FEB HATCH-ALONG THREAD ...COME JOIN US.... EVERYONE!

[gapeach717]

Sorry this didn't turn out better for you

On the bright side, you did have some healthy chicks hatch! Atleast you didn't have to deal with what I did- my first 6 hatches I had NO chicks, they all died- most before they ever got out of the shell. I know it doesn't feel like it now, but be happy about the ones you have!

thank you Pug....this was a MESS!! and since i seem to be the lovely BUCKET of wonderful news today...I just picked up some eggs one of our peeps sent me out of the goodness of her heart.....yeah....the box flaps are CRUSTED with egg yolk....I give up! where's the whiskey????

 

[PugBug]

Well I just set my Serama eggs. Took me about 30 minutes messing with the incubator. But it's done! Instead of the 12 I thought I was going to set, I was able to squeeze in 4 extras! So I ended up setting 16. My incubator is very, very squished right now. I don't even want to open it.

wow! but just remember you gotta figure something out for turning them after 5-7 days LOL this is gonna be fun to watch you progress with your hatch! good luck!!!

 

[coldupnorth]

Quote: x2 It happens to all of us sometimes with incubating, but you just have to enjoy the ones you have and know that you will have hatches that are better (and some that may be worse).

So many factors with artificially incubating that can contribute to losses and we will never really know all of them. I've had hatches with 0% hatch rate to 90% hatch rate back to back - you just never truly know.

 

[PugBug]

pellet stove pellets are the same thing and are cheaper.

where do you get stove pellets? what type of store?

 

[Maah]

I agree... time to bust out the bottle hun! You go ahead & rant all you want though. No need to apologize to us. We understand!

Was the box all smashed like some jerk at the PO stomped on it or something?

I could send you some of our barnyard mix eggs,... but I've never shipped eggs before. If they got smashed during shipping I would feel awful. I would love to see some of our mixie chickies out there though.

 

[PugBug]

thank you Pug....this was a MESS!! and since i seem to be the lovely BUCKET of wonderful news today...I just picked up some eggs one of our peeps sent me out of the goodness of her heart.....yeah....the box flaps are CRUSTED with egg yolk....I give up! where's the whiskey????

oh geez! you are having a rough time- maybe you should have a shot of something! try not to be down on yourself, you did everything you knew to do- some things are out of our hands...

 

[hokankai]

it looks like it didnt form completely and the others picked at it too, and now its just bleeding. blood welling up in the shell....ugh...aren't i just a ray of freaking sunshine with this last few days. I pray to GOD my next hatch is better. And as for washing the chicks....that stuff is not coming off....its like I want to take a tiny comb and brush the hardened "gel" off them. They seemed SO wet when born....this is just crazy. I feel like all of this is my fault and just miserable today. I am sorry for being the Debbie Downer in here

You have to really scrub it, as firmly and gently as possible. Get a warm wet cloth and rub in a circular motion and the opposite way of the fluff. Trust me, it'll come off! Mine were exactly the same, some worse than others. The really bad one I held under the warm faucet and gently massaged (holding his head between my thumb and forefinger away from the water), and then rubbed him down with a cloth and blow dried. It took several minutes for each one.

 

[coldupnorth]

My last batch of chicks to hatch in February finished hatching this morning - three days from 1st to hatch to the last to hatch. Out of 18 eggs, 10 hatched - some of them had quit earlier but didn't have my bright candler at lockdown, so I didn't see that. At least 4 died during lockdown - mostly my Icelandics.


3 of our Welsummers and 2 of our Silkie mixes


1 of our Polish and 4 of our other mixes

*I have more hatching in March, but I have to start slowing down since brooder room is getting scarce and its still too cold to send the older chicks into the wilds of outside coop living.

 

[PugBug]

day 20 for my 3 little frizzle eggs- nothing, no rocking or anything. here we go again I guess...

but on a happier note- I won 12+ lemon cuckoo orp eggs!!! should be here next week & I just checked the track# on my sultan/polish frizzle eggs- they should be here today

and my SLW eggs will be here next week too- so I'm in for the March hatch (well I also have one lonely little call duck egg supposed to hatch next week too)

 

[PugBug]

My last batch of chicks to hatch in February finished hatching this morning - three days from 1st to hatch to the last to hatch. Out of 18 eggs, 10 hatched - some of them had quit earlier but didn't have my bright candler at lockdown, so I didn't see that. At least 4 died during lockdown - mostly my Icelandics.


3 of our Welsummers and 2 of our Silkie mixes


1 of our Polish and 4 of our other mixes

*I have more hatching in March, but I have to start slowing down since brooder room is getting scarce and its still too cold to send the older chicks into the wilds of outside coop living.

very cute!