So the eggs in my incubator are almost done with day 4. Most of them are too dark or green to see inside, but the two white eggs I can. I see a little bit of veining on both white eggs and the dark spot is very obviously bigger than yesterday...(dark spot bigger on the brown and green eggs too) but I am worried they might not be growing. The veining on the white eggs doesnt seem to make that "spider" spot that most do, same with the other white one. We made a new tank, and had lots of temp fluctuations the first couple days (then bought a thermostat) but I am worried the fluctations and less than a half hour at 108 once might have screwed up the batch. most of the fluctuation was between 97-104. If the dark spot is getting noticeably bigger would that imply that the eggs still have a high chance or is the fact the veining on the white eggs not having that dark spot (yet has veins) indication of possibly bad eggs now? I'd just hate the idea of waiting till day 10 or more then finding out they're out then just replacing now while we stil aren't far in. At the same time, if they are likely still fine... id rather stay with them. Any thoughts? Is it normal for veining to be a bit hit and miss at this point?
108 is certainly high -- it could have killed embryos. However it takes a long time for that heat to get to the core of the egg. Half an hour at that temperature shouldn't make a difference unless it stayed there for a few hours, probably more. Personally I'd leave them until day 7 at least before candling again. If some have died you'll most likely see a tangible blood ring. If not, you can't necessarily see the spiderweb shape or the dark dot -- it depends a lot on things like eggshell colour and density and also on where inside the yolk the embryo is sitting. Honestly, without clear blood rings or no development at all, I'd be leaving them in there and to be really certain I wouldn't candle until day 10. I may be giving you wrong advice -- please make your own decision -- and of course it may be less stressful to start from scratch now, that way you'll know you're giving them the best chance (excess heat can cause foot deformities, though generally that's if the incubator is too hot all the way through). But you've got a good sign there with development so far, and short temperature fluctuations don't do much harm -- it's the average that counts most. best of luck Erica
