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I am starting to "freak out" on the whole incubating thing...this is my first hatch! Due to hatch April 1....surely you have had good hatches Michiganwrangler? PLEASE tell me you have! Or else tell me you have a old, crappy incubator??
I hope your healing process starts and that the sun shines today again and melts some of our snow. Just let the dog out and the snow is frozen (it was -1.5 this morning at 7:30am) so she was happy and could trot across the drifts with no problem. My husband flew in to Traverse yesterday and the snowstorm that hit us...hit NewYork and caused a delay in his plane takeoff which caused him to miss his connecting flight in Detroit. Instead of arriving at 4:35 yesterday afternoon...he came in at 10:45pm....spent the entire day from 9am to 10:45pm on a plane or in a airport. Not a happy hubby.
It is lightly snowing here...SIGH.
None. BTW, my incubator was bought last winter new and is a forced air Top Hatch/ Quite nice actually.
Being put in my incubator is a death senrence for eggs. I really don't know what I'm doing wrong. I've calibrated the thermostate and thermometer, keep water in the tray, put the plugs in for lockdown for humidity while leaving one open for some ventiliation, start with a clean incubator and eggs, don't open it more than I have to. Eggs develop, they make it to day 21 and nothing. They all pip and then die regardless if I help them or not. If I'm patient and wait, they die in the shells. If I'm impatient and try to help them out, they die.
My husband died, my one valuable hen died. Everything I put in the incubator dies, I think one of my cherry tree saplings died over the winter ... Just found out that one of the neighbor's--DH's good friend--has a rapidly growing brain tumor and it's only a matter of time before he dies ...
I'm so very sorry for what you're going through, but I am concerned about you. Is there someone you might be able to talk to? Are you a church goer? Is there a local pastor you might be able to talk to? Or maybe even a counselor at the school you work at? Can we help you find someone?
As far as the incubator, try a dry hatch -- or even a modified dry hatch. If you want more detailed directions I'd be happy to give them according to what works for me, but you can find lots of info from many sources with a search, too.