Oh, the horror!!!--UPDATE, I think they're gonna be ok

[HHandbasket]

We set our bator Sunday night with 45 hatching eggs, and all was well for the first day.

I noticed last night the eggs on the bottom weren't very warm, and even tho the temp/hygrometer readings were excellent, we borrowed another friend's incubator and thought it just didn't circulate warm air on the bottom shelf, as the thermometer/hygrometer sits on the top shelf.

Over the course of the evening, I noticed the bator temp had dropped & the fan was not coming on. It was dead. We unplugged it, plugged it back in, and it worked fine. Within about an hour, the temperature had come back up, so we went to bed. We just woke up (good thing I stayed up late and have only been in bed 5 hours) to a dead, ice-cold incubator and $60 worth of dead eggs.

We put them into my friend's incubator that we borrowed, but they are STACKED on each other and it's not equipped to hold this many... what do we do?

I am just sick about losing these eggs... I drove from Auburn to Davis and back in crummy weather to acquire these eggs!

 

[smchickfarm]

wow, I am sorry

Do you know anyone else with a bator you could borrow? I was just thinking maybe you could try and salvage some of the eggs.... or if this bator is now running maybe just put as many in there as you can and see what happens.

 

[Heluerto]

Provided you are able to turn them, and they fit ok, I wouldnt worry about overcrowding at this stage. Make sure you cull before lockdown to make space for those that do hatch. When they start hatching, you will need to keep an eye though, making sure that any pips aren't being blocked in, and moving chicks to the brooder as soon as they are dried off.

I wouldnt worry about the false start - I had about three false starts on my last attempt (two broody chickens going off the brood) and still had 35% success rate - you haven't had that much trouble yet, so hoping your success will be much better.

 

[Tartannik]

Thats awful

, fingers crossed that you havne't lost them all

 

[sheila3935]

my hatch in January I had 2 days of where the incubator got unplugged after that I plugged it in an other place. And this happened at day 2 and 3 Even with that I had all but 3 hatch. They were behind didnt hatch at what would haved been 21 days had it not got unplugged but more like day 24, but they did hatch. Dont give up.

 

[midget_farms]

If you had just set the eggs - there is a good chance they will be fine. What temp did they drop to? Eggs will do well even into 50* if its early in the set. They are designed to go dormant until the hen sits on them.

Today is only Tuesday - I'd bet money they are fine.

Figure out what's up with the large bator & get it back on line for lock down.

 

[HHandbasket]

We moved the eggs into the Reptipro, but there are 16 eggs on the top shelf in the automatic turners, and 29 eggs SHOVED onto the bottom shelf on top of the water trays, all stacked on each other and not getting warmer. We do have a broody hen who presently is sitting on 4 eggs & I'm gonna get dressed and head out to the henhouse to see how many more she'll take (she's been sitting on them since Sunday, the same day we set this hatch). I REALLY don't want to lose these barnevelder eggs or these porcelain d'uccles. All 8 BCM eggs are gonna be ok, as they are in the turner, as are 3 EEs and 5 OEs.

I am just trying really, really hard not to cry. The ExoTerra is completely dead. It was given to us as a gift by a friend, and we are hoping she can return it to the company and get her money back or, at the very least, get them to replace the unit... and they need to reimburse for the $60 worth of eggs that died when their unit did, if they do not hatch.

We would have lost the whole lot if we hadn't been able to borrow this Reptipro from a friend.

 

[HHandbasket]

Ok, we moved 6 porcelain d'uccle eggs to my broody hen & she accepted them so far. She also has 4 LF "mystery eggs" under her. I hope it's not too much for her. LOL... but I really didn't want to lose those d'uccles. SERIOUSLY don't want to lose them. Don't want to lose ANY of them, but those were not the easiest eggs to get my hands on locally. Nor the barnevelders.

 

[gitlost80]

Davis California? Were the Lavender Orps? I just got some from a Lady in Davis Ca. Set them 3 days ago. If you have the money,Order a new Bator and have it shipped 1 day? Im sure they are fine.

 

[HHandbasket]

Thank you for the idea but no, we do not have the money for a new incubator (we couldn't even afford the one we got--it was a gift). We are between paydays, and our next 2 checks are earmarked for rent and bills anyway, no money for a bator until sometime later in March, if even then! Spent the last of any spare money we had this month on these stupid eggs that are all gonna die.

Gitlost80 - Yes, Davis, California. Nope, didn't get lavender orps, got 8 silkies and a dozen porcelain Belgian d'uccles (split that dozen with gryeyes so I have 6). There are a couple of different breeders in Davis who have good eggs, though.

I live in Sacramento. Made a trip up to Auburn for olive egger eggs and black copper marans, then home, then back out to Davis the following morning, then out to Fair Oaks that evening... I'll drive all around the area to pick up local eggs rather than having them shipped. For all the good it did me.

I'm just really sad. I waited weeks for this hatch and to be able to get these eggs. We are hoping it turns out ok with everybody crammed into the Reptipro, but we'll candle next Monday and chuck anybody that didn't make it.