day 24, what to do?

[Londonchix]

Hi friends,
My hens had no interest in going broody yet this year so I tried incubating. First timer! I have a forced air, auto turning, digital humidity and temp incubator.

Set eggs after resting overnight, candled at day 8 and 13. Discarded the clears. Kept all the questionable ones just in case.

Anyway, on day 18 I took them out of the auto turner cradle and laid them to rest and orientate themselves to hatch.

Temp set at 37.5c and humidity was at 45-50% and up to 60-65% for the final days. I can't seem to keep it steady at 65 but never went below 60%.

On day 23 I got panicky and water tested them after no pips. I found 4 sunk and discarded those. The rest were low floaters and some were noticeably rocking around!

It's now day 24, still no pips. Out of desperation I started to play clucking sounds I found on the web to see if that will get them out!

What would you do? I am afraid if I wait too long, they might die. Should I start a pip to see if that gets them moving? Please help. I don't want see these little ones die

 

[sonjab314]

Id candle again to see if you have any internal pips into the air sac. If so Id poke a small hole into the egg where the egg sac is so the baby can breathe if its been 24 days. Sounds like your temps may be off some. Id calibrate your thermometer. Best of luck to you

 

[Londonchix]

Thanks for that info! I have blue shelled eggs so not sure if I could see well enough but I will try! I have never started a pip before. Any advice?

 

[Londonchix]

Id candle again to see if you have any internal pips into the air sac.  If so Id poke a small hole into the egg where the egg sac is so the baby can breathe if its been 24 days.  Sounds like your temps may be off some.  Id calibrate your thermometer.  Best of luck to you

Ok, I squeezed myself into the closet to candle them. I don't know what is good or what isn't. There are a few eggs that have a living chick with an air sac perhaps about 15% of the size of the shell. Then there is another that is alive but hardly any Air sac at all. Very tiny, maybe about 5% of the shell size.

Should I intervene? And how do I do it?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

They will pip into the air sac area. The smaller air sac is likely a chick emerging into it. They should be hatching very soon. As it's going to be 3 or 4 days late that means your temperature was 1.5 to 2 degrees low. If your using a still air, no fan, incubator the temp to incubate is 101.5 F measured at top level of eggs. I'm thinking you have a still air and that's the reason for low temp.

I'm not a fan of aiding hatching. I'll aid those that are sticky and unable to fully zip because they can turn in the egg, finish zip so it can push itself out of shell. It's important for them to pop legs into position by hatching themselves.

 

[Londonchix]

Ok, I will be patient. Hopefully tomorrow will be the day. I have a forced air incubator. It's set at a temp of 37.5c. But perhaps it's not reading properly? I may have to think about that.
1-2 degrees is really off so I have to really test that out with lots of other thermometers.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

In celsius that would only be 1C low. We're archaic in America and still use Farenhiet.

Keep the thermometer as you know that it's low. Once you start getting multiple thermometers it's a guessing game that will drive you crazy. The only thing I use and trust is a digital oral thermometer. I put it in the vent hole and let the incubator cycle through two on off cycles and read the temp. Oral thermometers display the highest reading. The while it's still in the hole wait for the heating unit to click on. Turn off then on the thermometer, do it again, on and off again. Do this until you've determined the lowest reading. Take the average of the two readings and that is the temp of your incubator. My combo temp hygrometer unit that is in the incubator reads 2 degrees low and I know it so as long as it reads 97 F I know all is well and just use the oral thermometer for first two days to fine tune then spot check every 4th day.Another thing I do for increased air flow is leave eggs out of the center of auto turner and out of corners. Making a doughnut shape of eggs for best air flow so there are no hot/cold spots. But your in hatching mode so not applicable for this incubation.

 

[Londonchix]

In celsius that would only be 1C low. We're archaic in America and still use Farenhiet.

Keep the thermometer as you know that it's low. Once you start getting multiple thermometers it's a guessing game that will drive you crazy. The only thing I use and trust is a digital oral thermometer. I put it in the vent hole and let the incubator cycle through two on off cycles and read the temp. Oral thermometers display the highest reading. The while it's still in the hole wait for the heating unit to click on. Turn off then on the thermometer, do it again, on and off again. Do this until you've determined the lowest reading. Take the average of the two readings and that is the temp of your incubator. My combo temp hygrometer unit that is in the incubator reads 2 degrees low and I know it so as long as it reads 97 F I know all is well and just use the oral thermometer for first two days to fine tune then spot check every 4th day.Another thing I do for increased air flow is leave eggs out of the center of auto turner and out of corners. Making a doughnut shape of eggs for best air flow so there are no hot/cold spots. But your in hatching mode so not applicable for this incubation.

That's a good idea. I think this may have been cold spot issues as you said. Ugh, not a good experience so far. I just hope some of these survive. You think my humidity levels are ok?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

I hatch with 60-65%. Incubate with 35%. I use a salt test on the hygrometer before the start of every hatch. Without calibrating the unit your again guessing it's accurate just like the thermometer. I do trust oral thermometers and most of us have one in the medicine cabinet and if not are only $7.50 for a 20 second read digital.

Here's how I salt test:

Milk or juice cap filled with salt then add drips of water until saturated. Tap side and add drops until some standing water, pour off standing water.

Put hygrometer and salt container into a zip seal sandwich or quart bag and wait 6 hours. I allow a small pillow of air inside. Usually it's the right reading within 4 hours but wait 6 just to be sure.

Take note of the hygrometer reading. It should be 75% exactly in a salt environment. Subtract your reading from 75 and that's your calibration.

Mark calibration on masking tape and afix to incubator as reminder. Ex. your reading is 82%, 75-82= -7. You'll always subtract 7 from your reading for true number.

 

[Londonchix]

Wow, that's a great tip! I will suppose I can't trust my digital readings at all on the incubator. I will try your suggestions after these ones at hatched, hopefully.