IA (incubators anonymous) September Hatches?

[Jules929]

Wow! These girls don't mess around! One of the "pips" turned into hatched in less than an hour:

 

[KikiLeigh02]

Oh my goodness! I'm so excited for you!!!

Wow! These girls don't mess around! One of the "pips" turned into hatched in less than an hour:View attachment 1557288

 

[Jules929]

Oh my goodness! I'm so excited for you!!!

Thank you!
And a third girl has hatched!

 

[Jules929]

Here is one of new arrivals!

 

[KikiLeigh02]

What a cutie!!!

 

[Jules929]

What a cutie!!!

Thank you!
Number 4, the assisted hatch, is doing well so far:

And another pip:

I think this 5th one is it, though, for this set.

 

[Kimmyh51]

So that is just a wild duck that you snuck your own eggs under? Will that duck stick around your place or will it wander off out into the wild after hatching her eggs?

I have a number of wild ducks who were either rescued and stayed on, or were hatched by rescue ducks who stayed on, she is I think a duckling hatched here last year by another wild duck.
When I say while they are wild mallard types, but they live here, and this is their home as much as it is for my domestics.

This particular duck set up her nest here and after hatching I moved them into the house and run, so she cant leave, but has shown no inclination to. I have from time to time left the run so she could leave if she wished, but she has only done so for a few minutes, or not at all, and has never shown any behaviour (such as repeated calling, pacing, flying at the cage etc) that would indicate she wanted to leave.

All the mallards who live here either nest here or close by then bring the ducklings 'home' as soon as they hatch and are ready to travel.

I can set my watch by them. I know when one goes off to nest, and sure enough 28-29 days later she arrives with her little fuzzballs. I can even tell when one is probably hatching, as they show up here 2-3 times a day for food, then you get a day they dont show, and sure enough the day after that she arrives with her newly hatched ducklings.

At the moment I have 7 wild mallards and their ducklings here, 4 in runs 3 roaming due to running out of runs (including my mother of the year and her 21). There is at least one more, due to arrive soon. And every single mallard who has gone broody has brought the ducklings here right after hatching.

They know a mug (who will feed, house and even give medical care when needed) lol.

The 21 ducklings are almost ready to leave their house and run and for mum to finish raising them within the main enclosure now. All are healthy, happy. shes been an awesome mum, and seems to have been perfectlymhappy inside the house and run raising her ducklings. This is the first year I have had a mallard rqise domestic ducks, but its been a great success for me, and for all the ducks involved, so I will be definately doing it again next year.

 

[Kimmyh51]

All your ducklings are so precious @Kimmyh51! 14 for 14 is amazing! She did so well!

Shes got 21 now, one of my domestic girls sat diligently on a nest of 7 eggs, hatched them and sat on them while they dryed off etc, then when the ducklings were ready to start walking around etc, she promptly abandoned them altogether. I found the 7 ducklings running about the run with all the adult ducks and not one of them showing any signs of bring broody or being mum. So i put them in with my mallard who is now nicknamed "mother of the year" who simply glared at le as if to say "what thehell are you doing with my babies?!", ushered them over to the other 14 and proceeded to mother them. The original 14 are now 4&1/2 weeks and the additional 7 3&1/2. All quite large for their qge, active, and healthy, shes an awesome mum.

 

[Kimmyh51]

Any cheeping or rocking yet?

Out of curiousity, What kind of temp fluctuations do people get in their commercially made incubators when the temperature in the room the incubator is in changes?

I am using a temperature controller i got online, and it keeps the temperature within 0.1-0.3 of the temp I set all of the time. Usually its within 0.1,occasionally it fluctuates 0.2 or 0.3. Is that the fluctuation u got in your incubator, or was it more?

The downside of my temp controller is i am using it with an incandescent lightbulb, so the lightbulb is constantly clicking on and off.

 

[Kimmyh51]

Thank you!
Number 4, the assisted hatch, is doing well so far:
View attachment 1557573
And another pip:
View attachment 1557574
I think this 5th one is it, though, for this set.

How did the 5th pip go?