Hands on hatching and help

[WVduckchick]

Turk! Thanks for the updates. You rock darlin.

Blooie, thanks for the Katie update also. You and Ken should spend the night anyway, and let Katie handle it.
But I'm glad she feels more comfortable now. Great job.

And that's a good suggestion about the lid. I agree, it can be slickery! Just keep an eye on the glue. Did it harden well and do you think it will stay ok? I might just have to try that.

 

[Blooie]

Turk! Thanks for the updates. You rock darlin.

Blooie, thanks for the Katie update also. You and Ken should spend the night anyway, and let Katie handle it.

But I'm glad she feels more comfortable now. Great job.

And that's a good suggestion about the lid. I agree, it can be slickery! Just keep an eye on the glue. Did it harden well and do you think it will stay ok? I might just have to try that.

So far so good! It's holding fine, but I worry about it letting go as heat will tend to soften hot glue. Wondering if I should pull it and put it on with Super Glue. I liked how it made the top easier to grip, but worry about Super Glue offgassing into the incubator via the vent on top. Hmmmmmm Any ideas?

Pretty proud of Katie, too. But we'll just keep it as it is and leave tomorrow morning - she's prepared for us doing it that way and she still like things pretty structured. Now that there's a plan, I hate to disrupt it. And I didn't do anything - she did. She came here on her own and wanted to try again. She's somethin'!

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Oh how I hate how short your season is! Texas is beckoning you... Seems that the spitz are becoming more popular, I've heard several people say they want them. Very glad you got Rubys good silkies to work with! I hatch the mess outa my one EEs eggs too

there are currently like 14 in there, 2 have hatched, 8 more are collected to be set

4 are under my broody, again...

I'm glad Godzillas doing we'll! Sorry about Pop

did u know we lost my grandpa who was currently married to my grandma that I had cared for? Not even a month ago. We had a rocky relationship but there was a parental type of lifelong, unconditional love there, and it was very sad even at 94. I'm sorry (Buster? I forget Everything but I think I mailed this one!) is stalled. Maybe if u change the schedule he's out himself on, tie him outside in the AM, bring him in at night, to help u furthure work with him? Maybe give Godzilla a new job to walk him on leash (with lots I treats) around the yard each day, so they have time to bond?

I'm no whisperer these r just some things I would try.

I've been staying busy, enjoying the warmth and hatching the mess outa some eggs. Most of my hatchers are sold, but I picked up all this CX. Hated them at first, but now theyre in a large area vs where I got em from, and low n behold they're acting a bit like chickens.

I think my first real project has really been rooted now. I have three hens remaining from my first hatch of Bresse, they're laying (20 wks they started!) I bought one of their fathers to properly line breed them, and 18 more eggs to bump my hen count, today's their due date.

Got abuncha free bunny cages thru a friend, 10 holes in total, to use for raising quail. I have 20 coturnix quailings currently, restarting, last line was total garbage, they were sickly from hatch, hatched from thin shells, half cracked, it was a mess.

I got my own copy of the SOP! And the second bator, a 20 eco in add to the 40 adv I've had 6 months now. I got six Svart Hona chicks 8 wks ago! And a couple extras who r likely mix bred. They're all really neat

I have two of those, 20 eco and 40 adv, and I've found it doesn't matter how expensive they are, u Cannot trust the humidity or temp gauge alone, u really Have to have a second thermometer at the Very least n there. That being said, I

mine they hold steady as a rock, day and night, it's up to us to make sure they're holding at the right temp

I had a hard time with that during the winter, had to adjust for the cold, who knew?

No, I didn't know that. Sorry to hear it.

Yup Buster, you nailed it...lol
That's a lot going on and yes, Texas calls...if it would only send me money we'd be all set...lol
I'm still using the old LG...lol But it's still popping out chicks so I can't complain too much.

Funny how things just seem to work themselves out sometimes, isn't it? Ken got a call today and his meeting has been set back to later in the day tomorrow. That means we don't have to leave tonight, we can leave early tomorrow morning, get there in plenty of time for the meeting, and get back here tomorrow night. It's only a 4 hour drive down there and then 4 hours back, so no point in spending the night! I can turn the eggs just before we leave, then when we get back.

So in the meantime, Katie stopped over after school (she just lives across the street) and said, "Gramma, they are the eggs you got for me, so I need to learn to do this." Okay, let's go back where the incubator is and try again. I told her if she got too worried she could just stop, and it was okay.

We stood there in front of the incubator and she just looked at me, like, "Well?" So I told her to take the lid off the incubator and set it to the back. She did that. (**Remind me to add something at the end here). Then I showed her the clear marks on the eggs again, just like yesterday. Her little hands trembled, but she reached in and picked up an egg, but didn't lift it up very far. "I can't do it, Gramma. I'm gonna drop it." And she set it back down. But she turned it to the "O" side before she set it down. "Hey, Gramma, I don't have to pick it way up, just a little tiny bit!!" Yep, that's right, Katie. I could see her visibly relax. She turned every egg in the first two rows, grinning a little bigger as she went along. Came to the last row, and I said, "Let's try something Katie." I rearranged the eggs a little and that left an almost equal gap in each row. "Now, one of my BYC friends said instead of picking them up you could just roll them over. Do that on this row and see how it works for you." She did that, beamed up at me and said, "I like rolling better than picking up. I got this, Gramma! You ROCK!" She was almost disappointed when I told her that it wasn't as critical to me as it had been the day before when we first talked about it, but she set a time in her head. When her little internal alarm goes off, she'll be here to turn the eggs. And if Katie says she's going to do something, she does it.

**Now about the reminder. The stupid lid on the Brinsea Oct 20 is slippery, anyone else notice that? You have to use 2 hands, grip tightly, and pray it doesn't slip down onto the eggs. So I got out my trusty glue gun and glued a little strip of rubberized shelf liner to each side of the place on the top where you pick it up off the base. They are just thin strips, but they do help me grip. Dunno if it will help Katie much, but by golly it makes it much more secure in my clutzy hands!! And maybe that will help someone else, too.

That's great! I'm so glad to hear that. I bet she's proud of herself. I know we're proud!

 

[WVduckchick]

She is one special little girl...like her Gramma!!

Maybe try the super glue later, after you aren't running it and it would have time to cure?? That is IF the hot glue softens. It may work just fine!

I thought I might just use one of those rubber jar openers to grip it, not even "attach" it yet, just lay it across the top ridge where I grab it. Going to candle tomorrow, will see how it works.

 

[Blooie]

I just finished candling and I have to tell you I like how it worked very much! It could use some improvement in the execution, but the premise is right on the money! It did indeed make the top easier to handle. It's been a few hours since I first did it and it still feels as secure as it did the first time, so I have hope. Maybe the top doesn't get warm enough to loosen the glue. I'm still holding on to it for dear life - can you imagine the catastrophe if I counted entirely on that and not on holding on to it like I should? But my grip feels more secure.

Candling results best I've ever had! I have 4 with loose air cells, but only on a very small portion of each, not the whole entire thing like the eggs I had before. In fact, one of the ones that did hatch was one that had a loose air cell, so that's not the earth-shattering crisis that it could be. They could still tighten up. They are in a foam egg carton section with the bottoms cut out for now, and leaning to one side, and I talked to Katie and told her to just lean them to the opposite side instead of giving them a complete turn. She remembered me doing that with the other sets of eggs, so she's got it.

I pulled one, the one with the blood ring starting up when I did the 4 day candling. Ring was most of the way around the egg, so I the advice that it was a quitter was spot on. That leaves me with 14 eggs, all of which show life and movement. I'm deliriously happy at this point!

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I just finished candling and I have to tell you I like how it worked very much! It could use some improvement in the execution, but the premise is right on the money! It did indeed make the top easier to handle. It's been a few hours since I first did it and it still feels as secure as it did the first time, so I have hope. Maybe the top doesn't get warm enough to loosen the glue. I'm still holding on to it for dear life - can you imagine the catastrophe if I counted entirely on that and not on holding on to it like I should? But my grip feels more secure.

Candling results best I've ever had! I have 4 with loose air cells, but only on a very small portion of each, not the whole entire thing like the eggs I had before. In fact, one of the ones that did hatch was one that had a loose air cell, so that's not the earth-shattering crisis that it could be. They could still tighten up. They are in a foam egg carton section with the bottoms cut out for now, and leaning to one side, and I talked to Katie and told her to just lean them to the opposite side instead of giving them a complete turn. She remembered me doing that with the other sets of eggs, so she's got it.

I pulled one, the one with the blood ring starting up when I did the 4 day candling. Ring was most of the way around the egg, so I the advice that it was a quitter was spot on. That leaves me with 14 eggs, all of which show life and movement. I'm deliriously happy at this point!

That's great! I'm glad that you are having good progress.

 

[tracyjg]

lost twomore eggs. One had no development but blood in it.i have to get the hang of these outside thing. The last two try's with the ducks mothering. Why is that harder to do.

 

[tracyjg]

No development in any of them. I figured we would reasonably get 3-5 good ones.

 

[WVduckchick]

Just set 19 shipped Serama eggs

And checked my 6 bantam cochin eggs on day 11. Looking excellent!

 

[cvala1015]

Just set 19 shipped Serama eggs

And checked my 6 bantam cochin eggs on day 11. Looking excellent!

Good luck!!! I just ordered some Lav Orp and Lav Ameraucana eggs from @bargain. Can't wait to get them in the bator!!