Colorado

[Iceman23]

Just when we were enjoying the great weather it snows again, but I guess it is Colorado

PREACH!!!!!!

hahaha. got to love colorado. Love living right next to the mountains, have school right next to them. High school is great especially when all my classes gives you a mountain view.

 

[uzisuzuki]

I'm just about in tears. On day 22/23 on the white bresse eggs, I can't bring myself to go look, but I need to change the paper towels in the brooder box with 2 lonely chicks

I hope you had some good news on those eggs.

 

[alebuela]

While we have a pause in action on the chick hatch watch 2015, we bring you this, a little comedy relief.

 

[alebuela]

Double Kindness, Maggie & samsr watching in anticipation.....you guys are doing great, I would be a nervous wreck!

Also this was shared on another thread, thought it was useful.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/873429/a-different-approach-to-assisted-hatching

A really interesting thread. I don't anticipate I'll ever be doing hatching, but I hope it can help Double Kindness, Maggie, and samsr - not to mention all the others who will be doing incubating in the coming weeks/months.

 

[Double Kindness]

Well, we're going to cull that hatchling later today, and I sold the chicks that did hatch.

I think I need to calibrate my incubators better/again.

Back to the drawing board, but I do have 23 more eggs in lockdown and another 24 in the janoel and another 2 dozen ready to set.

I'm holding off though on setting any more until I get better at this.

 

[suncatcher]

DK, When you calibrate are you checking the thermometers in ice water first? Also, is a good idea to use three when you calibrate the bator, as you may have an area inside that is not as warm as it should be. Is a good idea to rotate the eggs inside closer to the heating element to the outside area of the bator at least once a day til lock down. Pretty sure you have read all this, just mentioning it for anyone who hasn't. You will get better, it is a learning experience.

That is a great link, another way to check where the chick is located is to candle the egg in a dark room, and look for movement, sometimes you will see it moving its head and beak, especially if it is peeping. That is the end you start helping it pip. I have had some make it, and some not, but at least you are giving them a chance.

Sorry your little hatchling is not doing well......

 

[uzisuzuki]

Well, we're going to cull that hatchling later today, and I sold the chicks that did hatch.

I think I need to calibrate my incubators better/again.

Back to the drawing board, but I do have 23 more eggs in lockdown and another 24 in the janoel and another 2 dozen ready to set.

I'm holding off though on setting any more until I get better at this.

I'm so sorry your hatching didn't go as well as you wanted it to. Hopefully, the next batch will provide better results and your recalibrations will work for future batches.

On a kinda related note, I had to open up an egg that was laid yesterday (my rooster attacked my hand and I dropped/cracked it) and was pretty elated to find a perfect bullseye on the yolk. I was beginning to worry that none of my hens' eggs would be good for incubating because I couldn't tell from any of the others if they were/weren't fertilized. Also, I had been reading/hearing that Sebrights have fertility issues. I wasn't expecting to find that. I'm still pretty nervous about trying to incubate them. If it were nicer out, I'd let Calypso sit on all the eggs like she wants to and have her hatch them. She's turned into a bit of a velociraptor about the eggs lately. The noises that come out of that hen now are kinda scary.

 

[Double Kindness]

My friend had a broody cemani hatch bantam chocolate orpingtons and said now that she saw a broody do it, her hatching abilities and being a broody mama pale in comparison fwiw. Stick eggs under ur broody!

They hatched a week or so ago, with no problems!

 

[samsr]

A really interesting thread.  I don't anticipate I'll ever be doing hatching, but I hope it can help Double Kindness, Maggie, and samsr - not to mention all the others who will be doing incubating in the coming weeks/months.

My home made incubato is pretty much plug and play. All i have to do is plug it in, add eggs and water. Other than that. I just have to add water every other day untill lockdown. I found a container that keeps the humidity at around 64% as the air blows across it. I do not up my humidity at lockdown. My hatch rates have been pretty good. Nothing below around 85% last year. If i remember correctly.
I have helped out a couple chicks from being shrink wrapped. Most of the time the chicks dont wait that long after piping to hatch though. If it is over over 18 hours since piping then mine need helped out. They generally hatch like popcorn though. Lol. Late hatching eggs generally dont hatch at all in my experience. If they do. They generally have issues like curled toes and wry neck.

 

[Double Kindness]

I'm going to wait another 24-36 hours before I do egg-topsy on the eggs in lockdown.

Then I will clean/sterilize the incubator and move over the eggs from the janoel after calibrating the hovabator again before I set any more eggs.

My tender heart can't take so much disappointment.