Day 21 of a bad incubation

[teresa-78]

 

[Tuffoldhen]

Patience!!! Your temps and humidity being off will cause a late hatching. Good luck!!

 

[mstricer]

I'm on day 21 also a lot of movement just no pips yet, but I could be off in my counting also. I set on jan 25, counted up the days and figured today should be day 21. I've done this before maybe I'm just dumb on what day they should hatch and I"m hovering and waking up at all different times of the day and night

 

[FoodKillah]

Quote:
I started them 24 feb, and i heard the sing today. Its so sweet, i caught my wife standing over the incubator waiting for the egg to sing hehehe

 

[mstricer]

I think I locked mine down a day too soon, I hope mine hatch.

 

[Duramaxgirl]

I'm on day 20 with 42 eggs! I had a power outage on day 18...sigh... so far I've got 4 chicks and more pips then I can count... but I'm sure the power outage did some in it got down to 89° in there be for we got the generator going.

 

[FoodKillah]

UPDATE: The shell has the first crack. We are almost there!

I made a brooder box by using another cardboard box and placed a 40w cheap old lamp, i am testing the temperature now, i plan not to use the thermostat there as the chick will adjust the distance. one side of the cardboard box has 2 jars of water, the lamp is hanging above, small computer fan at the side of the jars, and is fenced with chicken wire to keep the chick in the other area where there is only water and food. It looks like a trap or bomb or movie saw 5 or something, i hope i will have no accidents

 

[ZooMummzy]

Quote:
Good luck! It is so exciting when they hatch after you think you've messed up

I'm not sure what type of set up for the water you have in the brooder but make sure you have marbles or something in it so the chick cannot drown. I always keep marbles in my waterers for at least a week just to make sure they are steady and know what they are doing. I've heard way too many horror stories.

 

[CammieSilkie]

This is a bad situation. in the last three days of incubation, humidity should have been at 60-80% . splashing water onto the eggs is even worse, because the chick breathes inside the shell and if you clog the shell's pores with water you'll kill the chick! (it's a lot easier to do than you think.) during lockdown (last three days) you should have NOT been moving/holding the eggs/incubator, the slightest movement can harm hatch rates. plus, during lockdown you do NOT turn the eggs. this can result in killing the eggs.

Also, even if the chicks do hatch, they will most likely die hatching, or right after the hatch. much of the time the strong chicks survive bad incubating situations only to hatch and die, or be weak/sick/deformed and un-able to live.

and, if you have only one successful hatcher, this could be a problem because a chick raised alone can die of depression, and not being around other chicks/chickens in their baby years can leave to behavioral problems in chicken adulthood.

sorry for being strict to you, but I have been through this situation before, and I don't want to see it happen again.

happy hatching, hopefully you'll have some little fighters who pull through! I'm sorry for you loss of the other eggs, just try and keep the eggs you still have alive. since it's day 21, do not open the incubator. (you shouldn't do this weather it's day 21 or not LOL) don't touch the eggs, or do anything but higher the humidity (NO water splashing!) and keep the temp. under control. Happy hatching!

 

[ZooMummzy]

Quote:
Sorry just have to step in here and say while I agree with you that it is a bad situation, and the OP realizes this, I think at this point support is more conducive. Plus, not all lone chicks die of depression or have behavioral problems. I have had several over the years who are very normal today. I have had two in the last couple months who are doing just great. It's not the perfect situation granted but it's not the worst either.

Sorry, not trying to be argumentative, just saying I think at this point we should support the OP and hopefully help her for her next hatches. Heaven knows we've all had bad hatches and made really bad mistakes. The best part is we can learn from them and do it better the next time around