June Hatch-A-Long

[adalau]

Thank you so much! I am stressing out!

I read your original post and think you’re in the right track. It will all come down to monitoring the eggs and adjusting the visible water to increase or decrease the rate of loss in the egg. Do not stress out.... there is a fairly wide range of acceptable final weight loss that can hatch, so just focus on seeing noticeable air cell development and you will be fine.

 

[RoseHawke]

Thank you so much! I am stressing out!

I can only concur from my EXTREMELY limited experience (i.e. one hatch .) There comes a point, as newbies, where you pretty much have throw your hands up in the air and say "scr*w it!" and just go with it or lose your mind.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Okay conundrum....

eggs would be in lockdown. They should start to hatch Sunday.

two days ago I noticed lesions on broody hen 1 that has the lone baby. Thought she was getting back into the nest box and maybe a fight.

yesterday morning she has an explosion of dry fowl pox. She goes EVERYWHERE and we just had lots of rain so I’m sure she found still water somewhere. :-(

today four more birds have it including Broody 2.

broody 3 is almost 2, and had fowl pox when young and should be immune.

I’ve got six chickens that have been through fowl pox and 12 that have not. It’s clearly going to run through those that have not.

if this was early I would break broody 2 for her health. But it’s two days from hatch.

do I break both broodies to hatch the chicks away from fowl pox? Four eggs are polish that are notoriously weak anyway.

do I break the sick broody?

do I roll the dice?

I’m inclined to roll the dice.... I’m already rolling the dice with two broodies. Broody 2 will be eating and drinking normally on Monday...

Thoughts?

Oh my goodness, that's a really tough one. I've never been in this situation before. I do know that fowl pox can be much harder on chicks.

 

[Fur-N-Fowl]

Have any of you ever started incubation in an incubator that the eggs are pointy end down and then switched them half way through to a one where the eggs lie on their side?

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Yes I did exactly that with my Maran eggs, they were saddled so I had them sit pointy end down upright for the first 10 days or so and then put them on their side after that. They all hatched no problem at all!

 

[gimmie birdies]

I like blue eggs and blue feathered chickens, sometimes when you say you chicken is blue, people think of blue eggs, and you have to explain it twice. "oh I love the blue eggs."

Also I have a solid blue Wyandotte, and people think if you say blue wyndotte, that you mean blue laced.

 

[Fur-N-Fowl]

Yes I did exactly that with my Maran eggs, they were saddled so I had them sit pointy end down upright for the first 10 days or so and then put them on their side after that. They all hatched no problem at all!

I’ll most likely switch them over, it’s my first time incubating upright as I always incubate flat.

There is a noticeable difference in how they grow when I compare a day 7 upright egg and a day 7 flat egg!

 

[jolenesdad]

Oh my goodness, that's a really tough one. I've never been in this situation before. I do know that fowl pox can be much harder on chicks.

I knowwwwwww. What would you do? Im still thinking I’m going for it.

 

[Manhen]

I have broken the curve in chicken math. Last summer 88 chicks led to 86 chickens, 12 roosters. 4 roosters now except.....
The Leghorns I bred (8 hens one roo) and collected and incubated 69 eggs in 3 batches. Two have hatched with one due on Monday. Today I put in 55 Welsummer eggs and am still collecting from 1 roo and 11 hens.

One late hatcher I peeled out after it peeped all day still in the shell. It was weak and I left it in the hatcher by itself overnight. I have been watering it with a dropper with some lacto-salt from TSC and while weak, showing some pep. Peep.

 

[FortCluck]

My turned is unplugged in one bator so I can hatch upright. Should have chicks in 3 days if these chicks make it all the way through. My bantam Brahma eggs have such a hard time hatching, I’m not sure why, but only 1 of 6 hatched last time. Most were DIS it wasn’t the humidity or anything. My BCM eggs hatched 100% and were in the same bator and hatched on the same day. I’m thinking it’s the Deathlayer combo. For some reason it just doesn’t work.