Hi all
I'm new to this forum and to the whole incubating thing. I have 10 duck eggs due at various times ( I have a second incubator to put them in 3 days before they are due so I can manage cleanliness and humidity, I know I kinda messed up putting them in at different times) The first one arrived 4 days early with alot of drama and thanks to this forum is now in the brooder and fluffy and well. I have 3 more due today/tomorrow. I have candled them from the beginning and so know that they developed to a point, the question I have is that now the 3 that are imminent don't appear to be moving (I guess there isn't alot of room in the egg now) and that none of them show up any blood vessels when candled, is that normal for any ducklings about to hatch? One of them has a loose airsac so I've popped it fat end up in an egg carton in the incubator to make sure it's in the right place, there is a small dark triangle bit on the inside of it's egg and I wonder if it'd tried to break through there. The problem was when Minnie (the new duckling) hatched she knocked the other eggs around a fair bit so the airsac would've been all over the place.
Anyway I guess my question is, if there are no veins at this stage are they dead or alive? I've tried the water test someone suggested but they didn't seem to move
The eggs weren't sent in the post, they were laid by my own duck.
Thanks in advance for your advice, this forum is the only thing that got me through the last 48 hours!!!!!
Cerian
I'm new to this forum and to the whole incubating thing. I have 10 duck eggs due at various times ( I have a second incubator to put them in 3 days before they are due so I can manage cleanliness and humidity, I know I kinda messed up putting them in at different times) The first one arrived 4 days early with alot of drama and thanks to this forum is now in the brooder and fluffy and well. I have 3 more due today/tomorrow. I have candled them from the beginning and so know that they developed to a point, the question I have is that now the 3 that are imminent don't appear to be moving (I guess there isn't alot of room in the egg now) and that none of them show up any blood vessels when candled, is that normal for any ducklings about to hatch? One of them has a loose airsac so I've popped it fat end up in an egg carton in the incubator to make sure it's in the right place, there is a small dark triangle bit on the inside of it's egg and I wonder if it'd tried to break through there. The problem was when Minnie (the new duckling) hatched she knocked the other eggs around a fair bit so the airsac would've been all over the place.
Anyway I guess my question is, if there are no veins at this stage are they dead or alive? I've tried the water test someone suggested but they didn't seem to move
The eggs weren't sent in the post, they were laid by my own duck.
Thanks in advance for your advice, this forum is the only thing that got me through the last 48 hours!!!!!
Cerian