Getting the flock out of here - a diary of a crazy chicken man

[Sweetpea3829]

SALLY SUNSHINE has a hatching 101 article in my signature area.

give it a read

Thanks for that, Oz!

Sally, what an excellent resource! Thanks for putting that together!

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote:
Thanks, I have referred to all of it over and over!
And your welcome, I must add and change a few things, like the shipped settling and turning part and add more details to weighing of eggs! but most times I need a quiet house to think! Chaos with all these kids here!

 

[ozexpat]

The #1 rule for incubating success is: STEP BACK FROM THE BATOR!!!!!

Let it do its thing. Worst thing is repeated opening. That is what causes the shrink wrap.

This is the absolute best advice that can be offerred.

I have read thousands of pages of threads here - lots of them on Sally's thread.

The more you mess with the eggs during the final stages of a hatch the more you will have to mess with them.

I dont put eggs into lockdown until I hear chirping from the eggs - meaning internal pipping has commenced. Sometimes I will even have a chick or two externally pip. This allows us to not have to camp over the bator for two days. It also allows me to get as much moisture out of the egg as possible before the hatch. My incubation room runs a dehumidifier to keep the small room at 45% humidity. I hatch in a seperate room at ambient humidity - 70-90%. The bator is at 55% humidity without trying. I dont add water. The first pippers up the humidity to around 70%

Bernie cannot cope with chicks looking fluffy and "thirsty" and wants to get them out. I solved this by getting a mega pack of gro-gel. We put a small amount in each of our hatching baskets when we transfer to hatcher. It gived the early hatchers a snack and keeps Bernie out of the hatcher.

My locally laid hatches are time predictable. If I hatch in my mega bator we set local eggs at 6pm (Sunday for example). The start of day 1 starts then. 504 hours later day 21 ends at 6PM on Sunday.

458hrs later at 6PM (Friday, day 20+2hrs) the eggs go into the hatcher. The first chicks are pipping and zipping by 6AM and by 12MD and about 25% are hatched. By 6PM on the end of day 20 and around 80% are out. The stragglers will normally be out at 12MD - 6 hours before the end of day 21.

By the end of day 21 the eggs are done. Anything not hatched is assited if its viable, tossed if its not. Typically those chicks will be the ones splayed legs and curled toes. Forunately for me, my bator is very stable so I dont get late hatchers.

On shipped eggs, The hatch is simmilar except much larger. Batches tend to go off at the same time. For example, there are 2 batches of Black Australorps (BA1 & BA2). 80% of the BA1 will all pip within 6 hours of each other. Same with the BA2 but it could be earlier or later than the BA1. Different nutrition of the hens during lay and shipping impact incubation time. Shipped eggs get monitored for chirps earlier and all go in together.

I hatch in 6 baskets so that I can tell chicks apart. This hatch basket 1 is designated for Barred Rocks, White Rocks and Salmon Favs. Basket 6 is BBS Orps and Golden Sebrights.

My hatcher is nicked named the display case bator. Its 48" x 32". The top is plexiglass. I have 3 plywood sections with insulation that I cover the plexiglass with to save energy when we are not over the top of the bator.

If we do have to open the bator, we get a wet cloth and wipe the sides of the bator to get a large surface area to evaporate. This helps correct shrink wrapping but not always. Its normally better to just not go in there!

 

[ozexpat]

oh and its hatch day. its 624 am - lets see how it plays out

 

[ozexpat]

1st report 655AM

27 eggs in hatcher

1 hatched 4 pipping

 

[topdycke]

1st report 655AM

27 eggs in hatcher

1 hatched 4 pipping

You need a little video cam in there and we would all watch along with you.

 

[ozexpat]

You need a little video cam in there and we would all watch along with you.

i am in the same situation as you - 7500 miles from hatch. if we had 3g phone service I would have 20 cams

 

[ozexpat]

848AM 1 hatch 2 zipping

 

[scottcaddy]

oh and its hatch day. its 624 am - lets see how it plays out

1st report 655AM

27 eggs in hatcher

1 hatched 4 pipping

848AM 1 hatch 2 zipping

Scott

 

[piglett]

who is hatching out OZ

what breeds do you have?

chicken mission stock mostly ?