FEBRUARY Hatch-A-Long 2015:Please Read First Post To Join H-A-L

[Purpletie3]

I candled again last night and took out all the ones that won't develop. Which left me with room in my 2nd bator so I filled that one with 40 eggs. Turns out none of my splash eggs where fertile when I candled last night then today I found the roo in that pen dead. So he had to have something going on with him that I couldn't see. I did replace him with his offspring I hatched last year so it will be a while before I have fertile eggs but I'll keep checking them every week. I have people wanting their eggs.

Sorry to hear about your roo~

 

[Peep_Show]

@Robbo

As long as you're not actively throwing them or dropping them, picking them up to turn is okay. A hen moves eggs around on her nest all the time and fusses with them more than the two or three times a day that you're handling the eggs. Too, remember that even broody chickens need to get off the nest once in a while to eat and drink, so opening the incubator occasionally to turn eggs is not as critical to the temps as you might worry.

Enjoy working with your eggs. Hatching is fun and a great way to learn lots more about chickens!

 

[TinyAssFarm]

HAPPY FEBRUARY! Hooray for FuzzyButt season! I candled the other night and out of the 60 we set only 5 were duds (maybe more but I can't see the marans...)! Ours will all be hatching during the second/third week - I was planning for around my birthday

 

[LadyHawkeAvry]

Question

This is my first hatch. I believe I put one too many eggs in my bator. I don't have room to do the hand roll for turning. Plus it is a circle bator and that would be hard anyway. So I have been picking them up gently, turning them, and laying them back down. 

Is this okay? 

Number your eggs on one side, and mark them with whatever you'd like on the other (I use an X). It makes hand turning easier since you can always be sure you have rotated them to the opposite side. I just turn every 2 hours so that either all the numbers are showing or all the X marks are showing.

 

[minihorse927]

I candled again last night and took out all the ones that won't develop. Which left me with room in my 2nd bator so I filled that one with 40 eggs. Turns out none of my splash eggs where fertile when I candled last night then today I found the roo in that pen dead. So he had to have something going on with him that I couldn't see. I did replace him with his offspring I hatched last year so it will be a while before I have fertile eggs but I'll keep checking them every week. I have people wanting their eggs.

Oh no! It wasn't your prize Porto roo was it? I'm sorry @emvickrey

 

[emvickrey]

Number your eggs on one side, and mark them with whatever you'd like on the other (I use an X). It makes hand turning easier since you can always be sure you have rotated them to the opposite side. I just turn every 2 hours so that either all the numbers are showing or all the X marks are showing.

When I do hand turn I put an X on one side and an O on the other. I put my codes on the top. Like what color and breed or breeder. I also keep records of who I get eggs from, what they are, how many hatched, etc. I don't hatch alot of other breeders eggs. Mosty mine but I have to add new blood from time to time.

 

[emvickrey]

Oh no! It wasn't your prize Porto roo was it? I'm sorry @emvickrey

Yes it was. I have 1 left that I got from her and he's a porcelain. Thank goodness I kept a boy of each that I hatched out. They look exactly like their fathers too. I'm just glad I had back up.

 

[minihorse927]

Yes it was. I have 1 left that I got from her and he's a porcelain. Thank goodness I kept a boy of each that I hatched out. They look exactly like their fathers too. I'm just glad I had back up.

that's sucks! At least you did have a backup though. I had a black Ohiki roo aspirated water and I lost him at the vets office. I didn't have a replacement and he didn't seem to be having any luck fertilizing eggs when breeding. We witnessed him breed, but he was missing apparently.

 

[Purpletie3]

Yes it was. I have 1 left that I got from her and he's a porcelain. Thank goodness I kept a boy of each that I hatched out. They look exactly like their fathers too. I'm just glad I had back up.

I visited her when I was in Florida for Xmas. What a great gal! She's got some beautiful silkie breeding pens going right now and has some nice hatches & eggs to sell. I came back with some beautiful birds & my eggs just hatched this last week. I need to post pics in the Jan HAL. Maybe you could find another one if you didn't want to use your roo offspring.

 

[Purpletie3]

Well, my January hatch has overflowed into Feb. Four hatchers today of mystery eggs and I am still holding hopes for Day 23 on them. (Large eggs) I have no idea what they are but I think one is at least autosexing...running stripes down the back.