Incubators Anonymous

[silkiefive]

hate to say, but it looks like your humidity #s are way too high. eggs need to lose moisture steadily so the chick has room to grow. the higher humidity is most critical only when hatching.

I incubate all my eggs between 5 and 15% normally, though with the rainy weather it's closer to 20% right now. then at hatching with the lower humidity i'll up it only on day 19 or 20 to 45-65% depending what the incubation humidity was usually. right now tho, whith the higher humidities, I'm actually dry HATCHING too for some varieties (dorking seems to like drier, cochin and sfh like a little higher, at least for me)

Wow!!! thats amazing, the manual says should be kept about 45% through day 18 , as a matter of fact it has an alarm that is factory set to beep at 44%.
So I am going to start over with a new attempt at 5-15% as you say, need to say they are silkie eggs and my incubator has fan.
Thanks a lot, just one more thing what do you think about temperature?

 

[TherryChicken]

I thought all my eggs were cooked last hatch went up to 110 a couple times and I still got 15/30. Check them before you get too discouraged

thing is it was way over 112

 

[TherryChicken]

thing is it was way over 112

the incubator lid burned my fingers litteralky. I highly doubt they would be alive

 

[Faraday40]

Do you remember my worst hatch of shipped eggs? Only one little chick hatched (& with a herniated naval, too). I was sure it wouldn't live through the night. Our little "Hope" at 1 day old:



Well, it lived & took 2 whole weeks to heal before being placed with my other hatched chicks.
At first we were simply hoping it would live. Then we started hoping that Hope is a pullet.


7 weeks:



Now all but 3 of the hatch has been rehomed. We held on to Hope just in case it's a female.
At 9 weeks old, I still cannot tell the gender. UGH! It's a Coronation Sussex. The weight & comb size look small, but the comb & little wattles look red.



Any gender predictions?
Also, it has a crooked toe. Should I do anything if it doesn't bother him/her?

 

[ladycat]

Looks like a boy to me.

 

[Bazy]

Do you remember my worst hatch of shipped eggs? Only one little chick hatched (& with a herniated naval, too). I was sure it wouldn't live through the night. Our little "Hope" at 1 day old:



Well, it lived & took 2 whole weeks to heal before being placed with my other hatched chicks.
At first we were simply hoping it would live. Then we started hoping that Hope is a pullet.


7 weeks:



Now all but 3 of the hatch has been rehomed. We held on to Hope just in case it's a female.
At 9 weeks old, I still cannot tell the gender. UGH! It's a Coronation Sussex. The weight & comb size look small, but the comb & little wattles look red.



Any gender predictions?
Also, it has a crooked toe. Should I do anything if it doesn't bother him/her?

I have nothing to contribute to your questions...I just had to say that last picture is an awesome face picture! I love it!

 

[maranfarmer563]

Has a little boy face,Elmo maybe?

 

[Bazy]

6 in lockdown yesterday, five more 'snuck' in this evening, 12 on day 3, 24 coming tomorrow or Wednesday, 12+ coming Friday. Looks like I'm going to be turning eggs by hand for a while until I make some room on the turner. Has anyone ever WISHED for the culls to show,hurry, hurry, hurry?? I will have to drive home for lunch every day!

Newbies, beware. the sickness will get you!!

 

[KendyF]

6 in lockdown yesterday, five more 'snuck' in this evening, 12 on day 3, 24 coming tomorrow or Wednesday, 12+ coming Friday. Looks like I'm going to be turning eggs by hand for a while until I make some room on the turner. Has anyone ever WISHED for the culls to show,hurry, hurry, hurry?? I will have to drive home for lunch every day!

Newbies, beware. the sickness will get you!!

I do this... Don't I know how many slots are in my egg turner????

 

[Bazy]

I do this... Don't I know how many slots are in my egg turner????

I tell myself 48 (there are 41) and oh horrors I am short 24 slots! I could have SWORN it was 48 slots (and yes, I have 65 eggs for 48 (really 41) slots.

I thought I was sooo clever. I ordered an additional incubator, but two fan kits and two cool hatch meters...and only one turner because, hey! I was just going to use the second bator for a hatcher, right? WRONG ...I AM GOING TO PACK THEM BOTH FULL AS POSSIBLE! AND HEY! I can get 50 eggs in the one without the turner!

It costs me about $6 per day to come home for lunch to turn the eggs until I get them culled down to 41 eggs (not that hard with the shipped eggs I've been incubating lately) A turner costs about $45-50. My reasoning is the turner will pay for itself in one week. Right???

Maybe I'm good at chicken math after all!!