Dead in shell

[Smileybans]

I don’t know if I have to put a warning here but there’s pictures of them. Not really graphic ones but ones that some might not want to see.



I have three eggs out of 11 dead in the shell. They never internally pipped. When I opened them the air cell was pretty large. More than half the egg. Could this be the reason they are dead and if so how do I prevent it? The membrane inside was also pressed against the chicks. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be since I’ve never had a chick die this late. This is only my 8th set.

 

[Friendly_Lurker]

That's sad. Is your incubator temp constant?

 

[Smileybans]

I believe it is. During the whole incubation it’s only off when I open the incubators to candle. But during lockdown it stays at 95.5. My incubator has a thermostat built into it but I have checked it before with a mercury thermometer and they read the same. I can check it again however if the temp could have done this.

 

[Ducklings100]

I was wondering about this. It may be because of the larger air sac but idk. I’ll know soon though because I have some eggs with larger air sacs that are due to hatch soon as well. Sorry for your losses.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

I believe it is. During the whole incubation it’s only off when I open the incubators to candle. But during lockdown it stays at 95.5. My incubator has a thermostat built into it but I have checked it before with a mercury thermometer and they read the same. I can check it again however if the temp could have done this.

Did you mean 99.5 (rather than 95.5) degrees during lockdown? I ask because 95.5 would definitely be too low, even during lockdown. What was the humidity?

Were these shipped eggs? There are many resources for trying to troubleshoot incubation issues, but if incorrect temp or humidity are ruled out, I'd look at the health of the breeders.

 

[Mellowmalt]

I'd be happy with that result. You got most of them to hatch so more of a success even if 3 didn't make it. Like said genetics can play a role and if the egg shell was too porous then the chicks might never have stood a good chance as they might have lost too much moisture without you doing anything wrong.

 

[Smileybans]

Did you mean 99.5 (rather than 95.5) degrees during lockdown? I ask because 95.5 would definitely be too low, even during lockdown. What was the humidity?

Were these shipped eggs? There are many resources for trying to troubleshoot incubation issues, but if incorrect temp or humidity are ruled out, I'd look at the health of the breeders.

yes. 99.5 is what I meant. It’s displayed in Celsius but I couldn’t remember those numbers either. The humidity during lockdown was above 70%. They weren’t shipped eggs. I’ve looked at some of the troubleshooting stuff online and I couldn’t really figure it out. I’ll have another look at it though.

 

[Smileybans]

I'd be happy with that result. You got most of them to hatch so more of a success even if 3 didn't make it. Like said genetics can play a role and if the egg shell was too porous then the chicks might never have stood a good chance as they might have lost too much moisture without you doing anything wrong.

I am happy with the hatch rate. I’m glad I got more than a 50% hatch. I just want to be sure that if it’s an error on my part, and I can fix it then I do.