Hatch-ALong - Setting first eggs 4/5, hatch day 4/26. Anyone want to join me?

[foxflower]

Actually, I did buy my eggs on byc. I thought it was an odd way to pack them. I will probably leave a factual feedback comment.

 

[The Chickeneer]

I candled too, culled 5 quail eggs, and 2 duck. I set some more bantam eggs today also, so well see how that goes....Good luck everybody!

 

[SmittenChicken]

Well, my curiosity got the better of me and I quickly candled my last light brahma/SS egg last night (the one that I thought had the beginnings of a blood ring at day 8). This time (day 10) there was no doubt, the blood ring was really obvious the second I put my flashlight on the egg. And the egg itself looked clear, except for the blood ring -- last time it had veining, but looked like it might be hemorrhaging.

I cracked it open and almost didn't notice the tiny embryo in the aircell end of the egg. It was about the size of a q-tip head and looked to be about day 7 or 8. The yolk was totally scrambled, and the embryo didn't have any blood around it at all -- that had all moved to the blood ring already. I'm guessing it died shortly before I did the last candling.

I took a photo of it, and you can clearly see the eye and the beginning of limbs. It's still at the point where it's hard to tell from a mammal.
I think this picture is far more interesting than it is graphic, but if you don't want to see a chicken embryo during your lunch break please scroll on by...





















There goes my hope of sex-linked chicks this time! Still have 36 in the incubator though (one more of which I'm pretty sure is infertile.)

 

[DiamondDust]

I candled my eggs again last night to see if I could detect movement and I marked those eggs with a smiley face. I could see movement in 8 Barnie eggs and 11 silkie eggs! Hooray!

Now I just need to be patient. I will candle the eggs again next week at the early part of the week. By then I will know if any of the "iffy" eggs are just not going to progress. Maybe by then I will be brave enough to remove the duds...or maybe I'll just keep waiting and pull anything that weeps. Ten days until hatch day!!!

 

[TXTiffany]

I candled my eggs again last night to see if I could detect movement and I marked those eggs with a smiley face. I could see movement in 8 Barnie eggs and 11 silkie eggs! Hooray!

Now I just need to be patient. I will candle the eggs again next week at the early part of the week. By then I will know if any of the "iffy" eggs are just not going to progress. Maybe by then I will be brave enough to remove the duds...or maybe I'll just keep waiting and pull anything that weeps. Ten days until hatch day!!!

That's great!

Today is day 14, and all six of my silkie eggs are doing great.

Only 7 more days!

 

[dretd]

Sounds like a candling party-- I candled last night,too. That's day 10 1/2. I pulled the two previously identified early blood rings. There were two others that had decreased veining from my first candling and one was for sure dead and you could see the little still embryo at the top so I think it died around day 7. The other one still has decreased veining but you could see the little gal (hopefully) swimming around so hopefully she'll keep on trucking!

I can't really see in to the Ameraucana eggs but I can imagine veins in 2/3 so they stay in.

I had weighed all of the eggs prior to setting and wrote the numbers on the shells. I reweighed last night and they had all lost between 8 % and 9.5 %. The ideal goal is 13 % weight loss. So I think I am a little ahead of the curve as they have all lost about 2/3 of what they should. Hopefully that won't be a problem.

Does anyone here go by weights and if so, do you know if there is a more rapid weight loss at the beginning of incubation?

So I still have 9 in the box. My hubby is not excited because we've had so many disasterous hatches he is not excited about having 9 chicks ( knock wood) cuz he was thinking 2 or 3 would make it. But they are so cute, he'll come around! The hard part for him is that these were gifted to me on the spur of the moment and he knows I have another 9 eggs preordered for Mid-May, so I am sure he's thinking 9+9 = a freaking large number if chickens! Don't worry, honey, I'll only keep the good ones !!

 

[foxflower]

Sounds like a candling party-- I candled last night,too. That's day 10 1/2. I pulled the two previously identified early blood rings. There were two others that had decreased veining from my first candling and one was for sure dead and you could see the little still embryo at the top so I think it died around day 7. The other one still has decreased veining but you could see the little gal (hopefully) swimming around so hopefully she'll keep on trucking!

I can't really see in to the Ameraucana eggs but I can imagine veins in 2/3 so they stay in.

I had weighed all of the eggs prior to setting and wrote the numbers on the shells. I reweighed last night and they had all lost between 8 % and 9.5 %. The ideal goal is 13 % weight loss. So I think I am a little ahead of the curve as they have all lost about 2/3 of what they should. Hopefully that won't be a problem.

Does anyone here go by weights and if so, do you know if there is a more rapid weight loss at the beginning of incubation?

So I still have 9 in the box. My hubby is not excited because we've had so many disasterous hatches he is not excited about having 9 chicks ( knock wood) cuz he was thinking 2 or 3 would make it. But they are so cute, he'll come around! The hard part for him is that these were gifted to me on the spur of the moment and he knows I have another 9 eggs preordered for Mid-May, so I am sure he's thinking 9+9 = a freaking large number if chickens! Don't worry, honey, I'll only keep the good ones !!

Well, even if all 18 were to hatch, probably only about 9 would be hens. I always subtract roosters since I know I won't be keeping them all.

 

[dretd]

Well, even if all 18 were to hatch, probably only about 9 would be hens. I always subtract roosters since I know I won't be keeping them all.

Exactly what I told him. I needed to order 9 because a 50% hatch rate is good= 4 chicks then with my luck they will all be Roos. The nice thing about Cream Legbars is they are auto sexing so I will know the ratios at hatch.

I made my own incubator a couple of years ago and ordered several batches of eggs over time. Between the shipping trauma and my inexperience I got 1 to hatch out of over 36. It was a roo. So I used him to hatch chicks under a broody last year. Of the 4 that hatched, yup you guessed it--- 4 Roos. My luck has simply got to change one of these days!

 

[foxflower]

Sounds like our luck with cattle--too many bull calves. Well, the first year I hatched I ended up with 5/6 buckeye roos and 5/6 salmon faverolle pullets! I guess that works out good for butchering. Both are great breeds. Good luck getting pullets this time!

 

[dretd]

Sounds like our luck with cattle--too many bull calves. Well, the first year I hatched I ended up with 5/6 buckeye roos and 5/6 salmon faverolle pullets! I guess that works out good for butchering. Both are great breeds. Good luck getting pullets this time!

Actually, your ratios seem pretty lucky. Salmon Faverolles are lovely chickens, very sweet

.

I also wanted to add that I am so glad I am not hatching under a broody right now. April Showers are supposed to be rain not snow! Just got in from shoveling the snow off the coop shade covering and this is one of those deck umbrellas that I put up that the chickens love to roost under. Of course the school district didn't cancel school so my strapping son is not home to help me

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