March 2017! Hatch with us!

[WVduckchick]

Love the video!

Hi all....been reading through the complete thread, started Friday. LOL And trying to decide as I read whether to join in and admit what a dork I am. I am doing my first incubation and I believe I have made about a million mistakes. I'll try to make this as quick and short as possible because I have a question at the end.

I finally decided I wanted to incubate some of my Welsh Harlequin ducks...bought a Farm Innovators incubator on the recommendation of a friend. For 3 days I could not get the humidity to not fluctuate so I got aggravated and from somewhere read people had had better luck with ducks with a Genesis Hovabator, convinced hubby it would be an early BD present and got it. Within 24 hours it was maintaining heat AND humidity well. Yay! Set 21 eggs that were from 1-4 days fresh (and diligently turned as they waited) on the 25th of February. When I ordered the Hovabator on the 21, I said, "what the hey, I'll just set a bunch of my mixed flock chicken". So I set 27 not so carefully gathered and saved as the diligence I used with the duck eggs. Candled yesterday and pulled 7, a couple empty, one blood ring and the rest blobs with no blood vessels discernible. I hope I didn't screw that up. Anyway, the FI 'bator with chicks flipped to day 4 this afternoon so I am assuming tomorrow afternoon I need to start lockdown? And I need to get that thing to stay at 70%...am I right?

Oops...another question. The Hovabator has no countdown for days. Is it 25 days for ducks? I read that I thought and then read 28. I'm confused. Candled them yesterday also, removed 2 that were clearly empty and one with a blob and no discernible blood vessels. So I have 18 that had really good blood vessels and small blobs. I was so freaked at possibly messing up the humidity I was moving quick and didn't examine really, really carefully but all 18 had really great blood vessels and this was day 15? I have been maintaining them at 50% humidity per the Metzers site...I think was where I read it. I read their directions for cool down and spraying but decided I would not do this first time around.

Have loved reading this thread and have learned SO MUCH. Thank you everyone for sharing.

What breed of ducks? Most are 28 days on average. Call ducks are usually 26 days, Muscovy run 35ish.
50% is pretty high, but different things work for different people. Monitoring air cells and development is your best guide. Starting lower seems to be easier to adjust later. If you start too high, it's hard to catch up. But if you start low, and it's too low, adding humidity is usually easier.

So that thing counts down instead of up? Look at it this way, assuming 21 or 28 day incubation, they should hatch on the same day of the week as the day you set, 3 (or 4) weeks later. Monday to Monday, Tuesday to Tuesday, etc.

On candling, use the brightest, highest lumen light you can find, with fresh batteries.

And welcome aboard!!

 

[Birdydeb]

Welsh Harlequin ducks. Thank you for the help. I read where you said 28 days earlier in this thread and I do not know where I kept reading 25. Gah! Well...they are still in the incubator so all is well I suppose.

The Farm Innovators incubator counts down instead of up. Hovabator has no countdown but it does better at maintaining humidity. ...and easier to add some water. Relying on sponges when I need to up humidity in FI.

 

[WVduckchick]

Welsh Harlequin ducks. Thank you for the help. I read where you said 28 days earlier in this thread and I do not know where I kept reading 25. Gah! Well...they are still in the incubator so all is well I suppose.

The Farm Innovators incubator counts down instead of up. Hovabator has no countdown but it does better at maintaining humidity. ...and easier to add some water. Relying on sponges when I need to up humidity in FI.

Duh you did say Welshies, my brain skipped it lol

You have been warned that this hatching thing is addictive, right?

 

[yeye5]

I use a Brinesa EcoGlow brooder. It's sits to one side at the bottom. I love it! They're not exactly cheap, but I've had a couple of scares with heat lamps. The other nice thing about the EcoGlow is that the chicks tuck themselves under it like a broody hen, and come out to explore. I find it prepares them better for moving to the big coop as opposed to being under a lamp all the time. It's kind of like hardening off plants you started indoors. It's harder to control temp with a heat lamp. With this brooder set up, the chicks also start roosting pretty early, usually 2-3 weeks. It's cute to watch them learn. The chicks in that photo are BCM. That photo is from a couple of years ago.

I have 2 chicks this morning! No idea if I have any more pips. The 2 chicks have been playing soccer!

My late response. I was not online yesterday...
Now I get what you're describing. I didn't know they were made commercially. My friend (who order 3 chicks lasy year from Meyer) built her own. ..looks like a semi circle but a tiny bit flatter than round, mimics the broody. She used a metal frame with a heating pad, covered it all so no metal nor too hot places existed. The chicks loved it and grew up great and strong. If you get a chance would you please take a couple of pics of yours? If (When) I build my own brooder that is the style I want to use. I'm under-developed in my skill set of building (anything) but I'm also a visual and when possible a hands-on learner.You could give me a book and I wouldn't learn the process nearly as well or quickly as if you included photos with the book instructions.

 

[lilwildrabbit]

Duh you did say Welshies, my brain skipped it lol

You have been warned that this hatching thing is addictive, right?

Sounds like someone just said the magic word to WV

 

[yeye5]

@Jim121898
Yesterday I did just that, plain water. Because these chicks were "cooped up" (Ha) under mom for an extra week instead of being chicks they were still pretending to be eggs. She cared for them while trying to hatch the other eggs that had been secretly laid in her nest behind my back by 2 pullets that--Coincidentally--had just started laying the same early days Mima started sitting. It was a big confusion that worked out much better than it might have. By the time I had determined there were no more viable eggs in there, opened up the nest letting daytime fresh air circulate, removed the eggs and Mima snapped awake and aware of no longer having to brood the eggs she began teaching the chicks. They had failed to gain that 1st week baby weight that they should have and I suspected mild dehydration from the feel of them ad their mom selecting out eggs when she knew they were "done trying" by depositing them into the water. So the chicks had no concept of drinking water (I had dipped their beaks multiple times). That was my reasoning, just to get them started, boost their energy (it Worked and they are hype-rkinetic now!).
And they are eating and drinking with their mom. Whew!

 

[yeye5]

Hah, how fun!! I had 3 more pip last night, and a little male CL hatch this morning! I candled the next batch who are on day 15 and had a couple quitters and some definite re-checkers before lockdown. Shipping is so hard on little embryo development. It truly is a wonder when any of them hatch!

Hooray!!! Our March host is hatching!!!

 

[Birdydeb]

Duh you did say Welshies, my brain skipped it lol

You have been warned that this hatching thing is addictive, right?

Yep, Welshies. I LOVE them. 5 ducks and a drake whose name is Harley. Maybe I shouldn't tell you I am also in WV.

 

[orrpeople]

Well I finally have some external piping going on. Day 21 was yesterday, and with the power outage, and a tad low temperature I figured they'd be a little late. Like I said in an earlier post this is my fourth and final hatch. I have 9 eggs that made it to lockdown and four have external pips. One of them has a pip on the wrong end of the egg.

The last three hatches have produced one each of wrong end pips. I'm curious as to if there is a reason, or something I'm doing wrong that causes this? Like I said it always seems as if there is one that has things backwards. I look forward to any and all advice in regards to this issue. Thanks Jim

Hey Jim, refresh my memory - shipped or back yard eggs? I think shipped embryos have difficulty with malpositioning because of their odd air cells. That's one of the reasons given for keeping them in cut down egg cartons the whole time. That said, some malpos are embryos that are badly formed, or embryos that are too large and can't reposition for hatch, or sometimes double yolkers...there are a lot of circumstances. They almost always need assistance, which as we know, is a dicey prospect...

 

[yeye5]

A heating pad...why didn't I ever think of that? That's a great idea!

I think my hatch is probably finished. I candled the remainders. It looks like at least 2 quit early (pourous eggs...I should know better!), and the others are so dark, I was never even sure they were developing. Those OE shells are THICK. 2 out of 6 from my own eggs is a pretty terrible hatch rate, but with the crazy weather we've been having, and questionable fertility, I'm not terribly surprised. I'm just glad I have at least 2 so they won't be lonely. Nice thing about 2 chicks is that the brooder will stay clean longer, and we can definitely tell them apart.

My two little Olive egger chicks are nearly dry now. They are SO cute! I wasn't sure what to expect. I can't keep track of which hen lays which egg, so I wasn't sure what they would look like. Plus they are 2nd generation, and you never know what traits will turn up. One chick looks just like a BCM, dark gray with a copper face. The other is blonde chipmunk. I'll take pictures when they move to the brooder!

I'm excited to see your pics! I've only ever had the one OE that was killed recently by a predator. Her eggs never made it to hatch which is really sad...
I have one pullet that's laying soft pink eggs. I can't wait to see what comes out of those in the right moment. Also, the offspring pullet (still too young to lay as she hatched Sep 7/8) came from a black with copper hackle hen (another predator casualty). That little pullet is also black with cheek puffs (term?).
So I'm awaiting your possible OE/EE pics!