My eggs arnt hatching (3rd batch)

[JADe Hatcher]

So I have been trying to incubate my duck eggs and I'm on the 3rd batch and it still seems a no go for them.
Makes me wonder, Does a ducks first clutch not get fertilized?

 

[50-45-1]

Boy , there are so many things that can affect hatchibility.
Fertilization, handling and mishandling of eggs, temperature to high or to low, humidity, fluctuation in temprature, age of parent stock. Incubator....
If i were you i would start to question and examine all of the above. Maybe try eggs from another flock or use a different incubator. Or find or borrow a broody hen and try it that way.
Good luck!

 

[JADe Hatcher]

Boy , there are so many things that can affect hatchibility.
Fertilization, handling and mishandling of eggs, temperature to high or to low, humidity, fluctuation in temprature, age of parent stock. Incubator....
If i were you i would start to question and examine all of the above. Maybe try eggs from another flock or use a different incubator. Or find or borrow a broody hen and try it that way.
Good luck!

I know they are about a year old. And I am very careful with temp and humidity in the incubator.

How can I miss handle them?

I have recently started letting her keep her eggs until she is ready to sit on them. But, I'm unsure if she will.

 

[50-45-1]

Leaving the eggs in the nest is a good way to end up with broken or rotten eggs. She will not go broody by any of your efforts. putsome fake eggs in her nest instead and continue to gather your eggs daily. If one of your girls starts acting broody, start saving eggs and make sure she is dedicated to the task before you put eggs under her.

While storing hatching eggs you can help retain their viability by;
Dont wash them, (if ther is poop on them remove carefullywith sandpaper.)
Dont refigerate them,
Put them in a low trafic area at a constant temperature of around 55 deg. Do not shake or jar them.
Put them in an egg carton pointy end down, this keeps the air bubble at the rounded end where the ducklings may pip.
Tip the carton up on one end alternating once each day.
You can keep eggs a week this way and not loose hatchability.
O have even had good luck with eggs 15 days old if i handle them this way.

At a year old your ducks should be vigorus
placement of the incubator is important to. Not in direct sunlight. In a room with a constant temperature with no fluctuations. Again, in a low trafic area.
(I once had my incubator in my livingroom and tripped over the cord one day. It was a small 12 egg incubator and it and the eggs went flying! That was the end of that hatch.)
I do not candle, only open your incubator to turn eggs or add water and such.
If your hatch fails again. I would try someone elses eggs to dertermine of is your flock. Maybe you have an infertle drake?
Have you ever sucessfully hatched anything from the incubator you are using?
How long are you leaving them in the incubator before you are giving up on them?
Good luck!

 

[JADe Hatcher]

Leaving the eggs in the nest is a good way to end up with broken or rotten eggs. She will not go broody by any of your efforts. putsome fake eggs in her nest instead and continue to gather your eggs daily. If one of your girls starts acting broody, start saving eggs and make sure she is dedicated to the task before you put eggs under her.

While storing hatching eggs you can help retain their viability by;
Dont wash them, (if ther is poop on them remove carefullywith sandpaper.)
Dont refigerate them,
Put them in a low trafic area at a constant temperature of around 55 deg. Do not shake or jar them.
Put them in an egg carton pointy end down, this keeps the air bubble at the rounded end where the ducklings may pip.
Tip the carton up on one end alternating once each day.
You can keep eggs a week this way and not loose hatchability.
O have even had good luck with eggs 15 days old if i handle them this way.

At a year old your ducks should be vigorus
placement of the incubator is important to. Not in direct sunlight. In a room with a constant temperature with no fluctuations. Again, in a low trafic area.
(I once had my incubator in my livingroom and tripped over the cord one day. It was a small 12 egg incubator and it and the eggs went flying! That was the end of that hatch.)
I do not candle, only open your incubator to turn eggs or add water and such.
If your hatch fails again. I would try someone elses eggs to dertermine of is your flock. Maybe you have an infertle drake?
Have you ever sucessfully hatched anything from the incubator you are using?
How long are you leaving them in the incubator before you are giving up on them?
Good luck!

I havenot hatched anything so far.

And I leave them in for as long as I can. But I have heard stories of eggs exploding in incubators because they end up roting.

 

[50-45-1]

You need to mark your calendar duck eggs take 28 days and may start hatching a day early. on day 30 or 31 I usually give up on them. When I have questions about why an egg did not hatch I have taken it outside, Dug a hole and carefully opened it to see just what stage it made it to. Disgusting I know but it has answered questions I had. I have never had eggs explode in my incubator.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

So I have been trying to incubate my duck eggs and I'm on the 3rd batch and it still seems a no go for them.
Makes me wonder, Does a ducks first clutch not get fertilized?

I know those results must be pretty disappointing, but good for you for keeping at it! What's your duck-to-drake ratio? Did you do eggtopsies to see if they developed but failed to hatch? The information you get from it can really help inform changes to incubating approach.

What kind of incubator do you use? Do you also use an independent thermometer and hygrometer? Relying on the accuracy of the incubator's display is inadvisable - only 2 of my 4 incubators' displays are accurate (independently verified).

I've heard the exploding egg stories, too, but like @50-45-1, have never had one explode in my incubators. I check on them daily (really, several times a day) and anything oozing gets tossed immediately.

I'd be happy to help you try to troubleshoot, too, if you can provide more info - there are many factors that can affect the hatch.

 

[JADe Hatcher]

This is my incubator.
I dont have an extra thermometer.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

View attachment 1779640
This is my incubator.
I dont have an extra thermometer.

I'd start by getting an independent thermometer and hygrometer. The temperature needs to consistently be within a narrow range for best results. This BYC article provides a detailed overview of the incubation process.

Hope you have better results (after verifying proper temps/humidity and following the article's instructions) next time!

 

[JADe Hatcher]

I'd start by getting an independent thermometer and hygrometer. The temperature needs to consistently be within a narrow range for best results. This BYC article provides a detailed overview of the incubation process.

Hope you have better results (after verifying proper temps/humidity and following the article's instructions) next time!

They are duck eggs