Chicks fully developed but die before hatching?

[JollyMonster]

First,
Whereabouts are you located? 60-65% humidity for the first 18 days would definitely drown my chicks, so I suspect you probably lost some due to high humidity.
Hatching early is usually a sign of temperature a little too high, but not overly bad, since some hatched on time.

So...I would get extra thermometers and hygrometers, verify them for accuracy (google tests for the kinds you use). The meters on those incubators are known for not being accurate. Getting accurate readings would be vital for future hatches.

Editing to add - did you candle along the way and monitor air cells?

Yes I did candle but I failed and at monitoring the air cells but I do know that come hatch day, the air cell was a fair size and it shouldn’t have had a problem piping.

 

[JollyMonster]

The answer to your first question is that your temperature was likely too high throughout.
Thermometers and temperature controllers are notorious for being inaccurate and must be verified.
For the second question, there are many possibilities. Among likely causes are temperature, humidity, ventilation, nutritional deficiencies or heredity (lethal genes/chromosomal abnormalities).
What is the breeder flock fed?
I agree with the others that your humidity was likely too high if your hygrometer is accurate.

I feed them DuMore layer mash from my local Tractor Supply. They also have grit available.

 

[JollyMonster]

I'll take a shot.
(1) Early hatching of some eggs due to those eggs being warmer. Most incubators have warm and cool spots and a degree or two can really speed things up or slow them down. At 99 degrees you might see a delay of a day or more from scheduled day of hatch. (I had Marans that were a full 3 days late in that temp range.)

(2) Humidity is too high during incubation. 40-50% for incubation and 60-70% for hatching (which will rise even further as hatching chicks throw extra moisture into the air). Too high a humidity during incubation can result in chicks not developing a big enough air cell and drowning at pip stage, so lots of fully developed chicks that seem to die right before hatch.

(3) Also might not be enough air in the incubator with all those eggs. Chicks need air to hatch and can suffocate if there isn't enough circulating. Are there more vent holes near the bottom of the incubator?

There's several articles on hatching and troubleshooting hatches here on BYC. Hatching eggs has many perilous variables which prevent the ultimate goal and give rise to the phrase "Don't count your chickens before they're hatched."

Good luck!

p.s. Maybe only incubate using the bottom shelf?

So the biggest thing is my temp reading is probably wrong and it’s higher than what it said caused them to hatch early?
There are small vent holes 3-4 on the bottom near where the legs of the base are but the top only had small holes on the lid where the fan is located.
I thought about only using the bottom shelf come the last 3 days but that would make to many chicks on the bottom. Should I crack the lid a tiny bit? Or just forget about the top shelf all together? It seems silly they’d make a double decker and the top shelf not hatch.

 

[casportpony]

So the biggest thing is my temp reading is probably wrong and it’s higher than what it said caused them to hatch early?
There are small vent holes 3-4 on the bottom near where the legs of the base are but the top only had small holes on the lid where the fan is located.
I thought about only using the bottom shelf come the last 3 days but that would make to many chicks on the bottom. Should I crack the lid a tiny bit? Or just forget about the top shelf all together? It seems silly they’d make a double decker and the top shelf not hatch.

I have a double decker like that one and I couldn't get it to work right.

 

[WVduckchick]

I have a double decker like that one and I couldn't get it to work right.

I thought you did. I never could understand how the temp could be steady on 2 levels if there is only one heater on top?

 

[WVduckchick]

So the biggest thing is my temp reading is probably wrong and it’s higher than what it said caused them to hatch early?
There are small vent holes 3-4 on the bottom near where the legs of the base are but the top only had small holes on the lid where the fan is located.
I thought about only using the bottom shelf come the last 3 days but that would make to many chicks on the bottom. Should I crack the lid a tiny bit? Or just forget about the top shelf all together? It seems silly they’d make a double decker and the top shelf not hatch.

Another thought is your layers. Did you maybe set any new pullet eggs? Sometimes early eggs hatch just fine, but sometimes they have trouble. It can take a bit for their "factory" to work out the kinks.
Ventilation could be an issue, but I don't think it's from being overloaded. I would suspect more from not having enough vent holes, but I'm basing that on the single-decker model that I had. I drilled more holes in the base.

You could also have spots in there that are warmer and cooler.

Just grasping at any possibility I can think of for so many late DIS.

 

[Sparrowsong98]

I am going to say that the main problem is the humidity, however I only tried once and the power went out at day 19 and killed my eggs. And it was looking like a 95% hatch rate too. But yeah lower your humidity and you may have more luck.

 

[WVduckchick]

I am going to say that the main problem is the humidity, however I only tried once and the power went out at day 19 and killed my eggs. And it was looking like a 95% hatch rate too. But yeah lower your humidity and you may have more luck.

I was suspect of humidity also, as that high doesn't work for most folks, but the OP said air cells were good size, so lower humidity could be disastrous. I suspect the humidity wasn't really as high as the incubator said it was..

Yes I did candle but I failed and at monitoring the air cells but I do know that come hatch day, the air cell was a fair size and it shouldn’t have had a problem piping.

 

[JollyMonster]

Another thought is your layers. Did you maybe set any new pullet eggs? Sometimes early eggs hatch just fine, but sometimes they have trouble. It can take a bit for their "factory" to work out the kinks.
Ventilation could be an issue, but I don't think it's from being overloaded. I would suspect more from not having enough vent holes, but I'm basing that on the single-decker model that I had. I drilled more holes in the base.

You could also have spots in there that are warmer and cooler.

Just grasping at any possibility I can think of for so many late DIS.

Okay say my problem is ventaltion related and I drilled some holes. I always read about closing the vent holes and opening them up on day 18. What do you suggest?

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I feed them DuMore layer mash from my local Tractor Supply. They also have grit available.

Laying pellets are only designed to produce a large number of eggs.

There are nothing in lay pellets that is intended to produce strong and healthy chicks, sorry. If you want hatching eggs then a special breeder ration is the way to go.

Chicks that die at hatching are to weak to pip the shell. This is caused by a shortage of critical nutrients that are in short supply in the egg. This is even true for your male birds.

The chicken has been studied and studied some more and the feed companies almost fully understand the nutritional requirements of chickens. This enables the feed companies to formulate chicken feed for specific purposes. Laying eggs and hatching eggs are two separate actions and the feed that is right for one of these actions is not likely the best feed for the other action.