Incubators Anonymous

[backyardklukker]

Yes, he has some nice looking birds. They are all white...lol

 

[clairegareth]

get a single LED torch (as you poms and us aussies call them) for about 8/9 quid. you can see though just about any egg with one.

ok brill not bad price either thanks

 

[DMRippy]

here is my take on egg genes. first they come from either parent not just the roo or hen. they BOTH contribute equally in those genes. eggs only come in two colors....white and blue. blue genes are dominate. brown is a coating. that is how you can get olive eggs by breeding a blue egg layer with a DARK brown layer. makes no difference what parent carries what genes. I would think if they crossed in a barred rock the brown genes would be easy to breed away from. you have to do that with some Ameraucanas that lay too green of an egg.

that English bird is cute and does look a lot like CCL do.

 

[ozexpat]

here is my take on egg genes. first they come from either parent not just the roo or hen. they BOTH contribute equally in those genes. eggs only come in two colors....white and blue. blue genes are dominate. brown is a coating. that is how you can get olive eggs by breeding a blue egg layer with a DARK brown layer. makes no difference what parent carries what genes. I would think if they crossed in a barred rock the brown genes would be easy to breed away from. you have to do that with some Ameraucanas that lay too green of an egg.

that English bird is cute and does look a lot like CCL do.

well said

blue eggs are blue because of a mutant gene. the common one originated in south america but there is also a strain of blue eggs out of china.

the blue is all the way through the egg shell - if you crack open a marans egg it is white on the inside. a blue or olive egger will be blue on the inside.

 

[dutchbunny83]

Hey guys I have a dead chick question--

I had 10 eggs go into lockdown and 4 hatched. I had seen them rocking around and had heard chiriping, but they stopped moving all together. I gently started to see if they needed an assist, but they were dead. The 3 Olive Eggers were huge, so I think they couldn't get themselves in position to come out. The 3 Marans had room to move around. All were fully developed, just hadn't absorbed the last bit on the yolk it was still in there with them. The humidity was great, and I'm pretty sure the temp was right as well. Anyone know what could have caused this for future reference? I think they died sometime early this morning as the other 4 all hatched last night.

I notice some people hatch in egg cartons, but I was thinking that could be difficult to push out of. Maybe I'm thinking that could be better? I had them in an automatic egg turner before lock down then just laid them down in the bator on their side at a slight angle. The egg turner kept them almost upright.

In good news, I have 3 fluffy little Olive Eggers and a dark brahma/ blue copper marans mix that I am super excited about

 

[ozexpat]

Hey guys I have a dead chick question--

I had 10 eggs go into lockdown and 4 hatched. I had seen them rocking around and had heard chiriping, but they stopped moving all together. I gently started to see if they needed an assist, but they were dead. The 3 Olive Eggers were huge, so I think they couldn't get themselves in position to come out. The 3 Marans had room to move around. All were fully developed, just hadn't absorbed the last bit on the yolk it was still in there with them. The humidity was great, and I'm pretty sure the temp was right as well. Anyone know what could have caused this for future reference? I think they died sometime early this morning as the other 4 all hatched last night.

I notice some people hatch in egg cartons, but I was thinking that could be difficult to push out of. Maybe I'm thinking that could be better? I had them in an automatic egg turner before lock down then just laid them down in the bator on their side at a slight angle. The egg turner kept them almost upright.

In good news, I have 3 fluffy little Olive Eggers and a dark brahma/ blue copper marans mix that I am super excited about

big chicks normally means that the water in the egg did not evaporate enough. did you track weight loss or air cell size?

I would gess humidity was a tad high.

congrats on the survivors though

 

[dutchbunny83]

No I don't measure weight or air cells, I just candle to see which are good for lockdown.

I don't use any water at all during incubation than at lockdown fill the trays and let it go, usually around 70-75% during lockdown.
I put them in day wise on lockdown at the right time, but I think they may have been ready before that being mail order eggs as the ones that hatched were about 30 hours after lockdown started.

I'm afraid the others may not have been able to get in position? I don't know....

The one I wanted to hatch most was the marans/brahma egg, so I'm very happy about that. Now let's hope she's a girl!!!!

 

[ozexpat]

No I don't measure weight or air cells, I just candle to see which are good for lockdown.

I don't use any water at all during incubation than at lockdown fill the trays and let it go, usually around 70-75% during lockdown.
I put them in day wise on lockdown at the right time, but I think they may have been ready before that being mail order eggs as the ones that hatched were about 30 hours after lockdown started.

I'm afraid the others may not have been able to get in position? I don't know....

The one I wanted to hatch most was the marans/brahma egg, so I'm very happy about that. Now let's hope she's a girl!!!!

i try not put into lockdown till i hear chirping - unless i will be out of the bator room. I want them to be dry as possible.

i stop turning day 18. i hear chirps at the end of day 19. by day 20 its a hatch fest. and if its not hatched by 12 hours into day 21, its normally dead. At the beginning of day 21 i drill a 1/8th hole in the top of eggs to give slow external pippers a chance to get some air. i toss at day 22.

this is after hatching scores of batches in my bators. your bator may give different times altogether.

 

[Tammy N]

I had 4 pixie bobs litterally tear up the bator i once had just to free the quail they did not eat them they just saved them . Good luck ..... PS need parts ?

 

[dutchbunny83]

I had been wondering if your profile pic was a pixie bob!
I hadn't heard of them until recently (My son's school was selling magazines for fundraiser so let my kids each pick out a subscription they wants and my 2 1/2 year old chose cat fancy haha. There was a big segment on the pixie bobs last month).

That's good they didn't eat them!
My older big fluffy cat doesn't bother any of my animals. He used to hunt all kinds of birds & rabbits. Then I started getting guinea pigs, bunnies, chinchillas, hatching chicks... Somehow he just knows he's not allowed to kill my animals I don't know how. I do worry about this kitten on there though, he keeps eyeing up everything like they are food!