Help, first time incubating...THANKS!

[sumi]

That's wonderful! Take out the pipped chick that hasn't made progress and check if it's still alive, it may be. If so, the article I linked for you in an earlier post explains how to help it hatch. 8/10 is not a bad a hatch for a first time! Well done!

 

[IdasChickens]

Thanks, sumi!

Considering (and I didn't mention this before because I could literally HEAR the heads shaking from hundreds of experienced chicken hatchers...I was embarrassed...), all I used was the thermometer that came with the kit! Talk about beginners luck!

I followed the directions from the Hovabator for a dry climate...And went by the airsacks when I candled.

Now, I WILL be getting a hydrometer for next time.....especially if I have special eggs in there. Like I said, beginners luck! X10 I think!


ANYHOO..

I moved the little guys to the brooder, so they are all together and fluffing up.

I took the pipped egg out and listened. Nothing, unfortunately. I am wondering if this one may have drowned?
I looked over my (very sparse) notes, and this egg I noted to have a much smaller aircell than the rest.

I am revisiting the link you posted...great link, by the way...And will update...

OH MY GOSH...I HEAR PEEPING ...I'M SCARED TO HELP IT IF IT'S ALIVE!! :/ I don't want to hurt it....
Hmm. Might of been a false alarm. Guess I'm doing this. I'll let you all know...

 

[sumi]

Open the pip hole a bit with a pair of tweezers and check for movement. Around the beak there should be a bit of space between the thicker outer membrane and the thin inner membrane, so you can remove a little bit of the outer membrane as well, to give you a better look

 

[IdasChickens]

I have chipped back the shell, keeping inner membrane intact. No movement at all.
If opening the lid affected any of them, it was this one. Seems like the eggtooth got stuck in the pip area. Then the membrane dried out.

I'll give the float test to the other egg...but I think I'm calling it at eight...

Eight cuties....going to go get those pics! They should be dry enough for a photoshoot now!!

 

[sumi]

I'm sorry to hear that... There are a few possible causes for deaths after pipping, you can read about them here, if you like:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/egg-failure-to-hatch-diagnosing-incubation-problems

But all in all I'd say 8/10 is not bad at all! My first hatch... faulty thermometer... A friend of ours loaded the incubator with 57 eggs, we got 7 chicks, by some miracle. I completely cooked a few of those eggs... Talk about a learning curve? My DH rebuild the incubator, put in a fan etc and sorted it out for us before we tried again. Second time went much, much better, I think half the eggs hatched.

Take the remaining egg and hold it against your ear and tap it with your fingernail. If there is a live chick in there it will tell you all about it. If there is no response, candle and check what's going on in there. What you can also do is open the egg above the air cell line, just make a big enough hole so you can see inside and dampen the inner membrane with a wet q-tip. Check for movement from the chick.

Looking forward to the pics!

 

[PD-Riverman]

Oh my gosh! That's a ton of eggs! What kind are they?

Yellow Buff, barred rock, Rhode Island red, white leghorns, old english game, gold laced and blue laced red Wyandotte, Speckled Sussex and silkie's---Recalling from my brain instead of my note sheet. But I took about the same amount out the hatcher a week ago, and some the week before that and the weeks before that for the last several months! I have hatched over 1000 in the last few months. Would have been alot more than that---but most of the eggs I was buying were No Good. I been hatching my own eggs in the last couple months-----most of them hatch.

 

[IdasChickens]

PICTURE TIME!

Here they are! Well, most of them.... it's hard to keep track of who's who, but you get the idea...

One Barred Rock.


One Barred Rock X Buff Orpington [front] BR X Speckled Sussex (I think) [back]


And don't worry. I had the heat cranked up [because we were all cold]...I know they still look wet (because they were just a wee bit...but they were only out for less than a min..) And they are all doing great so far!

This one I am pretty sure is BR X SS


And another (or one of the same from a different angle...) Barred Rock



Fluffy butts


One SS cross and another SS cross....little one on the right has curly toe. We made him an awesome sandal, but he already kicked it off... that little stinker!

Rocks again...



BONUS PICS!!!

Dad rooster strutting his stuff. He's been through TWO stray dog attacks, and TWO redtail attacks in the last few months, hence..the tail. He's done good though. We only lost one hen after all that.



One of the momma hens:



Anyway...I think I am totally addicted to the incubator. After trying to hatch in a Styrofoam cooler, that Hovabator was like driving a luxury vehicle!
And as I mentioned, all the little ones are happy and bumping around their brooder...and I am really happy with my hatch rate for my first time around!!

Thank you SOOO much, everyone! And you too, sumi, for all the helpful info and great links!

That was fun!

-Idas Chickens

 

[IdasChickens]

Yellow Buff, barred rock, Rhode Island red, white leghorns, old english game, gold laced and blue laced red Wyandotte, Speckled Sussex and silkie's---Recalling from my brain instead of my note sheet. But I took about the same amount out the hatcher a week ago, and some the week before that and the weeks before that for the last several months! I have hatched over 1000 in the last few months. Would have been alot more than that---but most of the eggs I was buying were No Good. I been hatching my own eggs in the last couple months-----most of them hatch.

So cool!

We have roughly 37 birds.....not counting these new ones...

and I have to, um...get rid of a few, or eat some...before I am "allowed" to hatch any more.

I would love to hatch some silkies or seramas or something really cute like that, but I am afraid our rough winters would be too much. And we're not set up for any of the warmer breeds...
Wyandottes, Legerns... or Cream Legbars; I'd love to have some of those in my flock.

BUT FIRST...I'm working on the Guinea keet angle. We need another "alarm system" around here and a few more mouse catchers...

 

[Lalegid]

They look great!

 

[IdasChickens]

They look great!

Thanks, Lalegid!

I like the little silver ones...