INCUBATING w/FRIENDS! w/Sally Sunshine Shipped Eggs No problem!

[kwhites634]

MORNING ALL!!
I guess I better get to reading and an update as I go!! it may take while

Mornin', Sleepyhead

 

[WVduckchick]

Trouble navigating site! Ok. Sooo many Qs... what is zipping what is pipping? My eggs roll every time I turn them, what's best way to stabilize? Am I turning too much? It's day 14 for 8 eggs, and 19 or so for 4 eggs. I took them from mommy b/c she wouldn't set after she had one chick. I also had an egg explode when I was removing the older eggs, and found those in the bator-stink, the shell is dirty. Worrying about germs. How do I clean safely? Can't immerse, can i? I've wiped, but they need a better cleaning? Can I put eggs in (cut off) top half of carton to keep from rolling? I don't know what all the marking on eggs tell, I haven't candled since the bb from the first few came along. After the explode, I took the 4, put in LG with 8 fresh eggs. So help with info? The shells seem very hard, humidity is 50-55%. Heat stable at 99.5. Thanx

If you go back to the very first post in this thread, Sally has put links that will answer most of these questions. Many are also in her signature line below her posts. Lots of good reading and information.

Pipping is the first strike of the egg shell by the chick. It can be internal, just through the membrane into the air cell, or external and actually breaks the shell. This is their first breath of air! After a few hours (anywhere from 0-24 hours!) it will start to zip. The chick rotates inside the shell, smacking away at the shell as it turns, making a zip line around the air cell (normally) and zips the end off so it can emerge!

Rolling can be stabilized by cut-down cartons. I use rubber shelf liner, with little bumps that will actually keep them from rolling. How often are you turning?

Have you candled your eggs? By that I mean shine a light into the egg to see what is going on?

Staggered hatches can be a challenge. Your eggs on day 19 are getting close to hatch, and probably need the humidity raised, but the others aren't ready yet. Do you have 2 incubators?

Are your dirty eggs just dirt or poop?

 

[Sally Sunshine]

I'm taking bets on whether it hits one thousand by midnight.

when was it, your distracting me!!!

I was hoping my Bielefelder eggs would have shipped yesterday but they haven't shipped yet. They are coming to Utah from Colorado. It will be 12 eggs, I have a havobator 1588. Do the hatching do better if there are more eggs in the incubator. Just wondering if I should try to get extra local eggs to hatch with them? I just don't know know what I'd do with the extra chicks.

With my first hatch I ordered 100 quail eggs. Then I thought I have enough room to add 7 chicken eggs. I bought 7 SLW eggs locally. I started the chicken eggs in the turner four days before the quail eggs. The quail eggs arrived a day later than I expected. I too my surprise they sent 120 quail eggs. I let the quail eggs sit for about 12 hours, then we decided to put the quail eggs in the turners. There was enough room on the edge for the 7 chicken eggs. We hand turned the chicken eggs. My elderly parents live with us. So because I had to go out of town for a week my Father took care of the eggs. The humitity was in the 45-55% range, temp was 100. I tried to candle but I really don't know what I'm doing candling so I just left all the eggs in. 30 of the quail hatched one died a couple days later. 3 of the Chicken eggs hatched. My dad helped one and it died the next day. So three weeks later 29 quail and 2 SLW chicks moved from the inside brooders to the outside brooders.

did they ship???

Mornin', Sleepyhead

I am up at 5 am silly !!!

 

[kwhites634]

it's my closet,witch my brothers close are on the floor right now but he will just have move them.Its like a 4ft by 4ft by 4

Chickens are, by nature, foraging,dirt-scratching, worm & insect-eating creatures who love to take dirt baths. That's what they do! And they can't do any of that in your bedroom! I hope!

 

[napdognewfie]

If its a boys bedroom, all bets are off. You could have fed an entire flock of full grown chickens on the crumbs in my kid's rooms. Depending on which kid, the chickens would have made it cleaner. Lol

 

[ambe0487]

I've heard that English standard orps are harder to breed because of their plumage, but I'm not sure if its true or not. Either way I'm really excited.

I looked at getting a dozen of the mottled but figured until I was more experienced with hatching I didn't want to drop that kind of money I shipped eggs. They are one of my favorite breeds.

 

[cliffoco]

I have a another 2 zipping, and the other 3 are pipped, hoping for a 100% hatch rate!

 

[Kraftcrazychick]

This one is my favorite.









They're all so cute though.

Congrats on the peeps.

So, the lady at the feed store told me about the key on a string gender technique. I just asked in the gender forum if anyone had heard of it and if it works with eggs. I got a response that an old timer said so. I'm going to test it with these duck eggs I set on Sunday and mark them male and female when I candle them

Honestly, I would not take any stock into that old wives tale. Supposedly you can tell if a woman is pregnant with a boy or girl based on if she carries high or low. I'm pretty sure either would be just a guess. If it matters to you, they were wrong 2 out of 3 times with my kids.

Update: 19 chicks in the brooder, 3 pips in the bator, 4 unknowns, I will examine them tomorrow or as soon as the 3 pips hatch.

I am so thrilled, I can't thank @Sally Sunshine and @ronott1 and all you other enablers, this hatch is going about 1000x better than I would've expected. You guys are the best ever!

Glad to hear things are going well!

@Sally Sunshine I went ahead and covered a few on the holes below my mesh floor last night and made some up higher on the left side by the fan. So far the temperature is doing much better. It seems to be between 98-100 right now.

I tried candling last night but didn't really see too much. The eggs are blue, green, brown and cream so either my light is not strong enough or they are too dark.

My first time candling so I didn't know what to expect. One looked like there was a bubble floating at the top, quite large (possibly an air sac?). Another was empty except some freckles (possibly a clear), and one I saw a dark mass in the middle. I am hoping this is a baby chick! I'll double check the candling info before I try again so I know more of what to look for.

My husband doesn't think I will hatch much but I would like to do anything I can to give them the best chance possible.

 

[ShrekDawg]

@KDOGG331 YES I'm sure it won't but I would LOVE if it did!

That would be amazing if it did!! Let's hope.it does and then you can just be like "whoops" xD

And thanks Sally for the welcome yesterday and.sorry both of you, i forgot to check back hah

Also it's 10:38am here lol

 

[ambe0487]

So i have found that my electronic thermometer and hydrometer's readings are reflecting the top of the egg versus the bottom. 104@ top and :/100 on the turner and I'm waiting for the reading for on the very bottom. What should I be setting my temps at to be sure the egg is propely heated all around? I have a still air incubator. :/