International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[Old Man Tom]

@Old Man Tom ..... what do you do the last 3 days when you dry hatch. Do you bring the humidity to 65 and never open the lid again?

YES you want to up the humidity to 65% when you lock them down. Then do not open the bator until day 21. Remember that was my very first hatch. I have another 21 in the bator , right now! I think day 14. I did not candle my eggs, either. TOM

 

[KF0002]

@RedBanks if you are struggling to get the humidity up use a kitchen sponge soaked with water and/or a bowl of water deep enough that the chicks cant get in it and drown or make a mess and set it inside the incubator under the plug hole. You can squirt more water in to wet the sponge through the plug hole when needed. When making adjustments to humidity give the incubator an hour or so to come back up to set temp and adjust before checking and making more adjustments.

Also if you are struggling to get the humidity up you can do what I did in my Genesis. I took the plastic humidity pan completely out and put water straight into the bottom of the incubator. I use mason jar lids to support the wire and keep it off the water so the chicks dont get wet. Trial and error. You have to do what works for you. The reason I did that was because during the winter hatches it is so dry that I struggled to get the humidty up in the hatcher. I dont have a problem now but I have to be diligent about checking the water and adding more so it doesnt go dry during lockdown. I add water with the tubing an a turkey baster. Redneck ingenuity at its finest.

 

[KF0002]

YES you want to up the humidity to 65% when you lock them down. Then do not open the bator until day 21. Remember that was my very first hatch. I have another 21 in the bator , right now! I think day 14. I did not candle my eggs, either. TOM

I dont open the incubator until day 22. If you open it on day 21 there are still going to be pipped eggs and chicks in the process of hatching and they will dry out. Chicks absorb their yolk into their abdomen prior to hatching and that sustains them for 3 days after they hatch. They are fine to go for up to 3 days without food or water so dont get in a hurry to get them out.. they'll be fine. That is how hatcheries can send newborn chicks through the mail on a 2-3 day trip to customers.

 

[KF0002]

If you have ever watched a mama hen hatch off you'll notice that they dont come off the nest the day they start hatching. They dont bring their chicks off the nest until day 22 or even day 23. They do that to ensure their chicks are up on their feet good and are strong enough to follow the hen. Nature is amazing in this way. Trust nature and dont be in a hurry to get those chicks out of the incubator. Cant wait to see your chicks! @RedBanks

 

[KF0002]

Also dont be alarmed if the chicks are panting in the incubator. That is pretty common and their natural way of cooling themselves. I assure you, unless your incubator is overheating they'll be fine. They wont dehydrate because they have their yolk sac, and they wont overheat.

Once you get them out of the incubator you can dip their beaks to show them where the water is. I do a few but not all. Those will show the others. They are pretty smart usually at figuring it all out.

 

[Old Man Tom]

I dont open the incubator until day 22. If you open it on day 21 there are still going to be pipped eggs and chicks in the process of hatching and they will dry out. Chicks absorb their yolk into their abdomen prior to hatching and that sustains them for 3 days after they hatch. They are fine to go for up to 3 days without food or water so dont get in a hurry to get them out.. they'll be fine. That is how hatcheries can send newborn chicks through the mail on a 2-3 day trip to customers.

I totally agree with you, about leaving them in longer. BUT there is web site on hatching eggs that says to pull them as soon as they are dry to get them to the feed and water. These people were really furious about me not taking mine out. I could feel the hostility in the posts. MY chics all hatched in 24 hours of each other and I moved them to the brooder. I have Probiotic and Electrolyte along with the chic starter. These chic were very nice size and all are doing fine at 4 weeks. It is really hard to leave them alone! Good luck TOM

 

[Red Banks]

I totally agree with you, about leaving them in longer. BUT there is web site on hatching eggs that says to pull them as soon as they are dry to get them to the feed and water. These people were really furious about me not taking mine out. I could feel the hostility in the posts. MY chics all hatched in 24 hours of each other and I moved them to the brooder. I have Probiotic and Electrolyte along with the chic starter. These chic were very nice size and all are doing fine at 4 weeks. It is really hard to leave them alone! Good luck TOM

Everybody is always sure they are right. We are an intolerant species. There are many roads to success.

 

[KF0002]

I totally agree with you, about leaving them in longer. BUT there is web site on hatching eggs that says to pull them as soon as they are dry to get them to the feed and water. These people were really furious about me not taking mine out. I could feel the hostility in the posts. MY chics all hatched in 24 hours of each other and I moved them to the brooder. I have Probiotic and Electrolyte along with the chic starter. These chic were very nice size and all are doing fine at 4 weeks. It is really hard to leave them alone! Good luck TOM

Then those people are all ignorant for shaming you, Tom. Ive been hatching chickens since I was a teenager and I can tell you that opening the incubator while eggs are pipping and in the process of hatching is not a good move. Even if there are a few chicks in there that have already hatched and dried it isnt worth risking shrink wrapping the others to get the newborns out. Waiting until the 22nd day has always been best for me, but others may do things differently and to each their own. Your monkeys, your circus is what I always say. Lol.

I have learned a lot over the years by trial and error. Ive learned from my mistakes and my failures. Nature has designed a newborn chick to be able to go several days before it has to get to food or water. This desgin ensures that the chicks are strong enough to run when the hen brings them off the nest, to run for safety to evade being taken by predators, and walk with the hen as she brings them to food/water. Newborn baby chicks take a bit to get up on their feet and a hen doesnt bring them off the nest as soon as they are dry I assure you. If she did she wouldnt get very far with them because they couldnt follow her and they would be too vulnerable. That is my take on it all. I have good results and hatch lots of healthy chicks.

 

[KF0002]

I have left chicks in the incubator until the 23rd day before for whatever reason and they are just right as rain. Whether others like it or not, I dont care. I am not advocating leaving chicks in the incubator that long, but under special circumstances you can if you must and they'll be just fine. I've had to leave them in an extra day because of having to stay over for a double shift at work then was too exhausted when I got home or for other like reasons. They know mama still loves them though because we take very good care of our birds. There is not an ill or poor bird on this property and I bust my hump to make sure of that. *steps down off soap box*

 

[KF0002]

It is common for me to set Games, Legbars, and Marans all in one clutch. The Games start hatching on day 20 and most of them are completely done hatching by day 21. The Marans dont start hatching until day 21 usually and are not completely done hatching until day 22. I dont jeopardize my Marans chicks by getting the Game chicks out on day 21 when the Marans are just getting started. They all stay in until day 22.