Incubators Anonymous

[robgray]

today is day twenty four of incubation after reading and researching I read that before I just toss them I should examine the chick and try and determine what went wrong. I just opened my first egg at the end of the air cell just to see if I saw movement I didn't so I preceded to open the membrane and I saw the chick moving I was so horrified I didn't know what to do so I put it back in the incubator I literally killed that chick now I'm scared that they all might be still alive tomorrow will be day 25 any suggestions ? I have four thermometers which seem to be accurate because they all read the same I have two trays of water with sponges in them I don't know what to do

What did the membranes look like? Was there blood? If so you may want to keep that exposed membrane moist with a little aquaphor. You will have to just wait. Somehow you got either the days wrong or the temps got too long which leads to a longer incubation period. Best of luck. Please let us know the outcome

 

[Lacrystol]

find the users Ladyisadora and Lacrystol..... They can walk you through this...
@Lacrystol

I'm here

 

[Lacrystol]

today is day twenty four of incubation after reading and researching I read that before I just toss them I should examine the chick and try and determine what went wrong. I just opened my first egg at the end of the air cell just to see if I saw movement I didn't so I preceded to open the membrane and I saw the chick moving I was so horrified I didn't know what to do so I put it back in the incubator I literally killed that chick now I'm scared that they all might be still alive tomorrow will be day 25 any suggestions ? I have four thermometers which seem to be accurate because they all read the same I have two trays of water with sponges in them I don't know what to do

First thing is to never open the membrane unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure, the way I check is, once I have the shell off, I spray his membrane with Water, then watch for movement, they will react to the spraying of water..

Tell me the STATUS, give me your readings, temp humidity etc..

 

[Lacrystol]

When did you put them in? Do you have a fan or no fan, did you candle them before you locked them down? Are they locked down? Need more information in order to help you.

As far as the opened one, Do not put anything on the opening, Leave it opened, no wet paper towels Nothing. Second, you will need to wet that Membrane Every two hours, If it dries up, it will cause him to get a blood clot and process will end. The only thing that is risky right now is bacteria getting into that shell. Is he making any noise and is he still alive??? Please give us a status report.

 

[Lacrystol]

As far as the others, I would make them all a Safe hole, first thing though, I would put each egg to your ear, tap on the shell and listen for any noises. If none then I would candle each one to see if there is movement. You will need a really dark room and good candler.. I particularly like using an app that's for free on my phone called Flash light, really works well except if the eggs are brown, then the only thing you can see is if they have internally pipped..

 

[country blossom]

Just sit tight for another day. Question----do you count the day you put the eggs in the incubator as day 0 ---the next day as day 1?

What kind of incubator are you using----does it have a fan in it?
What temp do you keep it set on?
Did anything happen during the incubation like the electricity power go off for some time, etc?

I hatch 1000's and 1000's and one time I had eggs to hatch on day 22/23. I used a new/different incubator than my normal one----which has its own thermometer----and it was that one that the eggs hatched on day 22/early 23. I put a thermometer in my main incubator for a couple hours----then moved it to this new one. The temp was 1.6 degrees lower----so I calibrated the thermostat and now all the chicks hatch on day 20/21 like normal. My other cabinets that I added recently are checked with my main one to get their temp set the same------all hatch the same time now.

Delayed hatching can be caused by several things but most of the time its because the temp has been to low. The longer a egg takes to hatch can lead to weaker chicks, defects etc.

If you feel everything was done correctly----I would suggest you up the temp a little for your nest hatch.

As far as these eggs------If you Know for a fact that you are not off on your days----I would give them another day---after that------""""I"""" would feed the unhatched/unpipped eggs to the hogs and re-group/re-set up for the next batch. Good Luck

The power did go off sometime I wrapped it up in a blanket today I woke up to peeping and two had poked a small hole then one was well on its way to zipping open the egg however it stopped midway no movement now the other is still with a big hole on top no zipping yet I figure the first one died already since it hasn't really moved. Is it normal for them to be somewhat moist inside ?

 

[country blossom]

First thing is to never open the membrane unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure, the way I check is, once I have the shell off, I spray his membrane with Water, then watch for movement, they will react to the spraying of water.. 

Tell me the STATUS, give me your readings, temp humidity etc..

Humidity right now is at a steady 67% temp is at 99

 

[Lacrystol]

The power did go off sometime I wrapped it up in a blanket today I woke up to peeping and two had poked a small hole then one was well on its way to zipping open the egg however it stopped midway no movement now the other is still with a big hole on top no zipping yet I figure the first one died already since it hasn't really moved. Is it normal for them to be somewhat moist inside ?

Some moisture is ok. Could be sticky too which is to much. Can't really say at this point.

 

[country blossom]

No blood in membrane just moist membrane I have one right now that is trying to hatch I haven't opened the lid other than when I took the first egg for eggtopsy. One is dead and still partially in shell. humidity is still stable at 67% . I guess the power outage affected them to a greater extent then I thought

 

[Lacrystol]

Humidity right now is at a steady 67% temp is at 99

67 for chickens. I would probably aim more for 60-65. Chickens can hatch at a much lower humiidty. I know all my chicks have hatched without being locked down and still on the turner. Because I don't keep track of there days. The only way I know I have a hatching is because they are chirping away in the cubby hole of the turner lol