Day 18 and air cell too large!

[popsie]

One - just one - has pipped (I think it's called this anyway) - tiny little circle of shell is cracked off (tiny but its there) - we're so excited!!!

 

[Kanchii]

Yup, that's a pip!

The first pip is always so exciting. You'll have babies in no time I'm sure! It's so hard being patient during hatch time

 

[championny]

Yeah, congrats! I cannot wait for mine to! I am at day 18, which seems like the desert period of waiting.

Keep us updated and some pics!

 

[popsie]

yipeee - 3 others are rocking and rolling lol - can't even bring myself 2 do any jobs - its so exciting !!!!

 

[popsie]

Quote:
I know exactly what you mean - the last 3 months (or was it really only 3 days??) have seemed like forever - good luck - sorry can't give you any advice how to fill your time - lol but it does come round eventually - will keep you all posted

 

[championny]

I take in my bad habit: smoking. I know its bad for me, but it helps. I am trying to quit again but its hard. I also play my piano with Peepers my 1 month old Pekin. He loves it and it puts him to sleep. I'll be practicing Für Elise on Monday/Tuesday waiting for the little buggers.

 

[Roxannemc]

Hi everyone, I'm a complete newbie to incubating and hatching and I have just found this site and I think it's fantastic!

I have 8 silkie eggs on day 18 - I've just took them out of the automatic turner and filled up both water troughs in my hova bator still air incubator. I have kept the temperature at 100 degrees throughout, but I'm really worried about my humidity - I have a chicktec humidity gauge and the recommendation for chickens on this is between 20% and 42% relative, so I've kept mine at around 30%, however I now know this is much too low and I am absolutely panicing.

I started with 12 fertilized eggs, 1 infertile, 1 bloodring, 2 stopped developing around day 10 - 12. Tonight I candled the 8 I have left, I'm pretty sure the air cell is too large (between 30 and 40 percent of the egg), the rest is a dark mass but I definitely can see movement. I'm worried my chicks will be stuck to the shell. Is there anything I can do at this late stage - I'm raising the humidity for the last 3 days and its 75% on the chicktec gauge at the moment.

I know deep in my heart it's too late to do anything now but I'm so worried and am just praying I haven't done too much damage.

Why would the chicktec gauge recommend such a low relative humidity when it is so obviously wrong? I really thought I was doing it all right.

I still can't help being hopeful and am so excited that I may get some chicks - these have been the longest 18 days of my life and the next 3 will seem forever.

Thanx for listening everyone.

Oh man, thank you soooooooo much for that, it makes me feel so happy to know that we're in with a chance! I'll check the humidity right away and promise to keep you posted.

By the way, I forgot to mention that 3 of the silkies are minature silkies? when we ordered them we thought they just meant they were small (like all silkies), but they are quite a lot smaller than the other batch of standard ones we ordered. Out of the 6 minatures we have 3 left. Anyways thanx so much for your speedy reply and fingers crossed I'll have some pics on here as soon as can be.

X

30 isnt too low if its days1-18.they will probably be just fineIf yufell they air cells are toobig up your humidity some
Actually many ppl have great hatches with the humidity 30 or lower
I had some eggs that 2 of the air cells were small and 2 large and one or 2 couldnt tell dark eggs. Out of the 6 4 hatched so some had to be small and some large air cells
.
. Vent holes should be closed early on but then opened closer to hatch as the chicks need more oxygen and for SURE then open the vents day 18 on
Then some ppl say they only open the vents when a chick star cracks a shell However i think its cutting it too close.
For me humidity day18-21 is 70.
I like it as its sort of in the middle of what is suggested which is 65-80 but thing is each person lives in different climate and the humidity is different. Florida would probably run a very dry hatch as the humidity is higher
.Someplace else might run it higher like AZ.. There are many ppl who love a dry hatch say they get way better results.Some use no water... and well... but some ppl dont get a good one at all..There are so many variables in hatching too.

LOcal or your own eggs are idea
Shipped not so much
.
Its difficult to be sure whats going on until you have some hatches and use some local eggs
.
Maybe i am adding this to the wrong thread I looked at many todayOne they had shipped weggs form a relaitve..

But About shipped eggs
Shipped you are adding the unpredictability of the eggs themselves from shipping.
I know as most of mine are shipped so hard to tell if i need to change something or if a bad hatch just was scrambled from shipping

They often dont die right away. as ppl think when they receive them.
Its not true to think if they look good at day 7 they wont be ruined from shipping later

A study i looked at said they can die any stage of hatch from the shipping treatment

Most of the ppl on the threads here dont get a high hatch rate from shipped 25-30 % Local 85% Surethere is a hihgf one now and then but its the exception not the norm.

Often too high or too low humidity has the same affect so hard to tell if you have used shipped eggs.
Some ppl put control eggs in with the shipped
Local eggs or their own and If they hatch well andshipped dont then it must be some problem with the shipped eggs. not the bator or humidity or temp.
Trial and error will tell what works for you but unfortunately you may or may to have a Good first hatch

Local or your own you will probably have positve results. .Good eggs to start with .
.
Good Luck

 

[jbolt]

Slight hijack here, I live in Arizona, sonoran desert. I am on day 13, 10, and 9 in my coolerbator. I have had humidity at 35 to 45% so far, but can't get much higher than 65% if I really try. Will 60 to 65% be OK for lockdown?

 

[Bill 101]

JBOLT----- I'm going to stick my neck out here & predict what I believe your results are going to be.

I don't think that 35-45% humidity is high enough for an incubator operating in the desert where humidity is very low. Your setting eggs in the same incubator to hatch at different times always causes problems. If you can't get humidity above 65% & because you are running it to low all through the incubation process, you won't be able to get it high enough at lockdown to come anywhere close to what you will need - SOOOOO, I predict that your eggs are all going to be way low on moisture (air cells large) & the chicks, if they will be able to pip at all will shrink wrap in their shells JMHO. I HOPE I'm wrong.

 

[jbolt]

JBOLT-----   I'm going to stick my neck out here & predict what I believe your results are going to be.

I don't think that 35-45% humidity is high enough for an incubator operating in the desert where humidity is very low.  Your setting eggs in the same incubator to hatch at different times always causes problems.  If you can't get humidity above 65% & because you are running it to low all through the incubation process, you won't be able to get it high enough at lockdown to come anywhere close to what you will need -   SOOOOO, I predict that your eggs are all going to be way low on moisture (air cells large) & the chicks, if they will be able to pip at all will shrink wrap in their shells   JMHO.  I HOPE I'm wrong.

JBOLT-----   I'm going to stick my neck out here & predict what I believe your results are going to be.

I don't think that 35-45% humidity is high enough for an incubator operating in the desert where humidity is very low.  Your setting eggs in the same incubator to hatch at different times always causes problems.  If you can't get humidity above 65% & because you are running it to low all through the incubation process, you won't be able to get it high enough at lockdown to come anywhere close to what you will need -   SOOOOO, I predict that your eggs are all going to be way low on moisture (air cells large) & the chicks, if they will be able to pip at all will shrink wrap in their shells   JMHO.  I HOPE I'm wrong.

You were wrong, 2 chicks and no problems with them. 4 more to go!