Hatching for Valentine's Day???

[crazychicken]

I am a bad bad boy I candled again last night and saw chickie dancing in side mocking me saying hahahaha you still have to wait ten more days

 

[chicken stalker]

Quote:
I'm in the same boat as you. I have one due to hatch 14th...probably on the 15th. I candled last night. Still moving..yeah!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

We just had a night of hard freeze here in Palm Beach County, at 7 AM it was still 32 degrees and the bird baths were filled with ice. One of my broodies has quit her project, she had discarded 2 eggs the night before & last night she was fussing & pacing around her little cage and the last 2 eggs were cold. I haven't yet had a chance to check them, the first 2 looked like duds.

But the other 2 hens are still on the job. They're each in a little cat carrier, side by side in a little pen. Last night I piled patio chair cushions around & on top of the carriers for insulation, and placed a board against the pen to ward off the wind. The hens are setting almost flat on top of their eggs and haven't moved much today. It will get progressively warmer here in the next few days.

 

[Msbear]

Yaayyyyy!! I have friends to share my excitement with. Im hatching 14 and 15th. I have 9 mille fleur cochin banties in there.

They were shipped all the way from California to the hills of WV and when I candled them, they had wacky looking air cells. They are now on day 10? and the air cells still looks funky... large and some have pointy spikes that reach down the sides? I hope all is well. I've hatched some of my own birdies but it's more unnerving when you pay for them

I have my humidity between 45 and 50.... Is that too low? I read somewhere where it might be and could be causing the large air cells. So I cranked it up to about 60. I really hope I didn't mess them up.

 

[shelleyd2008]

Quote:
The funky looking air cell is probably because they were most likely laying on their sides when they were in shipping. That would make the air cell move all over, and create the upside down 'V'. I have had many eggs like that, some hatched, some didn't. I don't think the air cell had anything to do with it.
The 'books' say to keep humidity around 55% for incubation, but I don't think anyone uses that. Most people keep it closer to 40%, and some even less than that. So 40-50% is just fine.


ETA: And it's only day 10???

I was thinking it was later than that!

 

[slickchick]

Okay, here are my day 14 candling results....11 BBS look good, 5 were clear. 7 out of 8 Ameraucana were good, 4 out of 8 barred rocks and 4 out of 8 SLW were good as well....I think it isn't too bad so far for shipped eggs...We will see on hatch day!

 

[crazychicken]

Ahhhh temperature spikes

mine has been holding steady at 99.5 but last night it jumped to 101 I guess that means that my chick is alive and producing heat, I lowered the temp back to 99.5.

 

[slickchick]

down to 6 Ameraucana eggs!! There was a smelly one this morning, so I got rid of it. I stunk up the whole upstairs!!! Tomorrow night is day 18 for me. Can't believe it is almost here already!!

 

[daisychick]

chicken stalker ;p :

hey come on over to the valentine hatch thread!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=125396&p=1

I was told to come to this thread!

I have 4 EEs due to hatch on Valentine's day. I candled today and all is looking good. This will be my first hatch ever so I am going crazy! I am already addicted.​

 

[crazychicken]

I have one egg on day 17

come on tomorrow is day 18 come on one egg I want a 100% hatch rate.

tomorrow is day 18 for me !!!!! can't wait