Hi, I received a "mixed " batch of eggs the other day and started them in the bator.. Problem, I know that there a few chick eggs in the bunch.. Is there a way to tell the difference? I think that the humidity level for a chick is lower but I'm pretty sure the temp at 37 C will be okay for both. Any comments? Could I keep them together for a bit without any problems? Thanks for any help you can give. Patti
I have heard of ppl incubating them together but I don't know all the details. I have never incubated duck eggs and I presume the high humidity would be bad for the chicken eggs.
I've incubated duck with chicken eggs before...doesn't seem to be any problems doing this. The duck eggs take longer. I have heard that some wild ducks are very picky about the humidity and turning in the incubators, but my call duck eggs do great! I am doing a first today! Trying to hatch chickens with ducks! Hope this works out okay! I just didn't pay attention to the due dates on these eggs when I set them!
Yep... they can be incubated together. We have chicken and duck eggs both in the incubator right now. Hubby puts dates on them when he puts them in so he will know when they are ready to move down to the hatcher. One thing we have had problems with in the past was that the ducks would get stuck and not get out of the egg and perish. We found out that it is necessary to mist the eggs every day or two after they are moved down to the hatcher. Just a little so that the shells are not as hard and the baby ducks will come out more easily. After we started doing that, we didn't have any more trouble and have hatched numerous call ducks with our incubator.
Duck eggs have a "plastic" look to them and have a smoother texture. They are also white, sometimes with a green, blue, or grayish tint. I have incubated them with chicken eggs and have never had a problem.