early hatching?

[HarrietB]

i have a good 3 days left on the incubation of my little dutch bantam eggs but i candled one this evening and one of them has the beak in the air sack and is tapping on the inside of the egg when i tap to it, but so far no cracks or holes in the shell. as i said before its a good 3 days early! is it normal to have an early hatch , and how soon after i hear the internal tapping should i expect to see signs of hatching? as you can imagine i am very excited this is my first time hatching with an incubator! will attach pic of the candeling pic from tonight if it works

 

[sourland]

It's about time to lockdown and let those eggs alone. You don't want the humidity to drop too low and shrink wrap the chicks. Good luck for a sucessful hatch.

 

[HarrietB]

ive put a damp piece of kitchen towl under the egg - i read somewhere that helps the humidity - my main worry is if its normal for them to hatch this early ?

 

[sumi]

I've had small eggs hatch on day 18. Sometimes early hatches are caused by too high temperatures. Do as Sourland suggested, lockdown, up the humidity to 60% + and leave them to hatch. Good luck!

 

[HarrietB]

im asuming lock down means leave them be until they have hatched?
i have put a damp piece of kitchen towl under the egg - is this right?

 

[sumi]

Lockdown means you stop turning the eggs, remove egg turner if possible and if you're using one, up the humidity, do not open the incubator unless you have to and sit on your hands until the chicks have hatched.

 

[HarrietB]

i thought so! much harder than it sounds actually!!! how long does it take from hearing tapping from the inside of the egg is it likely to see a crack or little hole form in the shell ?

 

[sumi]

A chick will usually break through the shell a few hours after breaking into the air sack and a complete hatch can take up 24 hours, some longer. As long as it's pecking in there it's fine. Don't worry!

 

[HarrietB]

chick has been been in the air sack all afternoon and still no breaks in the shell. if i press my ear against the bator i can hear the occasional cheep cheep but no rocking and no cracks in the shell :S