Many of my chicks quit on day 14 or so?

[aggie2013]

Hi! First time poster here. I actually made an account after reading many helpful threads here.

I tried my hand at incubating eggs for the first time. I had a shipment of 14 ameraucana eggs. 9 I put under a broody hen(who hatched 6). The other 5 I incubated with an additional 18 my neighbor gave me. Out of the 23 eggs only 3 chicks hatched (one didn't make it, she didn't absorb her yolk). It's now day 23 almost 24. I have 7 left that I candeled and it doesn't look promising. None of the embryos moved at all.

I took the rest of the eggs outside and cracked/took pictures. Many of them looked liked they stopped right at day 14. Can anyone help me figure out what went so wrong?
Additional information: humidity was kept at 45-49%, temperature in a forced air incubator was at 99.5, I used an automatic egg turner with the fat eggs facing up, and lastly I only candeled days 7,14, and 18.

 

[redsoxs]

I have no idea went wrong...kind of a hatching novice....but sorry it didn't go well.

 

[aggie2013]

I'm pretty upset about it =\

I got hooked on chickens when my same neighbor gave me 3 of hers to start with. I now have 2 black sex link, 5 barred rocks, 5 RIR, a Easter egg pullet and one cockerel. Last week I added another ameraucana cockerel and those babies hatched.

I wanted to help my neighbor because she has done so much for me. However, I don't know what to tell her about her eggs doing so badly. None of my shipped eggs from the bator hatched.

 

[n8ivetxn]

I'm sorry

..... I'm incubating my first ever batch.... my first thought about your situation is that your humidity might be a little high for the first 1-17 days (I run at about 35%), but that really doesn't figure, because at day 14 they haven't pipped, sooo, back to square one.

Is your temp and hygrometer correct? Have they been calibrated to see if they're off?

 

[aggie2013]

I'm sorry ..... I'm incubating my first ever batch.... my first thought about your situation is that your humidity might be a little high for the first 1-17 days (I run at about 35%), but that really doesn't figure, because at day 14 they haven't pipped, sooo, back to square one.

Is your temp and hygrometer correct? Have they been calibrated to see if they're off?

No. They haven't been. I kicked myself halfway through for not getting a second reader. That could possibly be it, before my next batch I will be sure to check that.

 

[n8ivetxn]

For the record, mine aren't looking too good, either.... they were shipped eggs, so there is a lower hatch rate than eggs from the backyard. It's hard to deal with when you get involved with chicks that haven't hatched.

 

[n8ivetxn]

No. They haven't been. I kicked myself halfway through for not getting a second reader. That could possibly be it, before my next batch I will be sure to check that.

I think that may be the problem, even new ones can be off by 2 or 3 degrees... there are methods listed here that show how to do both the thermometer and the hygrometer.... I didn't do it either, to begin with, but I had 3 different gauges and took 2 out to calibrate later....

 

[n8ivetxn]

It looks like you did all the right things....but shipped eggs are usually problem children. When you candle your neighbor's eggs, can you see any development at all? Were they early quitters or just clear, infertile eggs?

 

[aggie2013]

Only 3 of her eggs were infertile. 3 hatched, 6 are currently waiting, the other 6 were between 7 to 14 days.

All but 2 of my shipped eggs made it to at least day 7. Then they quit.

 

[n8ivetxn]

Wow, I'm baffled by the neighbor's eggs - they should've done very well..... I set 41 shipped Araucana eggs, but I only have development in a few. I think maybe 6-8 will hatch. Hmmm...