I am hatching some eggs for a friend of a friend of my mother's. She brought me 6 dozen eggs that she bought from a local person for$18.00. She called them "Indian Game" Chickens. (Cornish?) She told me that 2 of the cartons had been turned upside down. She got them on a Tuesday. The person that originally agreed to hatch them went out of town or she couldn't get ahold of them. I started them on a Saturday. She had stored them at room temp.
On day 8 I candled and took out 3 dozen + 2 eggs. I opened every one and nothing had started in them. A few of them looked like they had been scrambled. I didn't candled again until around day 15 and didn't pull any more eggs.
Today is day 21. I think I have at least a dozen chicks so far. I've already lost 2 before hatching. They pipped and had a hole with their beaks out, made no further progress and died. A lot of these chicks are pipping on the wrong end. I have helped 2 out. One of those chicks cannot lift its head, it's leg is goes towards its head and the wing seems to be at a weird angle.
I am trying to stay out of that room and not interfere, but I am so worried more will die.
I am using a very old wood cabinet style incubator that was my mother's. This is my second hatch. I had a good hatch rate with my chicks. (Local eggs good- shipped eggs only 2 out of 11)
My temps have been good- 99.6. I had a little problem in the last 5 days with it dropping to 96 a few times (I had to use a lot more water this time to keep the humidity up) and then once when I turned it up it went to 104 (Very short time, I was watching it). I have baby chicks in the room the incubator is in so I am thinking the heat lamps are making it more difficult. Kept humidity around 35-40%. I bumped it to 70% at lockdown. Is there something that I could have done wrong to cause this or are these chicks too big? Bad genetics? If they would have been my eggs I would have not used some of the eggs- some are a little long and some are pretty round.
Sorry for such a long post, I am feeling bad and have no idea what to do with the crippled chick, I can't kill anything. Maybe the lady these chicks are going to will, she is going to eat the roosters and offered to take any chickens I don't want.
This is the little crippled chick- it's neck and head seem to have a lot of fluid and the neck is really fat and squishy to touch.
Here are picsof some of the chicks- she says these were Indian Game Chickens- any guesses?
On day 8 I candled and took out 3 dozen + 2 eggs. I opened every one and nothing had started in them. A few of them looked like they had been scrambled. I didn't candled again until around day 15 and didn't pull any more eggs.
Today is day 21. I think I have at least a dozen chicks so far. I've already lost 2 before hatching. They pipped and had a hole with their beaks out, made no further progress and died. A lot of these chicks are pipping on the wrong end. I have helped 2 out. One of those chicks cannot lift its head, it's leg is goes towards its head and the wing seems to be at a weird angle.
I am using a very old wood cabinet style incubator that was my mother's. This is my second hatch. I had a good hatch rate with my chicks. (Local eggs good- shipped eggs only 2 out of 11)
My temps have been good- 99.6. I had a little problem in the last 5 days with it dropping to 96 a few times (I had to use a lot more water this time to keep the humidity up) and then once when I turned it up it went to 104 (Very short time, I was watching it). I have baby chicks in the room the incubator is in so I am thinking the heat lamps are making it more difficult. Kept humidity around 35-40%. I bumped it to 70% at lockdown. Is there something that I could have done wrong to cause this or are these chicks too big? Bad genetics? If they would have been my eggs I would have not used some of the eggs- some are a little long and some are pretty round.
Sorry for such a long post, I am feeling bad and have no idea what to do with the crippled chick, I can't kill anything. Maybe the lady these chicks are going to will, she is going to eat the roosters and offered to take any chickens I don't want.
This is the little crippled chick- it's neck and head seem to have a lot of fluid and the neck is really fat and squishy to touch.
Here are picsof some of the chicks- she says these were Indian Game Chickens- any guesses?
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