NEED HELP WITH SHIPPED FBCM EGGS! UPDATE~!!!!!

[bwalden]

Ok a few weeks ago i won an egg auction for a dozen FBCM eggs. Got the eggs a couple days later. I had read that you need to let the eggs set for a while before putting in the incubator. I set them out about 12 hours at room temp. So the next morning i put them in. Had no idea what to expect.... I candled them around day 7 and of course the eggs were almost too dark to tell anything. Truth be told none of them looked fertile to me. But being that these were my first maran eggs to ever have I thought to myself try again next week. So at day 14 i candled them again. Looked to me like all but one eggs was infertile. So i put them in lockdown with 3 days to go with my fingers crossed. Well turns out none of them hatched. I did post incubation exam to the eggs. Only one developed and looked like the other 11 never even started to. I have incubated eggs many times in this incubator with pretty good sucess. I guess what my question is.... Is there anything else i'm missing? I have read to expect 40-60% hatch rate on shipped eggs but i never expected 0%. Any helpful suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Baggagolers]

I would contact the seller and see if they will ship you some new eggs. Let them know that you have have hatch before and see what happens.

 

[bwalden]

I did contact the seller and ask how their fertility had been and I told them about my hatch. They told me their fertility has be running between 95-98% and their hatch rate is almost at 100% for those eggs they have incubated themselves. They offered to send more eggs if i cover the shipping but I'm not sure what to do. Just wondering if there is something I'm missing. A preparation step that I need to do differently. I don't mind to spend the money for the eggs as long as I get some results. I could live with 40 or 50% hatch rate. But 0% just isnt acceptable.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Sadly that's just the way it can go with shipped eggs. I tried last spring twice. First time was all my fault as it was my first time incubating, I had great development but ran high humidity throughout incubation so only one hatched. Second shipping was all the post office, we'd moved and new area postal system scrambled the eggs. With top notch double wrapped egg packaging there was a broken egg and only three developed with none hatching. This spring we're hatching our own and I'm trying one last time with shipped eggs as we really want this breed and they are not available in our region.

One thing that's recommended to do is let your shipped eggs settle for a good 12 to 24 hours. Place fat end up in egg cartoon to give the air sack a chance to position before starting the incubation. Other than that it's a roll of the dice if USPS is going to hand deliver or drop kick it to you.

 

[Baggagolers]

I did contact the seller and ask how their fertility had been and I told them about my hatch. They told me their fertility has be running between 95-98% and their hatch rate is almost at 100% for those eggs they have incubated themselves. They offered to send more eggs if i cover the shipping but I'm not sure what to do. Just wondering if there is something I'm missing. A preparation step that I need to do differently. I don't mind to spend the money for the eggs as long as I get some results. I could live with 40 or 50% hatch rate. But 0% just isnt acceptable.

Does the seller have a good feedback rating ? If so try again. I was just reading a post about hatching Marans at lower humidity rates than other breeds. Maybe that was the problem?

 

[bwalden]

Does the seller have a good feedback rating ? If so try again. I was just reading a post about hatching Marans at lower humidity rates than other breeds. Maybe that was the problem?

Yeah the seller feedback rating was almost 100%. I actually decided to bid on this particular sellers eggs because they live in the same state as I do so I thought well less distance to travel maybe the eggs would arrive in better condition. I guess you win some lose some with PO shipping. I have actually purchased some eggs from another BYC member, received them this morning. So I guess now starts the 12-24 hour settling period. I have heard about the lower humidity or "dry hatch" method also. i guess it would be worth a try. The last hatch i did keep some water in my trays but not all of them. My humidity was 40-45% most of the time. I raised the humitidy on day 18 to around 70-75%. Guess time will tell on this next batch of eggs. Wish me luck!

 

[Baggagolers]

I just hatched 5 out of 5 eggs With the humidity at about 50% until the last 3 days. Then it was between 70 and 80%. I did just read about hatching Marans at under 50%, but I have never hatched any. BTW the eggs I just hatched came from our own chicken not shipped. Maybe if it's not to far from you the guy would let you drive out and pick up the eggs yourself.

Yeah the seller feedback rating was almost 100%. I actually decided to bid on this particular sellers eggs because they live in the same state as I do so I thought well less distance to travel maybe the eggs would arrive in better condition. I guess you win some lose some with PO shipping. I have actually purchased some eggs from another BYC member, received them this morning. So I guess now starts the 12-24 hour settling period. I have heard about the lower humidity or "dry hatch" method also. i guess it would be worth a try. The last hatch i did keep some water in my trays but not all of them. My humidity was 40-45% most of the time. I raised the humitidy on day 18 to around 70-75%. Guess time will tell on this next batch of eggs. Wish me luck!

 

[Abacus]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have had batches like that and found out my problem was I had a cheap incubator! It worked for some batches and failed on others. I now have a cabinet incubator and so far it is doing great

I just put 3 dozen Cuckoo Marans eggs in the incubator last week from an Ebay order....is there any good way to candle them? My normal way with my flashlight doesnt let me see into such a dark egg...

 

[bwalden]

Yeah i know what you mean about the cheap incubator. I used to have the same problems with mine. I now own a better one also. I have a homemade candler that i made from a youtube video. I went and bought a really bright LED flashlight at walmart. It works ok i guess. Still difficult with the Maran eggs I had as i'm sure it is with most any dark brown egg. But i think for sure by day 12-14 you should be able to tell if something is there or not. The best candler I ever have ever owned was the GQF "Cool Light" egg candler. I dont currently own one anymore but plan to purchase one again very soon. I'm putting 15 FBCM eggs i recieved this morning in the bator in the morning. If my results turn out anything like my last attempt I may have to go another route beside the shipped egg method. Would love to purchase some from local breeder but I dunno where one is. The last ones I bought were in the same state as me but still 4-5 hours drive away. Dont think I could hardly justify that kind of drive for eggs.

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have had batches like that and found out my problem was I had a cheap incubator! It worked for some batches and failed on others. I now have a cabinet incubator and so far it is doing great

I just put 3 dozen Cuckoo Marans eggs in the incubator last week from an Ebay order....is there any good way to candle them? My normal way with my flashlight doesnt let me see into such a dark egg...

 

[Abacus]

I have a hard time finding eggs near me too. I am way out i n the country and seems like it is an hour drive to get anywhere. But we have swap meets around here at our local TSC....do you all do that there? We have a whole group of chicken loving people who put it on and we have soooo much fun!!! If you can get involved with that, you could meet people there for eggs.....