HELP!!! So many pips and then nothing

[LuckyLouanne]

Were your quail nice and fluffy when they hatched or shortly after? I have 2 out of 11 that hatched yesterday, the rest are still pipping. One of the two is having trouble standing up and he seems a bit bald. He was the first egg to hatch. I am wondering if the 2 were a bit premature. I am on pins and needles waiting for the rest to hatch! I haven't been this excited in years )

 

[mrbstephens]

It took them a good half a day to start drying out and fluff up. Once I moved them to the brooder (out of the incubator) they had a chance to dry up the rest of the way and by the next morning they were super fluffy!

 

[mrbstephens]

Also, the age of the egg before incubating makes a difference in when it will hatch. Older eggs take a little longer than newer ones.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

The advice about a damp rag in the incubator is good advice. An even better way of being sure you have enough humidity in your incubator is at lock-down, add a clean sponge to your incubators water pan. The sponge needs to be higher than the water pan but only 25% to 50% as large as the water pan's bottom surface area. Then fill the water pan with warm water, or make sure the external water reservoir for your incubator is full before you lock her down.

 

[mrbstephens]

I've actually been adding water through the vent hole. Surprisingly they water level has been dropping throughout the hatch.

 

[FruitfulFaith]

Where did you get 111 eggs from? Wowzah! LOL They are pretty good at hatching themselves... Mine all took a bit but they seem to have an easier time than any chicks I've done! Good luck with them

 

[mrbstephens]

I have 10 quail that I kept in a pen and have been collecting their eggs.

 

[mrbstephens]

Well, we now have 100 chicks. One of the ones with splayed leg seems fine and I moved it to the brooder with the others. The other keeps flipping over on it's back. One or two more that hatched last night also seem to have leg issues. It always seems to be the last ones to hatch that have this problem. I hate to cull, so I may move these into their own brooder and see what I can do.

 

[jammyjammy2112]

i wouldnt sepate them unless they are getting pecked alot becouse they will have to establish a pecking order when there older and its best to do it now and maybe they can go with the others when there older they wont have to establishe another pecking order then but if there geting very pecked i would separte them

 

[mrbstephens]

The moment I put that one in with the rest it flipped onto it's back and the other started pecking it. I have it in another container with a few friends. Also....they're STILL hatching! Right now, all I have left is three eggs that are pipped and three that are not.