February 2023 hatch-a-long

[coffeeaddict]

70% +/- during 'lockdown' the last three days, Days 19-20-21. It's okay to fluctuate a little bit, it will every time you open the lid (and every time Broody Mama would get off her nest anyway), but will recover quickly. My incubator has no way to add water from the outside, so I have to open it up to add water a couple of times a day. There were moments the humidity dropped to 40% when I wasn't paying attention, and 80% when I added too much water or needed to open a vent. They were FINE.

Do NOT turn them during the last three days. They are wiggling and getting into position for hatch. Don't mess with which way they're turned unless their pip hole is sitting face-down. They only need to be turned during Days 1-18, and then 4-6 x per day.


Oh my. What is happening now? Peel some of the shell away, like you're zipping it for her. Movement? Breathing? Carefully, look for blood veins. Dab a bit of warm water, mineral or coconut oil onto all exposed membrane, look for blood veins. Peel away a TINY TINY bit of it, slowly, to watch for bleeding. If it bleeds, STOP. She's alive, just needs more time. Dab a paper towel on it until bleeding stops. Back in the 'bator she goes. If NO bleeding, proceed carefully, peel slooooooowly all the way around the zip-line, watching for the slightest drop of blood. Movement? Kicking? If it's too weak to kick but still breathing, then carefully pull the top of the shell off her head. Still okay? Crack the lower half and peel bits away carefully away until you can see the yolk-sac. Still has yolk? STOP, back in the 'bator she goes. No yolk-sac? Proceed to remove the entire shell. Let her rest now. Nothing more you can do at the moment. She either has the will to live, or she doesn't.

Thanks. I stopped turning mine at day 15. Hopefully that’s okay. I’ll start lockdown tmrw afternoon. I hope mine hatch early on because the suspense of waiting until day 21 to see what happens might kill me.

 

[LhickenChicken]

@LhickenChicken You still have eggs with no pips? How many? How long since the last egg pipped?
I'd poke a hole in the air sac end, big enough for you to see what's going on inside. (I do this under a plastic cover in case it's a bomb.)

I do still have eggs with no pips (internal or external.) 6 eggs with no pips, last time an egg pipped it was around 7 o'clock and that was the one that DIS.

 

[LhickenChicken]

70% +/- during 'lockdown' the last three days, Days 19-20-21. It's okay to fluctuate a little bit, it will every time you open the lid (and every time Broody Mama would get off her nest anyway), but will recover quickly. My incubator has no way to add water from the outside, so I have to open it up to add water a couple of times a day. There were moments the humidity dropped to 40% when I wasn't paying attention, and 80% when I added too much water or needed to open a vent. They were FINE.

Do NOT turn them during the last three days. They are wiggling and getting into position for hatch. Don't mess with which way they're turned unless their pip hole is sitting face-down. They only need to be turned during Days 1-18, and then 4-6 x per day.


Oh my. What is happening now? Peel some of the shell away, like you're zipping it for her. Movement? Breathing? Carefully, look for blood veins. Dab a bit of warm water, mineral or coconut oil onto all exposed membrane, look for blood veins. Peel away a TINY TINY bit of it, slowly, to watch for bleeding. If it bleeds, STOP. She's alive, just needs more time. Dab a paper towel on it until bleeding stops. Back in the 'bator she goes. If NO bleeding, proceed carefully, peel slooooooowly all the way around the zip-line, watching for the slightest drop of blood. Movement? Kicking? If it's too weak to kick but still breathing, then carefully pull the top of the shell off her head. Still okay? Crack the lower half and peel bits away carefully away until you can see the yolk-sac. Still has yolk? STOP, back in the 'bator she goes. No yolk-sac? Proceed to remove the entire shell. Let her rest now. Nothing more you can do at the moment. She either has the will to live, or she doesn't.

I peeled some shell away and no movement or breathing. She was already half zipped.

 

[coffeeaddict]

She deserves to have a name. Her name will be Sunny. I will cremate her. R.I.A Sunny. (Rest In Ashes).

Poor baby chick. I’m so sorry! I stopped naming mine 5 years ago to lessen the heartache when they die. Honestly, I still shed some tears everytime I lose one so I might as well go ahead and name them.

 

[LhickenChicken]

Poor baby chick. I’m so sorry! I stopped naming mine 5 years ago to lessen the heartache when they die. Honestly, I still shed some tears everytime I lose one so I might as well go ahead and name them.

Yeah I can't just say, 'Chick #0.001 and Chick #0.006 are thriving.' I have to name everything. EVERY animal that I have has to have a name.

 

[LhickenChicken]

Poor baby chick. I’m so sorry! I stopped naming mine 5 years ago to lessen the heartache when they die. Honestly, I still shed some tears everytime I lose one so I might as well go ahead and name them.

Thank you. I've never lost a chick, never mind hatched one.

 

[FeatherProfessor]

FINALLY! And it’s one of the alternates that don’t belong to a specific student

 

[LhickenChicken]

FINALLY! And it’s one of the alternates that don’t belong to a specific student View attachment 3397552

Yay! See? You sat on your hands and an egg pipped! Now you don't have to blow your head like this --------> <--------NOT a good idea.

 

[lilwanderer]

I picked up and examined each of my eggs several times over the last few days, looking for pips that were hidden, and recording the time and progress of each pip. I carefully placed them back in the same position they were in, unless the pip was on the bottom in which case I turned it slightly so the pip would be visible.
I had all 26 hatch, so no ill effects. On my batch, anyway.
I don't know why folks advise to "lockdown" and "don't open the incubator" during lockdown. A broody hen doesn't do that. She gets up once or twice a day to eat, drink and poop, and jostles the eggs. So.....

once i gave 2 big hens who were broody at the same time 12 eggs and the other 10 and candled them from day 2 and on everyday, 19 hatched, the others had died early on. I kinda see why you'd do it in an incubator, as the humidity isn't as constant and such and such, but i dont fully understand the harm myself.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

I do still have eggs with no pips (internal or external.) 6 eggs with no pips, last time an egg pipped it was around 7 o'clock and that was the one that DIS.

I'm so sorry for what you're going through. Still, it IS very common to lose a few, or several, in each batch. I've read that the average hatch rate in small hobby-type incubators is between 50-70%. If your last 6 eggs never hatch, plus one DIS and one quitter, out of 27 total - 19 chicks surviving - makes your hatch rate at 70%. That's pretty darn GREAT whether you're a newbie or veteran!!!!!! Be proud of yourself!

This is the first time since I started two years ago that I've got everything to hatch. My most recent batch before this one, in a friend's incubator, a Miller Mfg Little Giant still-air with no turner (I did them by hand) - of 36 fertile eggs I set to incubate, I only had 26 hatch successfully. Lost three more shortly later to unknown causes.

It happens. It's typical. It's why chickens lay so many eggs to brood over, then only some or 'most' of them make it. Mother Nature plans extra eggs so that the species can still survive in spite of losses.

By the way, larger eggs take longer to hatch.

I'd still poke safety holes in those last 6 eggs, if you're brave enough (under plastic!). If not, then leave them be for another day.

An eggtopsy involves opening the egg to see what happened. I've done it with eggs I was sure would not hatch (day 24, no pips). I have a little brooder coop with a window that pivots up, so I could hold the egg behind the plexiglass and see through while I probed the egg open, just in case it exploded. (Had that happen ONCE, never again! ) I wore old clothes, long sleeves, latex gloves, face mask, goggles, and used an Xacto knife and a pair of tweezers. I was able to identify a couple of quitters about Day 16-18, one who had his head between legs instead of under its wing, and one who pipped on the wrong end and maybe drowned in its own fluid.