March Hatch-A-Long

[Stick Chicken]

Catching up from yesterday has shown a lot of sad news. I'm sorry for everyone who's having problems with hatching. We can only hope that the next time we hatch, it goes better. I have had plenty of eggs that have been dead already this year, and even more chicks who have suddenly started acting weird and died. I even had two that seemed perfectly fine, and just up and died. It's disappointing, but sometimes that's just how life is. Hopefully we learn from our experiences and realize that sometimes, a chick is just not meant to survive. So don't beat yourselves up.

 

[Chicksnmind]

The one that I thought wouldn’t make it didn’t. I opened up two more eggs and they were DIS. One had a air cell that had a open membrane. The other I was not in the mood to discover why...I started too but quit . Depressing. Two more are still sitting there that have no movement but I’m going to give it until tomorrow.

One of the ones that I assisted last night is still doing ok. I carefully pulled some of the membrane from around its head so I could take some pressure off it’s eye as it was getting tight in that area. Enough that I saw it’s problem. It’s leg is up over it’s head going behind it neck.I freed the leg to give some relief but noticed while it’s seemed to have absorbed the yoke its belly was still really soft. So I stuck it back in. Most of the shell is off so all it needs is to give some effort.

 

[Chicksnmind]

Is it normal from for a chick to have a soft belly if they are still absorbing or is it probably mushy chick syndrome?

 

[SA Farm]

Is it normal from for a chick to have a soft belly if they are still absorbing or is it probably mushy chick syndrome?

I think it’s normal, but I don’t have a lot of experience with chicks who haven’t finished absorbing. I’ve had a few poults that have needed help that have been squishy like that and we’re fine after some time, so...

 

[SA Farm]

My hatch, I think, is done now. I have one chick left in the bator drying off with the more-than-likely DIS leftover eggs.
They have until this evening before I pull the last chick out, then I might leave it another day before cleanup as I’ve got until Tuesday for the next lockdown.
I got 10/12 Speckled Sussex hatched
1/2 of my EEs
5/9 ducklings
Not bad overall
Why are the yellow ducklings always the most photogenic?

 

[Welshchick]

No more eggs hatched so I only have 3 chicks. Worst hatch rate ever! All the other eggs have fully formed chicks inside so I just don't understand why do many failed to hatch. Humidity was kept at 68 during lockdown so not that. Very dissapointing

 

[mitziworm]

Last chick for March hatched. I'm amazed any survived given the dramas with power and incubators. 2 days of planned power outages covered by the generator I bought to save losing my first shipped batch back in October, 2 short blackouts in the middle of the night wrapped in blankets for half an hour then luckily power came on then my main incubator started losing temperature at random times so last week my hatcher became the incubator and I bought another mini incubator to hatch in because the jn12 I bought lasted 10 days then started cooking the eggs so this batch 3 of 12 made it to lockdown so I cleaned the big incubator with temperature issues and it seemed ok so in they went on day 19 just into day 20 and down goes the temperature again so quickly moved them to the mini (supposed to be a 7 egg but might fit 4) 5 minutes later there's a pip and 18 hours later chick hatched. Long story sorry but thought I'd share the pics I took first pip to hatch ignore the temp it's inaccurate so I had another one in too.

 

[mitziworm]

No more eggs hatched so I only have 3 chicks. Worst hatch rate ever! All the other eggs have fully formed chicks inside so I just don't understand why do many failed to hatch. Humidity was kept at 68 during lockdown so not that. Very dissapointing

It's disheartening, just guessing my hatch rate might be 10% for the last 5 months or so. First time in years at hatching chicks and I don't remember it ever being so hard. Still exciting to get even 1 to hatch though but hard seeing them dis but almost to hatch stage

 

[Chicksnmind]

No more eggs hatched so I only have 3 chicks. Worst hatch rate ever! All the other eggs have fully formed chicks inside so I just don't understand why do many failed to hatch. Humidity was kept at 68 during lockdown so not that. Very dissapointing

How many did you set? Were they shipped?

 

[Ms Biddy]

I'm so sorry peeps. We cannot hatch chicks if we don't try, so I hope you will try again and get better results next time.

I think it's so interesting that the eggs feel heavy when they're alive and lighter after they die. What's up with that?!

My babies are all doing well. My 7 tiny Hmong chicks look like bantams next to my older Marans chicks that hatched a week earlier. Then there's the little rumpless Marans and my single turkey. They are such a varied group of misfits.