March hatch along

[johnderosa1]

Exciting! I hope it goes well!

I'm kind of tempted to stay up tonight and watch them hatch. It's snowing, and I'm playing the dangerous game of assuming school will be cancelled tomorrow.

I am going to go to bed .... Maybe the rest of mine will go along with the after three rule . Have two out and two more pipped but they are not making much progress . The one that just hatched, pipped , zipped and hatched in about 2 hrs start to finish. The other two have been at it for 6+ hrs but not even close .

 

[BroosterSpringsteen]

I am going to go to bed .... Maybe the rest of mine will go along with the after three rule . Have two out and two more pipped but they are not making much progress . The one that just hatched, pipped , zipped and hatched in about 2 hrs start to finish. The other two have been at it for 6+ hrs but not even close .

Don't you just love it when they hatch fast like that? I hope you wake up to a noisy brooder full of chicks!

 

[CashandTracy]

Aren't duck eggs supposed to have a higher humidity then chicken eggs?
Also, if you are familiar with Holderread farm owned by Dave Holderread (who was the author of "Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks")
says that at their farm they wash their eggs before they incubate them because more eggs die from being dirty then from the bloom being washed off.
Anybody have any thoughts on this?

I washed my test hatch and not a single one made it. I only had one that made it past a few days to form a blood ring when it died but the others never got that far. This second attempt with purchased eggs I didn't wash, they were clean enough. With my friends eggs that I'm going to try to hatch for her, I told her to wash the eggs under warm running water. Her best boxes are filfithy and I don't want those dirty eggs in my incubator.

I say unless their discussing, which you shouldn't use those anyway, unless of course their extremely valuable or rare, don't wash.

 

[johnderosa1]

Don't you just love it when they hatch fast like that?  I hope you wake up to a noisy brooder full of chicks!

Thanks!

 

[subhanalah]

Can I join you guys? I set ~20 eggs on Tuesday evening. This is my first try at incubating eggs. They are silkies from a local girl.

 

[CashandTracy]

Can I join you guys? I set ~20 eggs on Tuesday evening. This is my first try at incubating eggs. They are silkies from a local girl.

Welcome!

 

[johnderosa1]

3 out + 3 pipped... These guys are sure making me work for it ....

 

[carcar80]

I have two incubators, a GQF 1588 Hova-Bator and a Little Giant 9200 converted into a forced air incubator with a homemade fan.

Ok, thanks.

Okay. Then I'll comment on the 9200 since that's what I use. (Though mine is still still-air)..

I fill all troughs plus some at hatch time. But. Beware if yours is the NEW, updated model of LG still-air (the one at TSC right now), as far as filling troughs.

The updates to the bator are fantastic! But the new trough provides way more water surface area, and another member here actually got her humidity TOO high filling the largest tray.

So just a word of caution there. Have fun and good luck!!

 

[Conchis]

I started a mix the same day you did CraftyChicky. Things were going along pretty good. I candled last night and only 2 were culled. The power went out for a few hours last night, but according to folks with lots more experience, they still had success even following a power outage. so...I might have lost a day compared to you because of the outage.

 

[johnderosa1]

I am starting to get worried.... 3 out, 1 nearly out and 1 pipped. 1 other zipped but never made it out of the shell. No other eggs showing any sign of activity. My experience has always been that pretty much everything happens within 24 hours of the first pips . Right now i am looking at a 10% hatch.... I am so bummed . I am still holding out some hope but have to admit i am not confident at this point. The worst thing is that they were looking really good at 10 days... Looks like it is time to go back to the drawing board.