First Time Hatching Anyone With Me??

[blueducklings]

I found out that the surface area of the water determines the humidity % in the incubator & there is a difference between wet bulb reading & humidity %.

Found out the hard & not so smart way.

$150 later.

 

[blueducklings]

Quote:
I love your separate lockdown box!! That makes so much sense!

My mini mag light has a rubber thing that goes over the end, it works great for candling.

Thanks for sharing the pics!!

They are great! Keep us updated the the duck egg! I love baby ducks, want some sooo bad.

Too bad you live so far away or I'll send you some duckies.
here is the mommy & daddy ducks.
the dark one is the blue male. The speckled one is the blue girl & the brown & white one without a head is also a girl.

The blues are show breeders from the Holderread's farm.

 

[Hannah hen]

We are first timers too! Our LG incubator was set with 24 Buff Orpington and 3 Millie Fluer D'uccle eggs on 2/11/11. We candled some about a week ago and looks like we have a good batch. There has been some minor fluctuation in temps and humidity. We needed a extra water container to get the humidity even close to 50%. Lock down comes on Wednesday and hatch will start Friday. We can hardly wait.

Making plans for the next batch which will also include some of our Burbon Red Turkeys that are now laying.

 

[Kathryn4629]

AllCoop'dUp :

Hello all...just a bit of an update...I'm headed into lockdown this evening with 17 eggs. I decided to move 6 of the eggs from the big incubator into the little one for hatching. That way I can lay them all on their sides incase they pip on the wrong end or some other problem arises. Yesterday I visited all the farm stores within a 30 mile radius. Was so tempting to pick up some chicks, but I was quite restraint! I decided in a few weeks I would get perhaps a couple of geese and turkeys just for fun. And even though I have 5 ducks, I ordered 3 more Cayuga ducklings. I just enjoy them so much and they are so pretty.

Kathryn- don't ever let a man tell you what you can and can't do. I was a young single mother of 3, been divorced now for 33 years and enjoy being self sufficent. It wasn't always easy, but I survived and have thrived. I enjoy simple and uncomplicated. I have power equipment that some men would love to have and I know how to use them too.

My poor boyfriend isn't allowed to touch them!! Sending good thoughts and karma your way!

Yay, Lockdown!!!

Keep me updated!! Yes the feed stores are really hard right now. I actually had the neighbor pick me up some feed this week, since I didn't want to drive in just for that (40 miles). Thank goodness I haven't gone in, I would have brought home chicks for sure!

Oh I have been wanting geese for awhile now! What kind are you going to get? I had a goose that lived to be about 8 years old and loved to pretend fly while riding on the front of the 4-wheeler. So funny! She slept on the porch with the farm dogs.

I can't imagine being a single mother of 3 (I dont have any kids) BIG props to you. My Mother did it and I know the trials and tribulations she went through. Yes simple and uncomplicated is my motto, well maybe I should say I TRY to make that my motto. i do what I can, and really am enjoying being a single woman living in the middle of nowhere.

 

[blueducklings]

Lol, eventually you'll have to go into the feed store.
Got to feed the ones from the bator.
I got to go in tomorrow. Can't buy any more duckies. Already getting one tomorrow

form the feed store.
and more coming via my bator soon.
GOT TO BUILD A BROODER SOON!
Peep day is 5 days away.

 

[texaschickmom]

It took me awhile to read everyone's posts. Sounds like everyone's hatches are progressing well. I am using an LG with a fan and turner and am trying a "dry" incubation with humidity between 30 - 40%. Day 8 is not until next week, so I'm so excited and anxious about my first candling. I am going to get one of those mag lights mentioned previously. Hopefully Wally World has one! Thanks for all the updates.

 

[HathawayHens]

Quote:
I just got a great mini mag light with a little rubber thing for the end that makes it great for candling at Lowes.

It was in the checkout line...

 

[GJ_Kate]

Our first batch starts tomorrow morning! We're putting in 3 (hopefully 4 by then) of our red bourbon turkey eggs and a dozen fertilized eggs that DH bought from Natural Grocers today (kinda just for fun). I'm hoping to get another bator (or make one) soon since I'm going to need to run one here at home and one in my classroom. We're set to start eggs at school on March 14ish (right when we come back from spring break

).
Maybe I'll buy some cool chickie eggs from an auction on here for the school hatching. My students already know a lot about this stuff though since I teach at a really rural school. One of my girls (1st grader) helps mom raise and slaughter broilers and turkeys. Apparently her job is sliting their throats, she told me with a grin....

 

[theberlinfam]

I have veins!!! I just candled at Day 4 and have lots of development going on in my Silkie eggs. I also have Silver Laced Wyandotte eggs but can't see through them

Excited!!! Anyone else with a March 17th hatch date? Good luck to all!

 

[texaschickmom]

berlinfam, my hatch date is the 16th!! So we're right in this together! I'm not going to candle until Day 8 because all of my eggs are brown and I probably wouldn't see anything and then worry that none were fertile!

Hathaway, I'm going to Lowe's tomorrow for paint and will look for that light. Thanks for letting me know where you got it.