Day 13 First Time Incubation

[Crazyhenlady]

Chicks can drown if the humidity is too high.

You want humidity between 65 and 70 percent.
Don't turn eggs during lockdown.

Yes, I understand they need to position themselves

 

[Crazyhenlady]

Yes, I understand they need to position themselves

Lock down will be next Wednesday

 

[Welshies]

I love little experiments, but if this is your first hatch you should consider doing it as most do.
Your hatch rate is already severely below average.

 

[JaeG]

If humidity is too high before lock down the egg won't lose enough moisture and there won't be enough air in the air cell to sustain the chick until it is able to make an external pip. It's a bit of a myth that they drown.

At lockdown you want it at least 65% and you no longer turn or move the eggs so that the chick can get into the right position for hatching, so there's no need to open the incubator, and certainly don't do it if you can see any external pips. I've had the humidity right up to 85% for my quail before and it's been fine but that's because I have a cheap incubator where the whole top half lifts off (there's no smaller lid) and quail need to eat a lot sooner than chicken chicks, so I like a high humidity so I can open the incubator and take out those that have hatched.

Hatching is always exciting and I love candling! It's so exciting seeing that little bird developing in there. Good luck!

 

[Crazyhenlady]

If humidity is too high before lock down the egg won't lose enough moisture and there won't be enough air in the air cell to sustain the chick until it is able to make an external pip. It's a bit of a myth that they drown.

At lockdown you want it at least 65% and you no longer turn or move the eggs so that the chick can get into the right position for hatching, so there's no need to open the incubator, and certainly don't do it if you can see any external pips. I've had the humidity right up to 85% for my quail before and it's been fine but that's because I have a cheap incubator where the whole top half lifts off (there's no smaller lid) and quail need to eat a lot sooner than chicken chicks, so I like a high humidity so I can open the incubator and take out those that have hatched.

Hatching is always exciting and I love candling! It's so exciting seeing that little bird developing in there. Good luck!

Thank you!

 

[Crazyhenlady]

Humidity is very important to ensure that the egg loses enough moisture, but not too much, and if the humidity is too low come hatch time the chicks' membranes will dry out too fast once they externally pip, trapping them in the inner membrane of the egg which shrink wraps them, suffocating them. So I would invest in a hygrometer. Track that air cell to ensure it's looking correct for the day you are on - too small, reduce the humidity; too large, increase the humidity.

If you don't have a fan there will be cold spots in your incubator. A way to counteract the affect of that is to simply rearrange the eggs so that they are never in quite the same spot, and overall they will be exposed to the same average temperature.

This is the best website for information and candling comparison:
https://www.raising-happy-chickens.com/incubation-day-1.html

Thank you! Yes I've been candling with a standard LED and my hand Here's my first candling at day 3

 

[JaeG]

Thank you! Yes I've been candling with a standard LED and my hand Here's my first candling at day 3

Love seeing that spider!