candling/hatching question

[tbevans]

This is what I came up with! Finally got my pic to upload!!

This was as soon as I got everything together. I have since made a tray for the eggs to go in because they were rolling around. (I think my hardware cloth on the bottom isn't exactly level)

 

[WVduckchick]

Good job tbevans! I hope the temp and humidity holds steady for you. And glad you can see movement in them all. I'm sure you said, but what day do you think they are on? Many times, you see what looks like it could be 2 embryos, but I think its usually the head and the butt, or if its really early, its just the 2 eyes. Candling is amazing, but can trick you too! haha

 

[Orca5094]

Yay, great job getting an incubator put together! And SO happy to hear you see movement in them! That's great! See, sometimes they really can surprise you. They still have a long way to go until hatch, but at least now they have a good chance at making it. Try to keep the temp and humidity at the right levels from now on, they had a rough start and need things more consistent now.

You said you possibly see two embroys in a double-yolker? That is really cool, but just be prepared for them not to make it. It's very rare for double-yolkers to survive. One egg is just not designed for two ducklings to develop in and then hatch out of. For this reason, hatchers don't typically incubate double-yolkers at all.

 

[tbevans]

Thanks! Around day 15 I believe. I think I bought a really crappy temp/humidity monitor but it's the only one I could find. It's bouncing from 102-109 but my regular thermometer that you see in the pic is holding steady around 100. The humidity I can't get above 38-40 no matter how much water I put in it. I have misted the eggs with water a few times tho. Idk how to calibrate it cause I have no way to dip in the water like the directions say to in a calibration article I read because if I submerged it in water it would obviously ruin it..ugh I'm so discouraged!

 

[Orca5094]

Oy, that makes it tough to know which thermometer to trust. If you're able to get another one (maybe just a simple thermometer) to see what that one says? Hopefully it's really right around 100, but I would be worried if it's really going from 102-109 because that is far too hot and will kill them. So sorry you're having such a tough time with these guys!

As far as the humidity goes, 35% is good for incubation so don't worry about getting it higher than that. Too high humidity can cause problems for them. The last 3 days of incubation ("lock down period") is when you'll want the humidity higher, maybe around 55%.

The best way to know if they are getting the proper humidity during incubation is to monitor the air cell sizes. This is a good chart that shows proper air cell size on different days of incubation. How do yours compare so far? If yours are too big, they need higher humidity. If they are too small, they need lower humidity. If they are just right, then you're doing good!

 

[tbevans]

I'm defiantly going to try find something different today! I'm hoping I can trust the "old timey" thermometer! Maybe the digital is just all outta whack! Lol oh good I'm glad to hear that about the humidity..maybe between now and then I can figure out how to bring it up when I need to! To me the air cell looks to be kinda between 10&18.

 

[Orca5094]

I'm defiantly going to try find something different today! I'm hoping I can trust the "old timey" thermometer! Maybe the digital is just all outta whack! Lol oh good I'm glad to hear that about the humidity..maybe between now and then I can figure out how to bring it up when I need to! To me the air cell looks to be kinda between 10&18.

Ok, that's perfect then if they are around Day 15 of incubation. Excellent!

Also, I never trust digital thermometers. I don't know why, I just need to see the little red line of an "old timey" thermometer to know it's working I guess. They seem to be more accurate in my experience, too.

 

[tbevans]

Yay, great job getting an incubator put together! And SO happy to hear you see movement in them! That's great! See, sometimes they really can surprise you. They still have a long way to go until hatch, but at least now they have a good chance at making it. Try to keep the temp and humidity at the right levels from now on, they had a rough start and need things more consistent now. 

You said you possibly see two embroys in a double-yolker? That is really cool, but just be prepared for them not to make it. It's very rare for double-yolkers to survive. One egg is just not designed for two ducklings to develop in and then hatch out of. For this reason, hatchers don't typically incubate double-yolkers at all.

Well the egg us the same size as the rest of them so idk what's going on! Lol I'm assuming now since I read WVDUCKCHICKS post that it's prolly just the 1 embryo, just different parts of the duckling!


By the way thanks everyone sooooo much for all the help!!! I really appretiated it. These little dudes wouldn't have made it this far without yalls help!

 

[nchls school]

I'm defiantly going to try find something different today! I'm hoping I can trust the "old timey" thermometer! Maybe the digital is just all outta whack! Lol oh good I'm glad to hear that about the humidity..maybe between now and then I can figure out how to bring it up when I need to! To me the air cell looks to be kinda between 10&18.

The thermometer I've been using is an old time outdoor type. I checked it with the science lab precision thermometers; it was/is right on-hopefuuly yours is too.

 

[tbevans]

I went to town earlier and got a larger old school thermometer. I also got a 15 watt bulb to try instead of using the 25 watt suggested in the YouTube videos.

So, when I got home I did some prep work and some tinkering. I poked and few holes in the sides, made an aluminum barrier to put between the light bulb and the eggs so that there wouldn't be so much direct heat. I very carefully and quickly added the new thermometer, changed out the light bulb and put in the barrier. I'm still working with my humidity level, but it's staying around 50% and my temp is staying around 99°F. The highest it's gotten is 100 and the lowest it's gotten is 97. Are these Temps ok? What range do I need to stay in? Also, how many times a day do I need to mist them with water? Is the air cell supposed to be at the large end of the egg or the small pointy end of the egg? I wanna make sure I'm looking at them right..lol!