always the case but just so you have an idea.

 

[Blakmage]

24 hours on and all is still the same. One moving (less than yesterday) two not moving. No chirping and as far as I can tell there is no internal pip. The air sac seems to be still intact. I'm guessing I'm heading into day 27 here. Humidity is 69% and temp is still stable at 37.5C. Any advice? Am I still meant to sit on my hands?

 

[barnyard4H]

Were to begin....

Here is one of our grays in here lovely orange bucket! With her first two that were born last Wednesday.


Now mind you in the northeast we also had the Tropical Storm and we had 6in of rain in my area. My calls are in a pen outside.
So when I went out Friday morning and found the third little one who was a little week I was up in the air what to do.
My barn/shed pens my chickens are sitting on eggs so...

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This is my new bathroom that was just gutted and redone about a month ago. still not completely done

new bath tub too.

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Guess not so new! but with the weather how could I leave them out.

But to top it all of the first hatch that are three weeks one hurt his leg so I had to separate him with hatch mate for company too..

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But this gave me some good photo opps!

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If you look the lighter older duck near wear her wing is you can see the feathering starting to come in! I am pretty sure that she is a hen and that the dark is a drake.

 

[barnyard4H]

I also wanted to share this with everyone and I don't know if anyone has talked about this before most likely.

I usually do incubate chickens, have tried calls before and had only one hatch.

My son has gotten into calls so we have gotten several. That is why I let them sit on there own nest.

When I first started on this forum I was not sure about a blue call I had.

I am just letting you guys know what I see and observe so please I am not an expert.

Anyway she did not always sit on her nest not like the silver appleyard who never left.

When I thought the blue call were hatching that is when the eggs were all bad she was still sitting on them. Bad eggs will be cracked anywhere on the egg. It is not a pip whole its a stink whole..... uuugggg tosss this though I never saw in the incubator but you never know. I never read a warning about this so I wanted to let you guys know.

Now about a day before the silver appleyard hatched her eggs which like I said she never left the nest, the next thing I know she was off she was in the pool she was going nuts. So I thought that was it she has decided to leave the nest, but I left her and the eggs alone in general except for the general inspection. What I did notice was she dunked and dunked and dunked and she just kept dunking herself in the water.

The new mom that only hatched out three she too also never left the nest for the most part once and a great while they both would come out and get water and feed but were steady sitters. I noticed one day though she was out of the pen bathing in the chickens water. staying away from the drakes in the pen... but she also dunked and dunked and dunked herself then was back on the nest two days later with two ducklings under her.

One cute thing was that she went swimming and the two little ones stayed in there orange bucket but when she came back they drank the water off her feathers. It was so cool to watch I wish I had my camara.

So I hope this might help with incubating the eggs better. It seems the call hens are a lot like the chickens when incubating except in the last couple of days before hatching. I know another member mentioned that they don't spray them down to until right before hatching after seeing two of my hens doing this and one idiot hen not I highly recommend doing this which might help with hatching and the shells....

Just don't soak the eggs.

 

[Amykins]

Even with my better candling torch, I can't see anything in there. We're in the final lap! Now it's all up to that little 'ling. Send me well-wishes, we're not outta the woods yet. ._.

 

[Lacrystol]

24 hours on and all is still the same. One moving (less than yesterday) two not moving. No chirping and as far as I can tell there is no internal pip. The air sac seems to be still intact. I'm guessing I'm heading into day 27 here. Humidity is 69% and temp is still stable at 37.5C. Any advice? Am I still meant to sit on my hands?

It's Time, have you candle them?

 

[Lacrystol]

I also wanted to share this with everyone and I don't know if anyone has talked about this before most likely.

I usually do incubate chickens, have tried calls before and had only one hatch.

My son has gotten into calls so we have gotten several. That is why I let them sit on there own nest.

When I first started on this forum I was not sure about a blue call I had.

I am just letting you guys know what I see and observe so please I am not an expert.

Anyway she did not always sit on her nest not like the silver appleyard who never left.

When I thought the blue call were hatching that is when the eggs were all bad she was still sitting on them. Bad eggs will be cracked anywhere on the egg. It is not a pip whole its a stink whole..... uuugggg tosss this though I never saw in the incubator but you never know. I never read a warning about this so I wanted to let you guys know.

Now about a day before the silver appleyard hatched her eggs which like I said she never left the nest, the next thing I know she was off she was in the pool she was going nuts. So I thought that was it she has decided to leave the nest, but I left her and the eggs alone in general except for the general inspection. What I did notice was she dunked and dunked and dunked and she just kept dunking herself in the water.

The new mom that only hatched out three she too also never left the nest for the most part once and a great while they both would come out and get water and feed but were steady sitters. I noticed one day though she was out of the pen bathing in the chickens water. staying away from the drakes in the pen... but she also dunked and dunked and dunked herself then was back on the nest two days later with two ducklings under her.

One cute thing was that she went swimming and the two little ones stayed in there orange bucket but when she came back they drank the water off her feathers. It was so cool to watch I wish I had my camara.

So I hope this might help with incubating the eggs better. It seems the call hens are a lot like the chickens when incubating except in the last couple of days before hatching. I know another member mentioned that they don't spray them down to until right before hatching after seeing two of my hens doing this and one idiot hen not I highly recommend doing this which might help with hatching and the shells....

Just don't soak the eggs.

I do spray only I do not really spray, I take a sponge and touch each egg until I see the water roll down the egg. I do this because I too have seen my mommy ducks go into the pool as you describe and get right on the eggs. She too knows to spray down those eggs. So Since I have a system and my system works, I do plan an sticking with it. Others have there system and it may work for them and that's great. I guess we can say we have different systems that work for one another.

Thanks for the imput..

 

[Lacrystol]

24 hours on and all is still the same. One moving (less than yesterday) two not moving. No chirping and as far as I can tell there is no internal pip. The air sac seems to be still intact. I'm guessing I'm heading into day 27 here. Humidity is 69% and temp is still stable at 37.5C. Any advice? Am I still meant to sit on my hands?

Need to candle them, if you have a cell phone there is an app, I find it to work the BEST, it's called Flashlight, it's free to download. Try downloading it and use it as a candler, usually you can see right threw the egg. If there is still movement, it's time for you to make each one a safe hole. Let me know if you have no clue what this is. They need to breath other wise you will lose them....

 

[Blakmage]

Ok thanks. I know what It is but I'm not sure where to make the incision. There seems to e a shadow towards the lower part of the blunt end of the egg. I'm guessing that's the head. Do I make the hole near the head or in the middle? Also do I just tear away at the shell and leave the inner membrane alone or will I have to rip it if the chick hasn't done so?