Oh NO!!!!!!

[Frady’s Chicken Lady]

In the last two days I have hatched the cutest batch of 9 chicks!! Last night at 9:00 they were all fine. This morning I went to check on them and they were all dead. I had them in the incubator with the air holes open. Does anybody have a clue what could have happened? The temp was still perfect. I am in total shock. I have incubated successfully more times than I can remember so I’m not a beginner. Please give me your thoughts.

 

[thelittlegraybarn]

There are a ton of variables so it's hard to know for sure. I'm sorry for your loss. It's never easy

 

[Kateb910]

In the last two days I have hatched the cutest batch of 9 chicks!! Last night at 9:00 they were all fine. This morning I went to check on them and they were all dead. I had them in the incubator with the air holes open. Does anybody have a clue what could have happened? The temp was still perfect. I am in total shock. I have incubated successfully more times than I can remember so I’m not a beginner. Please give me your thoughts.

So sorry about your babies. How long had they been in incubator after they hatched?

 

[Frady’s Chicken Lady]

I found the first couple hatched at 6 am Friday so 48 hours. The last one hatched yesterday afternoon. I keep two incubators. One for hatching and one for warming until they all have hatched. I have never had issues doing it this way before this time. I’ve also read that chick’s don’t need food or water for 72 hours. So I don’t think that was the problem. I also been told don’t even open the incubator until they all have hatched. I have never used that rule. Probably accounts for my 50% hatch rate. Any ideas?

 

[Acre4Me]

I’d wonder about 1. temp. Could they have gotten too hot with a temp spike? 2. Incubator type/cleanliness. What type of incubator (styrofoam, cabinet, etc?). Bc styrofoam harder to clean well. In a warm humid environment maybe chicks got ill with something ... less likely than too hot, though. 3. ANYTHING different from previous hatched, like did you move incubator location, or first hatch in this season (summer)?, etc.

 

[Ridgerunner]

They should be able to go over 72 hours just in the yolk they absorbed. That's not the problem with all nine. Some might be born with a birth defect and can just die for no apparent reason. Again, not all nine. The vents were open, they did not suffocate because of that.

All were fine when you went to bed but all dead the next morning. A temperature spike may be to blame. It may have gotten hot enough long enough to cook them. I think it is unlikely it could have cooled off enough to kill them and then return to normal but maybe not impossible. With it that quick my first thought is poisoning.

They were still in the incubator warmer. Any food or water in there? I remember a case where someone's kids has fed them treats that were contaminated. I don't remember details but it might have been old hamster feed. I remember someone had a grown rooster died because it drank out of a bowl that had cleaning solution in it, a bleach solution as I remember. Maybe something to think about or discount.

It sounds like you had been putting them in over a time period, not all at once. That would eliminate the possibility of residue from a cleaning solution being the culprit.

Was the incubator somewhere it could have collected poisonous fumes? Maybe near a gas water heater flame or even a small gas leak? Maybe something to think about for your family's safety.

From what you said I don;t see that you did anything wrong that might have caused this. So as mentioned above, what was different about this time?

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I hear people say that chicks can go days without food and water, however every single time I take chicks out of the incubator after they fluff up. They are usually drinking and eating within a few hours of being in the brooder. Can you live 3 days without food? Sure, but why? Chicks are stronger with the food and water.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Just because chicks can go over 72 hours without eating and drinking doesn't mean they won't eat and drink earlier if they have the opportunity. Not all eggs hatch at exactly 21 days. In some of my hatches the hatch is over within 24 hours of the first one hatching. I've had some hatches in an incubator stretch out more than 48 hours. I once had a hen hatch her first chick late Monday and did not bring the chicks off the nest until Friday morning, much more than 72 hours. I'll admit I was starting to wonder on that one but the chicks were fine.

Having the chick absorb the yolk so they can go a long time before they have to eat and drink is nature's way of allowing more eggs to hatch. That allows us to ship them in the mail as long as they don't have unreasonable delays. If they couldn't go that long hatcheries would not be mailing them.

 

[Frady’s Chicken Lady]

I’m pretty sure I figured out what happened. And....it’s all my fault. I was thinking that the thingie that hangs down in the incubator might hurt them some way so I hung it outside the lid between where the top closes down on the bottom. Evidently this cause the temp in the incubator to either go way up or cut off. I’m pretty sure it was my stupid thinking trying to prevent an accident that ultimately caused one. I feel soooo bad!! Please no harsh words. I’ve already beat myself up over it!!!

 

[Ridgerunner]

No harsh words from me, I've made enough mistakes of my own. That's part of learning. A hard part, but still a part.