January 2020 Hatch along

[ChickenCanoe]

I pulled another 5 eggs from this batch of eggs

Does anyone else run into the issue of others eggs not incubating as good as yours or am I the only one?

I had blood rings and some infertile ones.

Wondering if I should add some more of mine in and I'll just put them in an egg carton when I pull out the turner.

Do as you wish but it is always better to set your own eggs. I've never had a great deal of luck with others' eggs.
I can control everything about my eggs and nothing about those of others'.
I can boost my flocks' nutrition beginning a couple weeks prior to collecting, make sure nests are clean, collect often, turn eggs during storage, store briefly in cool humid environment, warm them slowly, disinfect incubator between fillings, etc., etc., etc..
Other people's eggs aren't always fresh, properly stored or came from flocks with good nutrition.

...
I'd almost call her a feral chicken.

All my chickens are feral.
If it weren't for them being somewhat docile when they go to roost and being blind in the dark, I'd never be able to touch one.

 

[FortCluck]

She sounds fabulous!

Don't tell my husband but I just put five more eggs in he has seen me pull out all those eggs because he threw them away for me... I'll just say they magically regenerated

 

[FortCluck]

Do as you wish but it is always better to set your own eggs. I've never had a great deal of luck with others' eggs.
I can control everything about my eggs and nothing about those of others'.
I can boost my flocks' nutrition beginning a couple weeks prior to collecting, make sure nests are clean, collect often, turn eggs during storage, store briefly in cool humid environment, warm them slowly, disinfect incubator between fillings, etc., etc., etc..
Other people's eggs aren't always fresh, properly stored or came from flocks with good nutrition.


All my chickens are feral.
If it weren't for them being somewhat docile when they go to roost and being blind in the dark, I'd never be able to touch one.

I don't know if you saw my egg storage hutch that my father made for me, but it is probably the most talked about piece of furniture in my home.

So many people have told me to turn it into an incubator, but they don't get the significance of this piece of furniture. It is a restored antique that my father found at an antique store... He put so much work into this to make this a Christmas gift for me because I had shown him a picture of this egg storage shelf many months ago. I was just showing him because I thought it was nice looking.

Then he made it for me... He completely sanded down the finish that was on it and redid it himself. Someone built this by hand by themselves many many moons ago. It was a potato/onion cupboard my father thinks.

It perfectly stores my eggs for either giving to our neighbors, friends, or family... It also stores them perfectly for incubation. I just put the eggs that look the nicest and cleanest so that it's easy to pick for incubation or giving away.

There was also discussion on another thread before when I showed this about the lighting in there and it getting too hot for the eggs. My father already tested the heat on that light for over a few weeks before he gifted it to me to make sure that it wouldn't heat up my eggs. It's LED lighting.

 

[FortCluck]

And it fits 12 eggs... It will fit about 8 dozen eggs cartons as well on the bottom shelf

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I don't know if you saw my egg storage hutch that my father made for me, but it is probably the most talked about piece of furniture in my home.

So many people have told me to turn it into an incubator, but they don't get the significance of this piece of furniture. It is a restored antique that my father found at an antique store... He put so much work into this to make this a Christmas gift for me because I had shown him a picture of this egg storage shelf many months ago. I was just showing him because I thought it was nice looking.

Then he made it for me... He completely sanded down the finish that was on it and redid it himself. Someone built this by hand by themselves many many moons ago. It was a potato/onion cupboard my father thinks.

It perfectly stores my eggs for either giving to our neighbors, friends, or family... It also stores them perfectly for incubation. I just put the eggs that look the nicest and cleanest so that it's easy to pick for incubation or giving away.

There was also discussion on another thread before when I showed this about the lighting in there and it getting too hot for the eggs. My father already tested the heat on that light for over a few weeks before he gifted it to me to make sure that it wouldn't heat up my eggs. It's LED lighting.

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That is very nice.
I might add that eggs need to be turned during storage just like during incubation.
If I'm proactive enough, I put them in turning racks in the basement where it is cool and humid.
If I'm procrastinating I keep them in egg cartons on the back porch in winter and turn them about 3 times a day. I can't do that in summer. I keep it about 50F on the back porch and it is always at least 50% and sometimes 80% humidity out there.

https://www.pasreform.com/en/knowledge/56/storage-of-hatching-eggs

 

[FortCluck]

That is very nice.
I might add that eggs need to be turned during storage just like during incubation.
If I'm proactive enough, I put them in turning racks in the basement where it is cool and humid.
If I'm procrastinating I keep them in egg cartons on the back porch in winter and turn them about 3 times a day. I can't do that in summer. I keep it about 50F on the back porch and it is always at least 50% and sometimes 80% humidity out there.

I don't turn because most are fresh and I plan on incubating them within 24 hours. Mine never sit out more than 24 hours. If they do then they're put into cartons for my drs office or saved for Sunday breakfast

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I get it. I try not to set eggs more frequently than once a week. That keeps them relatively fresh yet prevents problems from staggered hatches.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

I was just gifted 10 fertile bantam eggs this morning. He said they were warm under his hen when he grabbed them this morning. Don’t know what to do?! At work, can’t go home. Nothing is very warm in the shop here. Worst part, no room in the incubators! Has anyone ever double stacked before? Should I try for fun?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The eggs getting cool this early shouldn't be a problem at all.
The problem I see is in the urge to double stack.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

These aren’t as important as the others. He just happened to bring them in. If 98 degrees will incubate them, could put them in the emu incubator on the floor and hand turn. Or give up and have extras for the dogs at dinner time.