Is anyone starting eggs in the incubator today? Tuesday, May 26

[mom2chicksandpups]

Thanks for keeping me up to date on what's going on. I am in no rush. In fact, I'm kind of glad that I got these others in first so I can hopefully figure out if I'm doing things right before I put more in. I appreciate you keeping in contact with me, but I am not the least bit upset about waiting.

My first batch may be a staggered a bit. The game bantam that I brought home yesterday has given me another egg today and my parents just told me on the phone that they sent 2 more RIR/White Leghorn mix eggs home with my husband. I am not so much interested in those chicks, but they are good free eggs to practice with and I can give away or sell this first batch of chicks, unless my husband wants to put them in "his" pen when they get bigger. (Yes, we have "mom's" and "dad's" chicken pens. We have different opinions about the breeds we like.

)

 

[KinderKorner]

haha. Alright. It is a good idea to practice first. I am trying to make my skills perfect before I buy shipped eggs right now too.

I do want to give you advice. Staggered hatches do not work out well. I've done it several times. And the last two times I've tried it I've gotten 3 chicks to hatch out of 30 both times. The no turning, no opening, humidty. It all changes at the end and you either mess up your early chicks or mess up the late ones.

Unless you have a second incubator, and each set is 5 days apart. Then it works fine.

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

I do have a second incubator. I didn't realize I should do them 5 days apart, but I can do that if it works better. These will keep for several days or I could just throw them in the fridge because my husband loves to eat eggs! That's why he started us out with chickens and now I have chick fever!!

 

[carey34]

So it seems beyond the 8 EE eggs I know I have there are also, polish, silkies, frizzles, mille fleur, and a standard cochin within the other 12 I put in. She did mark each one for me so I do sorta know. I cannot wait to see what these come out like!!

What kind of bator are you using?

 

[jransmith]

I have a hammydown Hovabator. The old styrofoam, wafer thermomether, no frills kind.

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

I have a HovaBator with a fan and an egg turner that I bought separately. I am really wanting to try candling my eggs tonight, but I am so nervous that I will mess them up by taking them out!! I know it's supposed to be okay, but I feel like I don't know what I'm doing anyway. Wish me luck!! I will post later if I was able to see anything.

 

[sonew123]

Quote:
I have duck eggs and BO-RIR eggs in there too. temp at 100.5-101 humidity 45%-thats where its been for 4 days! so far so good-last hatch was ok-got 8 silkies and 22 mixed and a baby crested duck-he's a pistol!

 

[jransmith]

Quote:
Good Luck! I was nervous myself by just couldn't wait. I candled just a few and saw veining. Everything they say is true. Really dark room, really bright light. I'll do the official candling probably Tuesday (2nd) or Wednesday (3rd).

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

I have embryos!! I candled my 3 leghorn/RIR cross eggs and my game bantam egg and could see red veins in all of them! I am so excited! I yelled for my husband so loud that he and my daughter both came in the room to see what was wrong.

The Barred Rock eggs and the Wyandotte egg were harder to see because they are all brown. I did see a blob at the end of several of them, but they were too dark to see veins. I finally put them back without looking at all the browns because they were so hard to see!

I am so excited to know that I have at least a few babies that might be hatched!

I had to immediately call my parents to tell them that their chickens might have their first children (because they only eat the eggs & never hatch them.) I will give them the RIR crosses if they want them, but I am just so excited to have something hatching!

I put in 2 more RIR/leghorn cross eggs and 1 more mixed game bantam egg while I had the incubator open.

 

[calgal98]

Okay, I admit I've become an incubator fiend. My Dickey is now FULL of eggs. I have about 45 chicken eggs and 200+ quail eggs. I'm building pens and stands for existing pens. Wondering where I'm gonna PUT all of these hatchlings....YIKES