My first incubation experience!

[Farm Mommy]

Hi, I am assembling a tank incubator tonight. I am hoping to hatch out all kinds of things. But mostly duck and turkey eggs. My chickens do a great job at brooding eggs for me so I many only need it for them from time to time. Any advice is helpful! One question I do have is... My tank is big enough I can do different types of birds at one time. Is that okay to do as long as I keep everything clearly marked? And one site said to only use pencil because anything else would harm the eggs... is that true? Okay that is two questions Thanks in advance <3

 

[ahmedamir]

They look real cute. Sorry for the very late reply. Having fever and bad throat for the whole last week, which got worse at the weekend. Thanks God, feeling much better now. Anyways, congrats on your new ones . keeping fingers crossed for mine's too

Here are the first chicks. I now have three, they are in the brooder and making a lot of cheeping noises...they seem happy and have started drinking and pecking at the chick feed.
With the one you have that cracked its prob fine as long as the membrane is still intact. Good idea to separate it from the others..my chicks were climbing all over the other eggs when they popped out...would ruin a cracked egg! I have just candles my 2 duck eggs to see if they are still go-ers and both have movement so if all goes well will have a couple of duckling by next Tues/Wed. I still have one hen egg which is overdue...candled it...still looks ok but couldn't see any movement...going to give it another couple of days. I've taken on some more eggs that a hen had started sitting on (belonged to some friends)...have now put them in with the ducks eggs...not sure if any are viable...I can see a dark shadow inside so might be ok. I think they cooled down quite a bit before I got them in the incubater though...so may not come to anything.
anyway, hope you like this little piccie. Will post more later on. I bet you can't wait now. Last few days was agonising!

 

[ahmedamir]

I had a disaster this weekend. One morning when I went to rotate the eggs, I saw the temperature reaching 114 F ;(. I think something is wrong with my thermostat. I talked to the supplier, from whom I got my incubator, he asked to bring the bator to him and get it replaced. I may visit him, but the thermostat is working fine now after re-calibration. I am now really worried about the eggs. I'll candle them tonight. It's 12th day now. Besides that, I just read about the marker. I have written with markers over the eggs, as you can see in my earlier posts. I saw on of my friend, who's hatching eggs successfully for quite long time now, doing it. Anyways, I just hope my eggs would miraculously hatch

 

[loveourbirds]

your hatch should be just fine might lose a couple, but if your humidity stayed up you probably don't have anything to worry about. on the marker thing, I don't know what markers, I was just told that some markers are toxic to eggs. I write on mine with pencil as little as possible.

 

[ahmedamir]

your hatch should be just fine might lose a couple, but if your humidity stayed up you probably don't have anything to worry about. on the marker thing, I don't know what markers, I was just told that some markers are toxic to eggs. I write on mine with pencil as little as possible.

These are board markers that are used on whiteboards. Thanks, I hope they hatch fine too. I'll try not to write any further with such markers.

 

[5 Acre Rooster]

I have almost always used plain "Sharpie" perminate markers and have never had any issues. But everyone has their way and beliefs what will/won't harm/work on atching eggs.

 

[charcamchickens]

Hi farm mommy. I am just on my first experience but to try to answer your questions....I have both duck and hen eggs together in my incubator. I just needed to remember to keep turning the duck eggs when the hen eggs were almost due to hatch. Duck eggs are due any day..wobbling like mad so all looks ok. I checked this out in my research prior to starting any incubating and found that lots of people do put different types of eggs in together...I think you have to be careful with humidity in the final stages...so only open the incubator if you have to. I opened mine for about 20 seconds three times per day...just to turn the eggs...you wouldn't even need to do that if you have an auto turner. My incubator gets back up to temperature very quickly.
I used pencil on my eggs...I marked a cross on one side and a o on the other to help me remember where to turn them...I also drew a smiley face on when I saw movement . I have just hatched another chick that I think is a bantam. The other chicks were bullying it a bit but they're getting on fine now. I have another one pipped with a beak poking out...I think it may be another bantam as its small...probably brother or sister to the one that popped out yesterday. I was surprised this second lot of eggs hatched at all, they cooled down for a few hours before they went in my incubator. A hen had been sitting on them but left them...they must have been almost ready because Fter just 2 days of being with me they've started pipping. I am soooo excited about my duck eggs...these are from my own ducks. I have three kinds Cayuga..black, khaki Campbell's...brown and Cherry Valley...white. As both of my drakes 'entertain' whichever female they take a fancy to...I have no idea what the ducklings colouring will be. Adds to the excitement.

 

[charcamchickens]

Hi ahmedamir...very worrying I'm sure but someone else on this site said they had a temperature spike and their chicks hatched ok. Day 12 you should be able to see some movement and some good veins...hope your candling goes well...fingers crossed!

 

[ahmedamir]

Hi ahmedamir...very worrying I'm sure but someone else on this site said they had a temperature spike and their chicks hatched ok. Day 12 you should be able to see some movement and some good veins...hope your candling goes well...fingers crossed!

Thanks for the kind words. Couldn't get time to do candling today. Though, my bro did it with one of my friend, and they said that all of them are Ok except the one which was cracked. My friend asked me to throw it out and we did. I am planning to do a candling session myself as soon as I get time. Thanks for the kind words anyways.

 

[ahmedamir]

BTW, it's not fair charcamchickens. We're still waiting for some more cutie pics