Hot weather messed up my hatch!!!

[SpinningJenny]

I am so disappointed, and need to vent. I had two clutches of eggs going, one under a hen, and one in the incubator. The ones under the hen did alright. 7/10 hatched, (two weren't fertile). The incubator eggs were doing great, then Sunday(Day 18) we had a very hot day. I have a styrofoam HovaBator and no indoor A/C, and the temp spiked to about 104 for a few hours. I candled the eggs, and they seemed fine, and I fiddled with the temp for the next few hours to keep it steady. Then I put them in lock down. Well, it's day 23 and broke the rules to candle because I got worried. I think only ONE of the eggs still have veins and movement! I'm super bummed! I'm sure it must've been the temperature fluctuations to kill 6 out of 7 eggs that far along. UGH UGH UGH. I feel AWFUL and negligent. Is there anything else I could have done to help those eggs after a temp spike like that?

 

[Kiki]

How was your humidity the whole time?
How many other times did your "break" rules?

 

[SpinningJenny]

I dry incubated, and the air cells were looking normal every time I candled (which was only 3-4 times). They were looking well positioned and everything when I stopped turning them. Humidity was increased to ~60% for the last few days, and I didn't break any other "rules" except opening the incubator after lockdown. I did add more water when I opened too, since I noticed it had dropped a bit.

 

[WVduckchick]

Sorry to hear you had problems. A small temp spike for a few hours usually won't kill them unless its way high, or very prolonged. Could it have fluctuated more than you were aware of? Were these the same type of eggs hatched by the broody? How about humidity?

And rules? Egad! My eggs, MY rules.

Check out this hen and her eggs. Exposed to outside air, it was hot and humid, but probably only 50% RH outside, and probably less than that in her broody box! I watched from above as this chick zipped and hatched. (she is experienced, so I didn't try to push the egg back under her, although I sure wanted to!) She knew what she was doing.

 

[SpinningJenny]

Ok so it's day 24... Last night there was slight movement in two eggs! one looks to have pipped into the air cell, but nothing more. Maybe my thermometer is off and the temps were too low so they are "late"? Or, should I start assisting and break into the air cell from the outside? This is NERVE WRACKING.

I think the other eggs are toast, unfortunately. Candled, they only have very fine veins, and I can't detect movement. No blood rings though. One has a small blood spot near the edge of the air cell, maybe he pipped wrong? But I can't see blood pooled anywhere else. is there still a chance? BAH. This is the saddest hatch ever.

 

[SpinningJenny]

WVduckchick: yes, same eggs as the broody. One of hers didn't hatch properly either. That one started early, and the high temps on Sunday dried him out and he couldn't emerge.

It's possible the incubator temps fluctuated more than I noticed, since I wasn't watching like a hawk and just turned every few hours. But I feel like that's often enough to notice any prolonged spikes... I don't know. It's obviously something I didn't do right, since the same eggs were pretty successful under the broody.

 

[WVduckchick]

with a normal sized air cell, up to 24 hour internal pip is common before they actually pip the shell. Being delayed already, I would probably break the shell myself at around 12-16 hours after seeing an internal pip, if it hasn't done it by then. I had given up on some eggs that a broody got off of a few days ago, decided not to intervene at all. But i have an external pip this morning!

Please keep a few things in mind though. Slow development "can" mean issues, like deformities, or chicks that just don't thrive. Assisting can result in rushed hatches, unabsorbed yolk, etc. So how much you want to intervene and risk is totally your call. Can you cull one if the need arises, or is it worth the risk to help a slow one? There is no correct answer, just a personal decision.

best of luck whatever you decide!