Entering lockdown!!!!

[enggass]

Ok. I started day 21 this am and there was no sign of progress.... Happy to report that since noon when the first pip appeared I now have one completely out, second one zipping and a new pip development.

 

[Lroach711]

Quote:
It was random at first. I know the feeling though! I swear there's an imprint of my face on my incubator from me staring so hard! Thank goodness I had to work today to keep my mind off it.

(even then though I drove all the way home during lunch to make sure everything was ok..and it's a 40 min drive there!)

 

[karmlacres]

When we left the house, TWO eggs were ROCKING! A third is possibly moving and a fourth I swear I have seen move a little. I kind of hope to have some chicks out when I get home tomorrow afternoon but also hope they wait a little so me and my girls can watch some of this all unfold!

We work from home, which has been good with the hand turning of the eggs and keeping an eye on things. But on the other hand, it's been driving me crazy today with the activity going on in the box. Keep finding things to get me outside and away from them.

 

[Lroach711]

Day 20 started out so good for me with my first egg hatching..and ended so awfully with a one dying. I had a 2nd pip on day 19 (yesterday) and that chick died before it ever hatched...my heart is broken

 

[karmlacres]

oh no, how horrible!!!!

We went away for the night and got home a couple of hours ago. My humidity had dropped to mid 30s. *gasp*. I have it back up to mid 50s to low 60s. I hope this didn't kill them! I'm not seeing movement. My mind is thinking I am smelling stinky egg --- I hope I am wrong. I was hopeful to find something... anything ... since a few eggs were rocking before we left. Now I'm not seeing/hearing anything. I was set up for some delays in hatchings due to some temp issues at the start, but I would have thought I would have gotten some pips while I was gone. I've made it so far and I've got nothing yet.

<crossing fingers>

 

[karmlacres]

I went from absolutely nothing to a pip and definite chirping! And since my 5 yr old heard it too, I know I'm not hallucinating!!

The pip is to the side, is that ok? I was kind of thinking it would be more on top. She's still ok, right????

this particular egg has had me guessing all along. It's kind of uniform in shape and I could never tell which end was the "big" end. I didn't know which end the chick was going to come from.

I'm not going to sleep tonight!!! LOL

 

[Lroach711]

Well..I still only have the one lone chick

I had heard peeping from the incubator last night and this morning but no pips and I haven't heard anything tonight. So..I'm just going to pretend no others are gonna make it. Guess I"ll be headed to the feed store to get a couple more chicks so this one has friends. I don't think I'll be doing shipped eggs again..since I got these I've found 3 local breeders...so I think I'll stick with either getting chicks from them or if I'm brave I'll do hatching eggs. Maybe I'll be suprised and another one in my incubator will hatch..afterall it is only day 21

 

[lorrir]

Hartching eggs is a wonderful and horrible experience. I have to force myself not to get too excited. I only count on a 50% hatch rate. I know I kill more than I bring into the world. I set my expectations very low and hope for the best.

Day 22 on the second set of eggs due to hatch in my staggered hatch. Nothing yet. The first batch was early. I don't think I'll stagger again. It's just too much stress.

Now that I've cried in my soup, feeling sorry for myself. I'll go home and every egg will have hatched. (please, please, please)

 

[karmlacres]

Lroach - how many do you still have in the incubator?

 

[Lroach711]

Quote:
5 left. I'm probably being pesimistic because I haven't heard anymore peeping and I did last night and this morning. Maybe I'll be pleasantly suprised and another will hatch. I can't count this first hatch a failure either way...because I have one little adorable chickie in the brooder (when I realized the one that pipped had died yesterday I did a quick grab for the chick and the bad egg) Poor little thing is lonely though. I may try to go ahead and get another couple chicks tomorrow either way.