Disappointing result, but good learning

[laputa]

I just unplugged my bator after the first incubation trial. A big relief.

I can honestly say I did the best I can during the past 19 days. Out of the 24 eggs I set, 1 hatched with help; 1 pipped but was closer to the bottom and I never saw it from the incubator window until a few minutes ago when I empty the incubator, thus never tried to step in; 1 appears died in a very early age and body was not even completely formed; 1 appears start to develop but nothing is discernible. And here is the big WOW: All the rest 20 eggs, were completely yellow liquid, and nothing developed at all. To be honest I can not even tell any of these 20 are fertile eggs or not.

It is disappointing in that I only got 1 chick out of 24 eggs. But meanwhile I think I have learned so many things, a lot of which was learning from you guys here when I run back and forth between the incubator and the computer. Unfortunately, I just had a bad batch of eggs to start with. But fortunately, one survived, out of the only two that fully developed and had a chance to hatch. It was a big relief that the question I had hovering in my head since yesterday "Are there really 23 chicks dying in those 23 eggs that did not pip" now has an answer.

I still have one question unanswered, are those 20 eggs fertile but the embryo were killed during the shipping, or they are completely infertile? Is there any way to tell in retrospect after the incubation already finished? I am still quite curious about the answer though it is not that important at this point.

Anyway, I think I am completely ready to buy some hens from Jason (CAWooduck),

I don't think I will be hatching again in a while.

 

[cjeanean]

I would have to say that they were either infertile or, if you were incubating shipped eggs, they got scrambled. So based on the ones that DID have life, you got a 25% hatch rate for your first try, which isn't bad! I would definately go with eggs from a source that you trust, cause aside from the usual mishandled packages etc you wanna make sure you're getting fertile eggs! Good luck!!!

 

[monarc23]

It's very very hard to tell on that old of eggs if they were fertile when you got them or not it's a hard thing to say because when the eggs are incubating if for some reason they failed (but were fertile) they start to deteriorate in the egg which makes it almost impossible to see if it was really fertile unless ther was blood from teh chick developing. Were the yolks in those eggs perfectly round? I ask because if they were then it sounds to me like they may have been infertile. Now, if the yolks were popped and swirled all through the egg, then i'd say they got scrambled in shipment and you were lucky you didnt get egg in your face when they sometimes like to explode

I'm sorry for your neg experience but getting one baby sometimes makes it worth it ofcourse, getting WAY more than that is what you always are wanting ofcourse

 

[farrier!]

I have had horrible results with a number of shipped chicken eggs, then I get a good hatch from eggs coming from the same area. These eggs were often incubated at the same time.
What I found is a lot did not start from either poor packing or infertile.

I have found that quail eggs do better in shipping then chickens....but that may be that the few orders of quail eggs are packed better....

I am happy to say that despite one 3 hour power outage I so far have 51 out of 60+ hatched and just a few more that may be trying.

 

[laputa]

For the 20 eggs that I feel did not develop at all, I did not open the shell completely to investigate. I simply opened the air cell without breaking the membrane (to be honest I was still hoping to find a life when I was screening through the eggs), then looked into it. Then if I see liquid, I turn the eggs around to make sure if any solid matter is inside. These 20 eggs are nothing but a uniform yellow juice from what I can tell. No solid matter.

So Niki you think I would still be able to see the completely yolk if I was hatching an infertile egg? Then that means these are likely fertile, and the shipping in hot weather was the culprit. Next time if I hatch again, I'll definitely get some egg from local.

But yeah now I think about it, I was lucky that none of them exploded when I was peeking into them. That would be a more unforgettable experience.

In the end, I got one good chick, and a lot of learning, so this is still very much worth it.

 

[JJMR794]

Lupta There Are So Many Variables Here...
Were The Eggs Fertile To Begin With?
How Were They Handled At The Point Of Origin?--- Were They Washed When Collected? Were They Old When Shipped? Have They Been Too Hot Or Cold In Storage?
How Were They Handled In Shipping? Again Too Hot Or Cold? Jostled Too Much? Xrayed?

I'm Sorry For Your Negative Experience, But There Are So Many Variables That Will Affect Your Hatch.... And All We're Left With Are Unanswered Questions Much Like The Old Chicken Or The Egg Question---- You'll Likely Never Have The Answers.

I Recommend You Obtain Some Eggs Locally And Give It Another Whirl Just For The Learning Experience --- They Say Practice Makes Perfect, So Keep Practicing! Good Luck And Hope You Have A Better Experience Next Time.