Is my egg dead?!!!

[RandomDuck]

OMG.. Ok this is my first hatch, and I am shaking. I was excited, counting downnthe days until hatch, and I thought it was day 17.. Yesterday I was turning it and everything and the went to bed. Today, I was looking through my previous posts, and GUESS WHAT!? I had something sent 10 days ago when my egg was ten days into incubation, and then that would mean it's actually day 20!! OMG.. I FREAKED OUT, POURING ALOT OF WATER IN THERE, AND PUTTING WET RAGS ALL OVER TO TRY TO IMITATE LOCKDOWN HUMIDITY.. I feel so IRRISPONSIBLE about it. I need to know honestly if u think they are dead, or alive..

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Alive. I'd not worry too much. Stop turning them obviously and don't get the humidity too high in compensation as they hatch best at 60%.

 

[Ridgerunner]

What day of the week did you start them? That’s the day they should hatch. If you started them on a Monday they should hatch on a Monday. Doing that can help you count the days right.

The best thing you can do right now is to chop up some fruit, get a bowl of vanilla ice cream, and dump that fruit on the ice cream. Then eat it and chill. Relax. Hatching is nowhere nearly as precise as you think it is. Some people go into lockdown a full day early and do no harm. Some are late without problems. As long as they had not pipped externally you did no harm whatsoever. Even if one or two had pipped you probably did no harm. They are a lot tougher than a lot of people think.

 

[RandomDuck]

Thank you so much guys.. Since it's my first time hatching I'm kinda nervous, and I am only hatching one egg!! It was a risk to only try one, I know, but I was just testing it out. And ridge runner, I was reading on someone that had a similar problem as me.. And you answered it too.. Sadly I only have yoGurt right now, no fruit. Also I am trying to up the humidity, it's currently at 49, but I think my hygrometer is off because he edges of the bator windows have some condensation on them... How do you get it to go up more.. I have to soaking rags in there and a wide tray of water.. But I don't think it's really working.

Thanks, all replies are highly needed
~RandomQueen

 

[Egghead_Jr]

If you have condensation then your humidity is high, likely 70% or more.

Research "salt test" to calibrate your hygrometer.

1 TBSP salt with 1/2 TBSP or 1.5 tsp water in small container (shot glass size container). Put that and your hygrometer into a sealable bag (sandwich or quart freezer type bag). Wait 4 hours but 6 is better. The actual humidity inside that sealed bag will be 75%. However far off your hygrometer reads is the now calibrated amount you add or subtract to correct your readings. i.e. your hygrometer reads 67 after 6 hours in sealed bag then write +8 on a piece of tape and attach to hygrometer or incubator to remind you to add 8% to all your hygrometer readings for it to be correct.

 

[RandomDuck]

Ok, I will do it. Do you think 70 is too high??