first incubation attempt!

[oodymex]

ok so i got 9 eggs in my still air incubator ( couldn't wait for my chickens to give me anymore) today is day 8 and i tryed to candle them, they all show veining and i guess the little black ball floating around was the chick.lol. some had white speckles, is that good? my humidity is at about 45, and tempt at 100-ish. any advice i could use? hopefully they hatch!....well at least one would be nice.lol

 

[Chickie Mamma]

Hello, I usually have my humidity at 60% for the first 18 days and raise it to 85% 3 days before hatching. I have been successful several times. Good Luck!!

 

[oodymex]

cool ill keep that in mind thanks

 

[swtangel321]

First....

I'm sure you will find lots of great info here.


Your temp sounds good, your hum I think is a tad to high try to keep it right around 40ish and then up it to 65% on day 18.

You can also look into dry incubation (not for this hatch since its to late but for others) Here some info on that... https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-DryIncubation.html

If you hum is to high day 1-18 the eggs wont lose enough weight and the chicks have a good chance of drowning in there shell when hatch time comes.

About candling on day 8, DON'T throw any eggs away in till at least day 12 (unless stinky, or ossing) Candle again on day 12 and you will know what eggs are good and bad. On day 12ish you will see bigger "blobs" and should be able to see the difference in good and bad eggs.

There are some good pics on this site about egg candling and stages of incubation....

http://lancaster.unl.edu/4h/Embryology/EmbryoPhotos.shtml

http://lancaster.unl.edu/4h/Embryology/candling.shtml

Good luck with this hatch and keep us updated !!

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

humidity is very important. I learned the hard way..hatched out a clutch with high humidity..It was a bloody mess. I am sure you will do fine. You've already got some good advice. Read, Read, Read, then in a couple days re-read what you already read!!!

Lots of luck to you. DeeJay

 

[Pumpkinpup]

Quote:

I agree with this completely. I started out hatching with higher humidities and flopped horribly for a long time. I now use dry incubation methods and have enjoyed relitively good success. I would highly recommend you read up on it. You can drown your babies in the shell with high humidities very easily. About 30 to 40 is correct for the first 18 days. Sounds like you are off to a good start. Keep us posted on your hatch!

 

[amyquilt]

 

[oodymex]

wow thanks alot for the advice! i just lowered it to 40 so hopefully everthing turns out good in the end.

i will try my best to post pics up if they hatch. but wait if theres an egg thats not good or w/e can it affect the good eggs in the incubator? GRACIAS!

 

[swtangel321]

Quote:
It could, If you can tell now at day 8 what eggs are good and what eggs are bad than toss the bad ones !! Just be carful there have been many stories about people thinking the egg was bad in till cracked open and there was a little chickie fetus. If you keep your nose open while your turning the eggs or open the bator once a day to take a smell you should be able to tell if any are bad.

You should be fine till day 12 (most people wait in till about then) some wait longer !!

 

[shelleyd2008]

Only if it blows up. I leave all my eggs in the bator unless they start to stink or weep. (edit to say it helps the incubator keep the temp steady if it is more full)

I used dry incubation this summer/fall with pretty good results. Since it has gotten colder dry incubation simply does not work for me. I have to keep my humidity at 50% during incubation and up it to at least 70% for the hatch. This spring I will try doing dry incubation again. Use the size of the air cell to determine if you need more or less humidity during incubation. That is the best tool. Here's a link for what they should look like. Good luck!
http://www.msstate.edu/dept/poultry/hatch.htm#cond