Incubator or Natural?????

[HHandbasket]

I have about 30-40% hatch rates if we incubate artificially (somewhat higher in the Reptipro... maybe about 50-60%). We have 80-100% hatches under the broody. And the broody doesn't use electricity, require an egg turner, constant temperature monitoring and humidity monitoring, or any expensive equipment.

My Olivia is sitting on her first clutch of eggs, due to hatch this Friday/Saturday. I got some bantam eggs outta Linda's yard, so I don't even know yet what she's going to hatch. I just know I'll be glad when she starts laying again because she was my best layer. Two of our 4 layers are out of commission (one is broody, one has chicks about a month old that she is now trying to abandon & they won't leave her alone LOL).

 

[Niss]

Tiss--I am at wits end, I've really stressed myself out with this. Most of the eggs I eat have the bulls eye. One egg was broken around day 14 and it held a living chick. One was a dud and I opened it up Saturday to find a dead chick at about the same stage of development. I have tried candling, but I am just using a flashlight and I can't see squat. Around day 20 four eggs were all dark with a visable air sac and one had veining and a floating blob. I could try again if I know what to look for. Some are green and some are white--I noticed with the colored eggs I have usually only seen the texture of the shell.