ChickenMamaSue
In the Brooder
- Mar 4, 2018
- 11
- 35
- 49
Being as this is my first attempt of incubating Muscovies artificially, I admittedly may have done some ignorant stuff during the 38 days to warrant a ZERO PERCENT HATCH RATE... but i don't know what I did wrong. I feel so sad, guilty, and discouraged. I knew Muscovies are notoriously hard to hatch out in an incubator, so I did TONS of research. This website, and the Incubating and Hatching of Muscovy Eggs article was like my bible. I followed the instructions to a T.
I had them in a Little Giant still air, with temps steady at 101.5. Humidity was kept at about 35%. Vents kept open. They had perfect weight loss and air cells, all were so healthy looking, very active. I began hand turning 3x per day and cooling for 15 minutes on day 10-11 until day 32. I upped the humidity to about 56-60%. A day later, two had drawn down their air cells and were bumping their little beaks against the membrane trying to break it. I figured all was going well and left them alone.
24 hours after I suspected they pipped, I checked on them to see no movement whatsoever. Did the tap test, no peeping. Then two more eggs again drew down their air cells and looked like they were going to pip. One had an odd dark spot near the bottom of the egg. Little did I know, the poor fella pipped at the wrong end of the egg. I left them alone for another 24 hours.
I came back this afternoon to check on everyone, being as it is day 35 and I haven't had even a pip in any of the 13 eggs. I did the float test, and there was no movement. Candled them and again, nothing at all. No true pips except for one. And he had quit moving too. I opened up a tiny hole in one of the air cells to find the membrane crumbling like paper... There was no life inside. Just a dead ducky. No veins, no blood. After an eggtopsy I discovered he was upsidedown with his head between his legs. I feared the worst for the rest of them, and I indeed found all but two to have been totally dried up inside and utterly lifeless. The other two quit about a week and a half ago, judging by their lack of development and yellow yolky fluids surrounding them. One actually had a double yolk, and I think that's why he quit. Only two were in the proper positions and the rest were upside down with their heads between their legs. Why? I want to know what I could have done better or different... How could it be that not a single one hatched? I felt like I did everything right, but I obviously didn't or I'd have little fluffs running around right now. Failure is the greatest teacher, but I am at a loss. Anyone who has any knowledge to lend me please feel free to drop a comment so maybe I will do better next time.
I had them in a Little Giant still air, with temps steady at 101.5. Humidity was kept at about 35%. Vents kept open. They had perfect weight loss and air cells, all were so healthy looking, very active. I began hand turning 3x per day and cooling for 15 minutes on day 10-11 until day 32. I upped the humidity to about 56-60%. A day later, two had drawn down their air cells and were bumping their little beaks against the membrane trying to break it. I figured all was going well and left them alone.
24 hours after I suspected they pipped, I checked on them to see no movement whatsoever. Did the tap test, no peeping. Then two more eggs again drew down their air cells and looked like they were going to pip. One had an odd dark spot near the bottom of the egg. Little did I know, the poor fella pipped at the wrong end of the egg. I left them alone for another 24 hours.
I came back this afternoon to check on everyone, being as it is day 35 and I haven't had even a pip in any of the 13 eggs. I did the float test, and there was no movement. Candled them and again, nothing at all. No true pips except for one. And he had quit moving too. I opened up a tiny hole in one of the air cells to find the membrane crumbling like paper... There was no life inside. Just a dead ducky. No veins, no blood. After an eggtopsy I discovered he was upsidedown with his head between his legs. I feared the worst for the rest of them, and I indeed found all but two to have been totally dried up inside and utterly lifeless. The other two quit about a week and a half ago, judging by their lack of development and yellow yolky fluids surrounding them. One actually had a double yolk, and I think that's why he quit. Only two were in the proper positions and the rest were upside down with their heads between their legs. Why? I want to know what I could have done better or different... How could it be that not a single one hatched? I felt like I did everything right, but I obviously didn't or I'd have little fluffs running around right now. Failure is the greatest teacher, but I am at a loss. Anyone who has any knowledge to lend me please feel free to drop a comment so maybe I will do better next time.
