Low hatch rate

[Cluckingworwoods]

Thanks for the help, hopefully we can finish this hatch and move on to something better.

 

[nuthatched]

What I'd your birds diet?

 

[Cluckingworwoods]

18% crumble from a local mill. We also use layer feed 18 to 20% from ifa.

 

[Dinosaur Village Keeper]

People criticized you for free in-depth information? No gratitude, I guess.

It seems people are quite loyal to this machine. Everyone told me my unit was defective so I recently purchased a second one (they were purchased more than a year apart) just to test the theory. It is identical! I charted the temps for two weeks using 3 different thermometer/hygrometers readings every hour. They were all calibrated. Continual temperature fluctuations all throughout the day of more than 2 degrees on either side of normal temps. Checked every hour. LOW 97.8, HIGH 101.4 Temps remain stable at the varying degrees for up to two hours at a time.

 

[New duck mommy 2021]

Sorry you are having such bad luck
I don’t incubate chicks as I only have ducks
I read you stay at 50 % humidity
That maybe a bit high for chicks
I only run 40-45 % with my duck eggs and they are waterfowl
As for the timing of the deaths I’m thinking more of a turner issue
Try a batch with no turner only hand turning see if this gives you a better hatch rate
Could also be any small cracks you may not see to the naked eye
Do you candle the eggs before hand to check for cracks or tiny holes ?
I read many comments on how it’s all about the way eggs are stored before hand
I myself don’t follow any of those rules
I collect the eggs in a bowl
If I’m going to incubate I will weight to see what ones I’ll use then set them in a second bowl and leave them till I’m ready
No angles , no turning and no idea if the temp in the house suits the requirements
I have also used eggs as old as 21 days after being laid and they hatched
I get 90-100 % hatch rates
I run 40-45% humidity until lockdown then 65-70
My temp is 98.5-99.8
I hand turn my eggs although the schools that use my equipment and eggs do use my turners
I just has a turner that sounded like it was working but wasn’t actually moving
Thankfully I tested it before the school started the batch

 

[JackVinehopper]

I am new to incubation, we have tried two previous batches in a nurture 360. Our hatch rate is around 40%. My Temps and humidity are good, I have Calibrated etc. The embryos in the eggs seem to be dying around the second week. We are currently on the 3rd set of eggs in the incubator, from day 7 to day 14 there were 6 embryos that quit. Do you have any suggestions?

Here is an update on my just finished hatch using the dry hatch method. I used no water at all for first 18 days with ambient humidity in the room between 21% and 26%. Then went into lock down keeping humidity at 60 to 70%. I got 10 out of 22 to hatch which is my best success so far although nothing compared to others results getting 90 to 100%. Unfortunately the 10th chick is still not able to get out of the shell after two days since it unzipped. It must have a weakness. Every time I try to finally help a chick that doesn't free itself from the shell, just in case it's just shrink wrapped, there has been a reason; some deformity or incomplete development. I get one of these in every setting using the NR360. The other 9 chicks are healthy and doing fine in the brooder.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

We are currently on the 3rd set of eggs in the incubator, from day 7 to day 14 there were 6 embryos that quit. Do you have any suggestions?

Check out the following link.. trouble shooting according to what day the embryo quit or other anomalies seen start around page 51 ish..

https://www.hubbardbreeders.com/media/incubation_guideen__053407700_1525_26062017.pdf

I wish I could have left all of my 100’s of hours of information about my in-depth study on this incubator on this post, but I got heavily criticized for doing so.

I also bought, hate, and sold that machine.. not due to inaccuracy but due to chicks or eggs falling out when I open the lid to remove them.

Consider doing one really good write up, if you haven't already (even an article instead of a thread).. and then just linking back to that instead of writing it every time.. I personally would love to see it.. and highly value the "outer limit" experiences as much as if not more than all the hype and agreement.. it's those failure experiences we can truly learn from.

The eggs are fresh from our own flock. Our hens are a little over a year old, same with our rooster. We store them room temperature on the counter with pointy end down. We have them 3 to 4 days before setting them in the incubator. We have used only clean eggs and have not washed them. We check on the incubator several times throughout the day and all 3 hygrometer read 99.5 to 100 degrees. Our humidity stays close to 50%. The auto egg Turner is also working properly.

Very first consideration after reading this.. is feed routine and parent nutrition.. Please describe. Oh (more posts have been made), feed itself looks fine, but what treats are given? Also.. what color eggs? Are we talking about a specific breed here? Some are ,much harder to hatch than others. Lower your humidity to between 35-45% for first 18 days.

Hope your rates get up there, happy hatching!

 

[Climbingalbatross]

I have owned two 360 Nuture Right Harris Farm incubators and only experienced issues when- a) I didn't include a space heater next to it during the winter (ran at 1.5 degrees lower); and b) forgot to reset the turner. Otherwise, at 50% humidity and 100.5 degrees F, I end up with 95% hatch rates. I monitor all hatches, unless they are under a hen, with the Govee. It takes up two slots, but so worth it.

 

[hobbithobbyfarm]

The eggs are fresh from our own flock. Our hens are a little over a year old, same with our rooster. We store them room temperature on the counter with pointy end down. We have them 3 to 4 days before setting them in the incubator. We have used only clean eggs and have not washed them. We check on the incubator several times throughout the day and all 3 hygrometer read 99.5 to 100 degrees. Our humidity stays close to 50%. The auto egg Turner is also working properly.

Could be a rooster fertility issue? I was recently watch a video about poor hatch rates in goose eggs and they suspected it was an issue with the fertility of the male.