Hovabator And Hatching Chicks

[Mahlzeit]

I had a brinsea octagon 10 before that. It worked very well for me for the few years I used it. Only problem was it held so few eggs. So I recently bought a hovabator and just put in my second set of eggs today. During my first hatch while the eggs were laying on the wire and the chicks were hatching they were moving around a lot and knocking the other eggs around. I had a few chicks that started hatching but never made it out. I'm not sure if it was because they were being knocked around or not. I was just wondering though if anyone else had issues with this and if so how you fixed it. Thanks a lot.

 

[FenDruadin]

My understanding is that the kicking around is perfectly okay. But it sure does seem brutal. Next time, I plan to put a damp cloth on the incubator floor to at least reduce the amount of "skidding" the eggs do after being kicked around. I have read that you can buy "hatch baskets" designed to keep the eggs more or less contained until they are completely hatched out. I might try to make something like that--some way of packing them together a bit so they don't roll around so much--but I haven't given it too much thought yet. I don't plan to set my next batch till Monday, then I'll have another 26 or so days to think it over (I raise ducks, and they take 29 days to hatch).

There are lots of reasons why some of your chicks may not have made it. Humidity could be wrong, they could have been old eggs when you set them, they might just have been weak birds. What was your hatch percentage?

 

[Mahlzeit]

Well I had eggs that were sent to me. Out of 14 eggs only 3 developed and none of them hatched. I put in 7 eggs of my own and 5 of them developed and all 5 hatched 2 were not fertile.

 

[JenEric Farms]

I asked this question a while back, because the rolling around seemed too harsh to me. Alot of people answered that they put the eggs in cartons. They cut holes in the bottom of the cartons so their was more airflow.

 

[Katy]

The eggs being knocked around is why I hatch in egg cartons....no holes cut in the bottom. My hatch rates are much better since I started hatching in the cartons. Under a broody hen the eggs don't get knocked and rolled all over the place, they're all nestled together in the nest.

 

[FenDruadin]

Oh, cool! An egg carton--it does make sense that this wouldn't happen under a hen, so it shouldn't happen in the 'bator. An egg carton is easy--I've got the cardboard sort, which should provide good air flow. I assume you put them in pointed-end down. Do they need to be at an angle? Doesn't it make it harder for the chicks/ducklings to push the egg open when they're working against gravity?

Thanks for the tip!

 

[Katy]

Quote:
I use the cardboard ones too. Yep, pointed end down...I don't put them at an angle. They zip much faster and just pop the top off. They have no problems getting out of the carton either.

 

[Mahlzeit]

The egg carton idea is great! I didn't even think about that. Thats exactly how they were sitting in my old incubator and they hatched without any problems. Thanks a lot for the responses.