First time: Incubation Lavender Orpington Rooster w/ Welsummer and EE

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

You've done a great job of documenting the egg babies' progress. 20" snow and no electric power for 4 days =Wow!
One question, you mentioned that the first chick started pipping at bottom of its egg. When you candled during lockdown, did you make sure to put the egg back into the incubator in the exact same position you removed it? You may know this already, but the reason I ask is that during lockdown, chicks begin maneuvering into hatching position. If eggs are rotated during this time, chicks will need to use more energy to move into hatching position again. (A broody hen stops turning her eggs during the last 3 days too.) Or sometimes chicks don't re-orient their position at all, and pip at other places than the top of egg. Either way, it requires lots of strength and energy to escape their eggs. Just wanted to say that in case you didn't know.

.However many chicks hatch sucessessfully, they are certainly tough little boys and girls to survive their trials during the past 21 days. that you will have cute little chicks soon.

 

[Millsa]

You know i didnt actually see that it had pipped the shell until i put it back which is why i thought it had pipped downwards. I assumed that. Its having a good long rest now. Im not wanting to move it anymore and already feel terrible that i interrupted this important work. So im gonna leave it be and watch carefully and hope i didnt just cause more serious harm- and i just looked its pipping right next to where it first pipped!!!!

 

[Millsa]

I hear Peeping!!

 

[Millsa]

A second egg pipped!!! And it started snowing again! We still have powerthank goodness

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

You are gonna have snow babies!

 

[Millsa]

Day 21. 3 eggs have now pipped. The first “smallest baby egg” appears to be zipping - or trying to zip. Theres a fair amount of peeping from that egg .. the other 2 eggs just have the initial pip to the shell and softer PEEPING coming from those eggs. Its going to be a long night. Its been 8 hours already since i saw the first pip as i was candling.. grateful that that egg STILL is chugging along. I thought i totally harmed it but - i didnt. Meanwhile - i went to tell the rooster that his eggs were hatching and he went on attack. HAHAHA.. poor guy - havent had the time to pick him up and socialize with him with all of this weather…hope to turn this bad behavior around. Facts: Of the 7 eggs - 3 have pipped and on day 8 all eggs were moving around quite a bit on their own. So… at least 13 days ago it seemed that all eggs were progressing. After day 8 its been hard to tell..

 

[Millsa]

Day 22… 4 eggs pipped.. sadly it looks like they are shrink wrapped.. this im blaming on the POS incubator. I did chip away some shell they pipped and applied coconut oil.. and put them all back and increased humidity. They are all peeping!!! Hope they can stay with us without further interference from me.

 

[Millsa]

Day 22: 2 eggs definitely needed assistance (shrink wrap) and the other two after applying some coconit oil zipped one is still zipping but the other flew right out of her shell!

 

[Millsa]

5 out of 7 made it : terrible shrink wrapping … 2 are actually still in the process of hatching .. the 3 tough one are alrealy standing around!! Waiting for them to fluff up so i can move them to the brooder

 

[Millsa]

We got 5 out 7