Emu Hatch-a-long 2012

[cyndiloowho]

This was after one week in still air at a temp of 96F. I have no water added as of yet.

 

[christophertyj]

Update on my chicken eggs. They say it takes 21 days for them to hatch. So far, I think everything is doing good. I candled them tonight day 18 and it is a brown egg so its hard to see it good. All I seem was a big black mass with an air pocket at the top or bottom of each egg. My grandfather and I also took the automatic turner out today. We are using a little giant incubator. I know you have to raise the humdity to like 70% but I don't have a hygrometer to measure it. So, I refilled the styrofoam rings in the bottom like my grandfather has been doing and then also put in half of styrofoam cup full of water. Will they still hatch? Will my eggs be okay? Have I done anything wrong?

 

[christophertyj]

And do you take the chick out after it drys off or do you leave it in the incubator 24 hours to dry off?

 

[yinepu]

This was after one week in still air at a temp of 96F. I have no water added as of yet.

Assuming your weights are correct... your losses are a bit high.... is your incubator near a heating duct or in an area of your home with very dry air?.. if so I would move it to a more humid area.. other than that what kind of bator are you using?

also can you post pics of the eggs? the other thing could be very porous shells.. so if the shells are fine and you can't move the bator the next thing to try would be to add a small dish of water. However if the shells are very porous there are also steps you can take to help with that

weighing again next week will tell you if your changes that you decide to make have helped any

 

[yinepu]

Update on my chicken eggs. They say it takes 21 days for them to hatch. So far, I think everything is doing good. I candled them tonight day 18 and it is a brown egg so its hard to see it good. All I seem was a big black mass with an air pocket at the top or bottom of each egg. My grandfather and I also took the automatic turner out today. We are using a little giant incubator. I know you have to raise the humdity to like 70% but I don't have a hygrometer to measure it. So, I refilled the styrofoam rings in the bottom like my grandfather has been doing and then also put in half of styrofoam cup full of water. Will they still hatch? Will my eggs be okay? Have I done anything wrong?

I have no idea what the air cells look like size wise.. but if they are on track then your chicken eggs should be fine

btw.. hygrometers are overrated.. the egg will tell you what it needs better than any hygrometer can since the hygrometer can't take into account shell porosity, air flow or temperature

 

[yinepu]

And do you take the chick out after it drys off or do you leave it in the incubator 24 hours to dry off?

chicken chick or emu chick? (this is the emu section.. so not sure which you mean)..

anyway I remove chicken type (also peafowl, turkey and pheasant) chicks as soon as they fluff up a bit and move them to the brooder (make sure you have good flooring in there so they can get plenty of traction .. helps prevent splay legs and also lets them move around a bit better to get closer or further from the heat)
quail chicks: as soon as they can sit up .. out they come.. straight to the brooder for feed and water since they don't store much yolk and can't go the full 3 days that a chicken can. Quail really need fed within 24 hours of hatch.. so the sooner they can get food and water the better
ducklings and goslings I leave until 12 hours or so depending on how they are doing.. they need to fluff as well as get their legs up under them a bit

i usually leave emu chicks in there for 12 hours or so.. until they can sit up and move around a bit... and to make sure their navels are fully closed over... it also helps to keep them warmer before they move to a big old brooder with already mobile emu chicks who may run them over.. lol

 

[cyndiloowho]

Assuming your weights are correct... your losses are a bit high.... is your incubator near a heating duct or in an area of your home with very dry air?.. if so I would move it to a more humid area.. other than that what kind of bator are you using?

also can you post pics of the eggs? the other thing could be very porous shells.. so if the shells are fine and you can't move the bator the next thing to try would be to add a small dish of water. However if the shells are very porous there are also steps you can take to help with that

weighing again next week will tell you if your changes that you decide to make have helped any

Thanks for your help yinepu!

They are incubating right now in a Little Giant still air. They will move to the Sportsman near the end after the chicken egg hatch is finished.
Here are the pictures. I assumed from reading, that the very dark colors indicated good quality shells. Is this correct?
These were taken before incubation began.


No Flash ^

Flash ^

Flash ^

Flash ^

No flash ^

Flash ^

No Flash ^
They are in a room with no heater vent or moving air, but next to the laundry room which I had hoped would help with humidity. It is VERY dry in Utah in winter. I can add a room humidifier, should I go ahead and do that?
Thanks!!!

 

[yinepu]

Thanks for your help yinepu!

They are incubating right now in a Little Giant still air. They will move to the Sportsman near the end after the chicken egg hatch is finished.
Here are the pictures. I assumed from reading, that the very dark colors indicated good quality shells. Is this correct?
These were taken before incubation began.


No Flash ^

Flash ^

Flash ^

Flash ^

No flash ^

Flash ^

No Flash ^
They are in a room with no heater vent or moving air, but next to the laundry room which I had hoped would help with humidity. It is VERY dry in Utah in winter. I can add a room humidifier, should I go ahead and do that?
Thanks!!!

The shells look fine so they shouldn't be too porous

yeah.. if you have a humidifier go ahead and add it.
My husband has relatives in Utah... so I have heard from him how dry it is!

 

[cyndiloowho]

I fired up the humidifier in that room.
Thanks for the advice,

 

[yinepu]

I fired up the humidifier in that room.
Thanks for the advice,

cool.. be sure to post the next weighs in.. if need be you might have to add water to the bator for a week or two.. but for now just wait and see if the humidifier helps