first time hatching indian runner ducks (and ducks in general)

[IceHax]

meanwhile i am researching if there have been some studies done on this, maybe someone did it on a large scale and we dont even know lol

 

[IceHax]

found it!

```
F. Bogenfurst, Pannon University of agriculture, Hungary. 1997. Experiment showed the increase in hatch rate of geese eggs with periodic cooling. Concluded ‘Incubation results improved with periodic cooling’.
```

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

I'm a fan of misting and cooling waterfowl eggs. If it's good enough for broody ducks, it's good enough for me!

 

[IceHax]

also other stuff i found:

The cooling appears to benefit the egg in three key way;

• Increased rate of water molecule loss which helps to achieve an overall 16% weight loss.

• Increased rate of gas molecule exchange including carbon dioxide loss.

• Loss of excess heat from larger embryos as their metabolic rate increases with growth

To help clarify I would recommend the following programme;

From Week 2 - cool for 10 minutes daily
From Week 3 - cool for 15 minutes daily
For Week 4 - cool for 20 minutes daily

Eggs can either be removed from the incubator for individual cooling or the incubated opened and turned off for single batches. We lighlty spray the eggs at the beginning of the cooling period.

 

[IceHax]

I'm a fan of misting and cooling waterfowl eggs. If it's good enough for broody ducks, it's good enough for me!

so, how do you do it? as in:

do you cool the eggs then mist them or vice versa?
do you remove the eggs from the bator?
how long do you cool them for?

thanks for replying btw

 

[chickens really]

Well I have excellent hatch rates and never mist or cool any eggs. I hatch on their side and turn twice a day.
Temperature and humidity has to be correct for successful hatching.
Lay the eggs down after 12 hours sitting in the carton that has been tilted at room temperature. Then put into incubator.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

so, how do you do it? as in:

do you cool the eggs then mist them or vice versa?
do you remove the eggs from the bator?
how long do you cool them for?

thanks for replying btw

I take them out of the incubator and mist them with warm water. Then they cool for the designated time period (I follow @pete55's schedule as you listed it above), after which they go back into the incubator.

 

[IceHax]

@Texas Kiki alright, i decided to try the experiment! i'll mark 4 eggs and follow the cooling programme for those, while leaving the others in the incubator. obviously they might not be 4 and 4 since some might be infertile. fortunately the cooling starts on day 10 so i should know which are viable by then.

for all the others reading this, this is how the experiment will be conducted:

INCUBATION TEMPERATURE: 37.7 *C (99,86*F)
INCUBATION HUMIDITY: 45%RH
HATCHER TEMPERATURE: same as for incubation
HATCHER HUMIDITY: 60%RH
TURNING: 24 times a day, random timing and inclination change
COOLING/MISTING: half of the eggs will be cooled down daily starting on day 10 of incubation until lockdown (day 24), the other half will not be touched.

 

[IceHax]

i think it might be a nice experiment to try out, and i'd be happy with 2 ducklings already, so why not try ahah

 

[Kiki]

i think it might be a nice experiment to try out, and i'd be happy with 2 ducklings already, so why not try ahah

I can't wait!
Good luck.