Harris Farms Nurture Right 360 Incubator is AMAZING!

[CluckNDoodle]

I found an method online using Tupperware and baking soda and vinegar. Was very quick. Hate doing that. But it’s part of raising animals.
But for now going to incubator all cleaned up and running to dry and started collecting more eggs for the next batch to be started either Friday or Saturday.

 

[BenlynFarm]

Ok question for y’all. My first three hatches were great but this fourth hatch is not going so well. I put in 26 eggs total (2 of them I was pretty certain the air cells detached and wouldn’t do anything and they didn’t). 16 were shipped eggs and 8 were my own flock. At the beginning, I had issues with humidity fluctuating but I think that was my own fault and not the incubator. I moved it into a different room than my first three hatches because I needed that space for something else. The humidity was fluctuating low though and not high. I had quite a few not develop on the shipped eggs as expected, I have 8 out of 16 remaining. 7 out of the 8 eggs from my own flock developed and quit between days 1-8!! So I’m wondering what could be going on with my own eggs. My dominate rooster is almost a year old and has been mating the hens for a while now. He’s a dark Brahma. I also have a silkie is almost a year old but I haven’t seen him mate any hens. I have a Wyandotte that is about 8 months old and he is mating the hens. Does the age of roosters have anything to do with it? Should I be waiting until they are older? Or is this something that happened during incubation? Hope all of that made sense and you can share from your experience!!

 

[turkey girl 0964]

I am 100% buying this incubator! My c#ppy incubator from amazon doesn't work so I will buy this one.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Ok question for y’all. My first three hatches were great but this fourth hatch is not going so well. I put in 26 eggs total (2 of them I was pretty certain the air cells detached and wouldn’t do anything and they didn’t). 16 were shipped eggs and 8 were my own flock. At the beginning, I had issues with humidity fluctuating but I think that was my own fault and not the incubator. I moved it into a different room than my first three hatches because I needed that space for something else. The humidity was fluctuating low though and not high. I had quite a few not develop on the shipped eggs as expected, I have 8 out of 16 remaining. 7 out of the 8 eggs from my own flock developed and quit between days 1-8!! So I’m wondering what could be going on with my own eggs. My dominate rooster is almost a year old and has been mating the hens for a while now. He’s a dark Brahma. I also have a silkie is almost a year old but I haven’t seen him mate any hens. I have a Wyandotte that is about 8 months old and he is mating the hens. Does the age of roosters have anything to do with it? Should I be waiting until they are older? Or is this something that happened during incubation? Hope all of that made sense and you can share from your experience!!

When was the last time you had a successful incubation? If it was recent then we can likely rule out any issues with the Incubator.
Second, were any of the previous hatches from your flock? How do you store the eggs prior to setting them? (How old were they? What temperature? Did you tilt the carton they were stored in?).

 

[BenlynFarm]

When was the last time you had a successful incubation? If it was recent then we can likely rule out any issues with the Incubator.
Second, were any of the previous hatches from your flock? How do you store the eggs prior to setting them? (How old were they? What temperature? Did you tilt the carton they were stored in?).

I had successfully hatched right before this hatch, so I don’t think it’s the incubator unless the humidity fluctuating at the beginning had something to do with it. But it didn’t ever get too high just low. Or if moving it to the other room. The other room has more light if that matters.

Previous hatches were from local farms or shipped hatching eggs. Mostly local farms. I took a few fresh eggs from my flock same day and some may have only been laid a day or two before going in the incubator. They were on my kitchen counter about 70 degrees and I tried to make sure the carton was tilted and rotated. But maybe that was too warm? This was the first time I had tried my own eggs.

 

[aart]

They were on my kitchen counter about 70 degrees and I tried to make sure the carton was tilted and rotated. But maybe that was too warm?

Not too warm.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

I had successfully hatched right before this hatch, so I don’t think it’s the incubator unless the humidity fluctuating at the beginning had something to do with it. But it didn’t ever get too high just low. Or if moving it to the other room. The other room has more light if that matters.

Previous hatches were from local farms or shipped hatching eggs. Mostly local farms. I took a few fresh eggs from my flock same day and some may have only been laid a day or two before going in the incubator. They were on my kitchen counter about 70 degrees and I tried to make sure the carton was tilted and rotated. But maybe that was too warm? This was the first time I had tried my own eggs.

Before I forget to ask, is the turner on? Not turning the eggs can cause more quitters. Like aart already said, not too warm for storing and it sounds like you handled them well. It's also not the humidity dropping in the beginning, short periods of fluctuation in humidity don't harm the hatch at all. The NR360 is completely digital so even the sun possibly increasing the temps shouldn't be responsible because the Digital sensor would make up for it. So unless this is a garage with lots of fumes I don't think it would be the incubator, location, or the storage, which brings us to the more likely culprit of something with the flock.

Now, don't panic, because it can be related to so many different things. I don't have a ton of experience with immature roosters but it's possible that could play a role. Health issues would cause a problem, vitamin deficiency, it could even be something as simple as stress on the flock. I conducted an experiment over the past couple of years and when flocks are under severe heat stress I get more quitters, happens in the hottest months of the year here no matter how careful you are about collecting the eggs quickly, and the hatch rate improves when we have a rainy period in the summer, I can only assume because the temperatures are lower.

 

[BenlynFarm]

Before I forget to ask, is the turner on? Not turning the eggs can cause more quitters. Like aart already said, not too warm for storing and it sounds like you handled them well. It's also not the humidity dropping in the beginning, short periods of fluctuation in humidity don't harm the hatch at all. The NR360 is completely digital so even the sun possibly increasing the temps shouldn't be responsible because the Digital sensor would make up for it. So unless this is a garage with lots of fumes I don't think it would be the incubator, location, or the storage, which brings us to the more likely culprit of something with the flock.

Now, don't panic, because it can be related to so many different things. I don't have a ton of experience with immature roosters but it's possible that could play a role. Health issues would cause a problem, vitamin deficiency, it could even be something as simple as stress on the flock. I conducted an experiment over the past couple of years and when flocks are under severe heat stress I get more quitters, happens in the hottest months of the year here no matter how careful you are about collecting the eggs quickly, and the hatch rate improves when we have a rainy period in the summer, I can only assume because the temperatures are lower.

Ok thanks for all the information! The room I moved the incubator to is right next to the other room upstairs so the only difference was more light. I’ll do some more research and see what it could be with the flock. It sounds like that’s what it could be. I know dark brahmas take two years to fully mature but I haven’t read anything on whether or not it affects the hatching eggs. Does the hen age have any affect on the eggs?

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Ok thanks for all the information! The room I moved the incubator to is right next to the other room upstairs so the only difference was more light. I’ll do some more research and see what it could be with the flock. It sounds like that’s what it could be. I know dark brahmas take two years to fully mature but I haven’t read anything on whether or not it affects the hatching eggs. Does the hen age have any affect on the eggs?

It can, yes, but it's not terrible. I find that once they stop laying tiny pullet eggs they're usually good to set in the incubator. I've set the little pullet eggs as well but the outcome is usually better if you wait a few weeks after they first start laying.

 

[BenlynFarm]

It can, yes, but it's not terrible. I find that once they stop laying tiny pullet eggs they're usually good to set in the incubator. I've set the little pullet eggs as well but the outcome is usually better if you wait a few weeks after they first start laying.

The majority of my hens laying are 3 years old. I have a few young pullets but have only noticed one that is laying so far. I would assume all the eggs I used were from my three year old hens.