Hands on hatching and help

[Lacrystol]

Yes, me too. I run 75% at "lockdown" and once my first chick hatches I am at 85%. But it has been working good for me. My last several hatches have been great. The only thing is, like you also said, it takes the chicks a long time to dry. Once I was hatching in the mini and it was very full. The octagon 20 was empty. So I turned it on, no water and as the chicks hatched I moved them right to the 20. That batch of chicks were literally the fluffiest chicks I have ever seen in my life! Lol.
Yes, I've had great luck with loose air cells. But these are totally detached. But I really would love them to hatch. Ugh. It's so sad what shipping does to eggs. Like you said, I still set them. I'll still try even though I know the odds.
Can you still see blood vessels? Does the chick move around when you gently turn the egg? Like it swishes around? It might just be the picture and I'm hoping it is...but it looks like it might have quit. Check for the veining. If it still has good veins then it's probably ok. But if it looks like veins are receeded or there are no more veins, then it would be dead.
Make sure you calibrate it yourself even if it's brand new.
X2! I take advantage of the high humidity to open and take out shells, candle unpipped eggs and turn over pipped eggs. If there is condensation I take a paper towel and wipe it off before closing it up again. When I first got my octagon 20 and I was struggling to keep humidity at 60-65%, I hated it!! I felt I couldn't open the incubator and I really needed too, as 1 egg was having issues. Ended up boiling pots of water in the kitchen to up ambient humidity. It was a pain! Much prefer it high, so I can open needed.

Again, for me I will NEVER risk loosing babies and I can tell you 80% did kill them, why because when I first started out I read all over the internet, humidity should be this temp this, blah blah blah and one factor it stated 80% humidity, welll what I didn't read is this was for WET bulb not what i was using. It was HORRIBLE to see 10 babies make it all the way to lockdown and then each one booom boom boom died off. it was horrible.

I think the best thing for deattched don't even shift them. Just let them sit there completely still, I have read some people have had success but guess what. When I asked them ok tell me exactly what you did, There responses STOP, this tells me, they are fibbing. Yeh alll of a suddenly then can't tell me exactly what they did to help deattached air cells. KIND FUN FUNNY HUH? I have will have to experienment, I wonder if you put a tiny PIN hole at the top of the shell and leave that egg there for a couple of days if that will help get those Deattached air cells to STICK. HUMMMMM...

I LOVE EXPERIMENTING with things..

 

[Lacrystol]

I run humidity at 75 or 80 at hatch. Seems to be good usually. I did not check it on Saturday as i did not want to open the bator no the day the eggs did not make it. So not sure. I will find a way to position my meter where I can see it next time. What do you think is ideal??

I got a little lost with this? No the day the eggs did not make it??

All the more power to you on the 80% not an option for me.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I run humidity at 75 or 80 at hatch. Seems to be good usually. I did not check it on Saturday as i did not want to open the bator no the day the eggs did not make it. So not sure. I will find a way to position my meter where I can see it next time. What do you think is ideal??

Ideal for what?

 

[ShanandGem]

I had a chick pip through their own blood vessel during my first hatch. More blood than I cared to see. Then she quit working on her shell and after 24 hours I helped. The blood in the veins (what was left of it) had all receded and I got her out fairly quickly but there was blood pooled in the bottom of the shell and the membrane was coated in it. The inside of my incubator looked like a crime scene. She dragged a little nub of yolk sac around for a day or so before it fell off. She was also the smallest chick I had ever seen.
A week later she is rambunctious and sassy, and catching up to her siblings in size. I guess my point is that without help I don't think she would have made it out of her shell. It remains to be seen if she lives a long healthy life or not, but I am glad I helped her.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

One of the things that this thread was made for was so people that hatch differently could find a place to get together, and share their experiences and help others that were looking for it under the mindset that it is ok to do it your way if it works for you. I don't care if someone hatches at 40% humidity if that's what works for them-great. There are many people that have tried something that others do successfully but aren't successful themselves with it, and so they find what works for them and what they are comfortable with. Which is fine. And that's exactly the goal of this thread. Helping w/o criticism. Sharing what we've experienced so the person looking for help can make a decision based on other's experinces. Thank you guys for sharing your experiences.

 

[firsttimehatch1]

Help
Its day 20
The chick pipped this morning
Didnt do anything else then i noticed it was getting dry even tho humidity is high so i took him and put some water on it. He was moving and chirping up a storm. But the red spot is making me nervous. Do I need to help him?

 

[ShanandGem]

I wouldn't help yet if he just pipped this morning. If it looks dry use a Q tip to moisten the membrane you can see. Don't get water up his nose!

 

[firsttimehatch1]

I just put a tiny bit of water on my finger. Ahh this is stressful . I hope he will be okay. At what point do i help? the shell is chipped away but the membrane isnt ripped yet

 

[ShanandGem]

I think Amy's rule is 18 hours without any change in pip, and she's the gold standard of knowing what to do!

 

[firsttimehatch1]

Even if it keeps getting dry? This is about 15 mins after a wet it