Omg The Eggs Are Peeping!! UPDATE: GRAPHIC PICTURES post 62 :((

[Kittymomma]

so sorry

 

[carolynb]

I'm so sorry!! It's very difficult to see that the chicks have developed

I am happy to hear that you are not giving up on it!! It's so very exciting to hold a little baby chick. Good luck in the future, please let us know how it goes with the incubator. BTW...what kind of incubator did you get?

 

[farrier!]

She very well may have know they had died and that was why she was flinging them so much.
I sure would try again when she goes broody.
Meanwhile go with an incubator.
It is well worth the wait when they do hatch.

I see a big difference in strength of the chicks depending on what the hens are eating.

My daughter brought eggs in the other day and then used 2 for making cookies.....

I had to stop myself from complaining and felt like I was letting her murder chicks......never thought I could so attached to birds...

I candle now around day 10 with a small flashlight. I did loose a batch of quail eggs because of one bad chicken egg. So I do not take that chance anymore.

 

[Peeper7]

so sorry....

sometimes people ask why use an incubator -- this is one reason.

if you got a small incubator, be prepared to micro manage it. they work alright, but are sensitive to outside temps, Your nerves will be shot ... but it is worth it.

I get great hatches with mine -- I have both LG and Hovabator. My temps and humidity are all over the place, but still hatches are good -- even with turkeys.

If you want more details, PM me .....

 

[technodoll]

Thanks again so much for all your support, it really helps to pad the heartache.

Next month I am getting this incubator:

http://www.ranchcunicole.com/spip.php?article6

It's local and very popular with breeders and schools, it's a forced-air model which holds 42 eggs, comes with an automatic egg turner and digital monitor for temp & humidity. The whole thing is about $240 (canadian funds).

My breeder recommended it so I'm sure it'll be great, the store said the customers all loved it

Poor broody hen looks lost in the coop today, clucking and wandering aimlessly around, I haven't seen her eat but I'm sure she'll eventually click back into the groove. At least she wasn't sitting on any eggs when I went in this morning, that's a positive sign!

What a HUGE learning experience this has been.

 

[D'Angelo N Va.]

CONGRATS ON YOUR BABIES!!there in my book is nothing more eggciting than baby poultry...Mama will know what to do, just deep some water and food for them to eat away from the other chickens as they may trample them by mistake..and make sure the water dish is not too deep so the babies when taking a drink will not fall in and drown because they will probably stand in it...I made that mistake one year!

 

[D'Angelo N Va.]

OMG, I am new to this website as in today is my first day. I didn't realize that it was 9pages on this topic. I feel so stupid,,please forgive my ignorance....I know the pain.. Please don't give up, hang in there.

 

[technodoll]

It's OK D'Angelo, it's confusing when threads get this long!

I don't know why the babies just died in the shell a couple of days before hatching, the theory so far is that mama hen may have let the eggs go cold a few times... I did sometimes see one or two that weren't under her tummy and kept pushing them back in, or she would roll them around like bowling balls trying to get them under her. Poor things got bumped around too much I think.

I'm blessed to have the wonderful chickens I have now and will concentrate on them now, eventually I'll get the incubator and start fresh again with a new method and hope for the best.

Oh and