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I don't understand what I am doing wrong!! This is so depressing :(

Discussion in 'Incubating & Hatching Eggs' started by phoebeq, May 21, 2010.

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  1. May 21, 2010 #1
    phoebeq

    phoebeq In the Brooder

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    Dec 14, 2009
    Cotopaxi, Colorado
    Okay, I started with 24 eggs this time...today is day 8. I candled and I had about 4 that didn't start developing out of the other 20, all but 6 were dead! And out of those 6 I am only positive that 2 are alive [​IMG] I don't understand what I am doing wrong! My temp stays steady at 100 degrees and my humidity was always between 35 and 45 (I was attempting dry incubation). They all start to develop, and then die about 4 days in (if I had to guess). The blood ring is wide and there are still vessels present in some of them, but it is obviously dead. This happened last time...I started with 19, then down to 16, but about the same amount of time in, another 11 died and then only 2 actually made it to almost fully developed, but they died too (still had about an almond sized yolk sack)...I wasn't watching humidity last time and temps were the same (with a different thermometer). I am so discouraged, and I am considering giving up on this [​IMG] This is only my second attempt, but it just kills me to know that I am doing something wrong to kill these little guys [​IMG] Please help me.
     
  2. May 21, 2010 #2
    panner123

    panner123 Songster

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    My first guess is that your thermometer and hygrometer is not calibrated correctly. Even if everything is correct, this is only your second time incubating. It takes many attempts before you (anyone) gets it right. I don't always have a perfect hatch and no one here does either. As the saying goes, stuff happens. Keep trying until you get it right. The rewards are to great to let a couple of failures put you in the dumps. Check your equipment and try again. Just use your own eggs or cheap mutt eggs. DO NOT BUY A FEW DOZEN BCM EGGS FOR THIS TRAIL
     
  3. May 21, 2010 #3
    Bat Cave Silkies

    Bat Cave Silkies Songster

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    Bat Cave, NC
    [​IMG] You didn't kill anything.

    Are you using the same source for the eggs each time? I mean, are the hens and roosters the same ones that produced the first batch of eggs you incubated? If so, the problem may lie there. A poor quality egg may develop an embryo, but one that is too weak to continue to grow and hatch.

    If its a different source for the eggs, did you sanitize well after your first hatch?

    Think of it this way~~if you hadn't incubated the eggs, those potential embryos would have just been someone's breakfast....YOU gave them a chance at life.

    [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
    don't give up
     
  4. May 21, 2010 #4
    phoebeq

    phoebeq In the Brooder

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    Dec 14, 2009
    Cotopaxi, Colorado
    I don't think it is the thermometer, as I am using a different one this time and the temp is reading the exact same as last time...but, I will keep trying [​IMG] I am only using my own eggs...I would never buy eggs to hatch (not now at least). If I were going to buy anything, I would just buy chicks and skip all of the heartache, lol.

    Thanks for the advice [​IMG]
     
  5. May 21, 2010 #5
    phoebeq

    phoebeq In the Brooder

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    Quote:Same source...all my chickens/roosters. So how do I make them lay higher quality eggs?
     
  6. May 21, 2010 #6
    debilorrah

    debilorrah The Great Guru of Yap Premium Member

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    Hygrometer calibrated? Because there are practically ZERO that are right on the money.
     
  7. May 21, 2010 #7
    phoebeq

    phoebeq In the Brooder

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    Dec 14, 2009
    Cotopaxi, Colorado
    Quote:No...it is one that I got at Walmart...how do I calibrate it?
     
  8. May 21, 2010 #8
    zatsdeb

    zatsdeb Songster

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    do you have a turner or are you hand turning them? I had a turner that I used and after 2 bad hatches, realized that it wasn't working right, I turn them by hand now and have a very good hatch. I keep my temp at 99 and humidity at 50% until I bump it up before hatching to 80%. also I tried various places in my house to put the incubator, and ended up with the perfect place, the master bathroom. no drafts, easier to control the temp and humidity.
     
  9. May 21, 2010 #9
    debilorrah

    debilorrah The Great Guru of Yap Premium Member

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    Quote:No...it is one that I got at Walmart...how do I calibrate it?

    Take a small coffee mug and put in 1/2 cup salt and 1/3 water. stir it up and place it in a large baggie. Put the hygrometer next to it, seal the baggie and wait 12 hours. It should read 75%, but it won't. If it says 70% minus 5% from what it reads in the bator. If it reads 80%, add 5% to the reading in the bator. Mine was 17% off!!!! And once I figured THAT out, they all hatched.
     
  10. May 21, 2010 #10
    phoebeq

    phoebeq In the Brooder

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    Dec 14, 2009
    Cotopaxi, Colorado
    Quote:The first batch I hand turned, but when I did it I picked them up and kind of flipped them end over end...so, I thought maybe that had something to do with why the last batch didn't do well. This time I have them in egg cartons with one end elevated and I turn the whole carton around 3 times a day. I have it in our guest bathroom...no windows...no drafts...in middle of the house...the ONLY room in the house with a steady temp, lol. I was trying the dry incubation method because we have a pretty dry climate here and I figured it would be pretty difficult to keep the humidity up...but I guess I will try that next time...I am just so sad about this...I never imagined I would have THIS much trouble [​IMG]
     
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