Eggs are here :)Paganbirds and MagsC's hatching thread!!UpdateMarch16!

[Paganbird]

LOL!
I usually candle on day 4, but I have a high-power candler & I only expect to see veining. I'll candle on day 4 to determine if there are any that may be infertile. I'll mark my incubation chart for each egg, whether I see veining or not.
If you're not used to candling and if you don't have a really bright candler, you probably won't see much until day 7, at least.
My other eggs were on day 8 last night & I could see veining, movement, and detailed parts of the embryo.
Of my CloverLeaf salmon faverolles, I had: 1 bloodring (it was a porous egg), 2 clear (no development), and 6 developing chicks out of 9 shipped eggs. Of my own bantam eggs I set, I have 10/10 developing chicks.
Remember... shipped eggs will have a lower hatch rate. I could still lose some of my SF eggs, even though they are doing well. A few of them have tremulous air cells, but none are too bad. I've hatched chicks from worse!
I'll see if I can talk my husband into helping me take some pics tomorrow night when I candle.

 

[OhioEggs]

one of the bantam leghorns looked like something was in there. even if it was veining. I had to let the bator cool because it hit 103. Luckily i was watching. a cord got caught in the turner motor and it got hot. It's good now though

 

[MagsC]

I probably wont candle until day 10...but thats just because I am not that good at it earlier on.
Hope we can get some pics of yours when you candle again.

 

[MagsC]

Where do you get a high power candler anyway?

 

[Paganbird]

Well, you can get them through the hatchery catalogs, but if you can find a high-powered flashlight, it'll do the same job.
I'm using a 115 lumen light. (lumens tell the candle power of the light.)

 

[Paganbird]

Well, I just candled my eggs.
I'm seeing veining in 3/8 duck eggs. I wasn't expecting any better... they had a bit of a rough trip. Their air cells are damaged. I left them all in, though, since duck eggs take longer to develop. I'm still hoping that maybe I missed something with all the slippery air sacs.

My Cloverleaf SFs are on day 11. I got rid of the 2 clears & the bloodring today. I have 6 live chicks going.

The other shipped eggs aren't doing so well. They are on day 4. I threw away 3 rotten eggs... smelled horrible! One exploded when I was carrying it to the trash. I had already put it in a baggie, but the *POP* made my husband jump! There was a partially developed chick in one, so I'm wondering if they might have been incubated by a hen for a few days before they were sent. I only see veining in one... so that's only 1/12.

Of my own eggs I had about 5 clears, 6 too dark to tell, and the rest showed veining. I didn't get rid of any of them yet since it's only day 4.
I went to take pics, but the batteries were dying. I'm charging them now. I'll get some tomorrow night for sure.

 

[MagsC]

I am supposed to be getting some SF crosses from Cloverleaf next week....
Yes, PLEASE get some pics of the candling!

It might help with knowing what to look for at a very early stage? Okay, not it "might" help, I am sure it WOULD help.

 

[Paganbird]

LOL!
Well, even with a bright candler, all you can see on day 4 is a small mass of veining. And... you can only see it if it is positioned in a good place. That's why I wasn't so sure about the eggs with detached air cells. Normally, the veining is visible along the edge of the aircell. With damaged aircells, it's harder to see the veining sometimes. I have a SF egg that has the aircell up the side of the egg. It's developing well, but it may have a difficult time at hatch. I'll take pics tonight.
It's easier to candle in the dark & the 'bator is set up right across from a big double window down in the den.
You should be able to see veining in Phoenix's eggs. They're so huge & light-colored. I saw hers with no problems at all!
I've also had luck with the SS eggs. I have one that's practically covered in wax (it was cracked in 2 places) and it has great veining on day 4!

 

[MagsC]

Well, the way I have candled in the past, is I have my daughter hold up our flashlight and I hold the egg just about the light.
After all this talk of candling, I might go ahead and give it a try tonight.

 

[Paganbird]

Here ya go...
They're not the best quality. I hope you can at least see the veining. My DH (in this case, "D" stands for Donkey) was too busy watching Jeopardy to help me out. So I balanced the light & the egg in one hand and held the camera in the other. I was so worried that I'd drop an egg!
Here we are in pic #1 - the only egg from my mixed swap bunch developing - a cochin:

Here's one of Phoenix's eggs. They're so big & light-colored, it's easy to see veining this early.

Here's one of my sizzle/silkie eggs. It had a crack in it when I collected it from the box. I patched the crack with wax and, voila!, a chick is developing:

I tried to get one of the duck eggs, but the detached air cells made it difficult to hold the egg & still get a clear pic. I didn't want to risk killing the embryo. I did take a couple pics, but I didn't post them 'cause they didn't turn out very well and are blurry.