Please help me Interpret these Hatch Results

[vyshtia]

I went into lockdown with 13 hopeful eggs. I have 9 healthy babies.

1 almost died in hatching, it had pipped and after 12 hours of no other progress, I went to help and saw that it was upside down with both legs wrapped over her head so there was no way she would have been able to get out on her own. She was really weak, but gained strength slowly in the incubator once her head was freed. She is doing really well now.

1 died in hatching, it was upside down and couldn't get out. I should have helped it out sooner but I didn't know it was in that much trouble. I'm really sad to lose this one. I feel that it would have lived if only I had helped sooner, so it's my fault.

3 others all gave up on Day 18. I opened these up today and found them half developed and dead. Really sad about these too. Don't know why they had died.

I'm really happy about my 9 healthy ones but need help with dealing with the sorrow I feel for the 4 that didn't make it. Please give me your thoughts. I don't *think* it's incubation issues because 9 came out well. I would love to learn more about why 2 were upside down and in the wrong position. I just want to know what more I can do/change so that this doesn't happen.

Thank you!

 

[eggsrcool]

Quote:
I would say its a pretty decent hatch.

So if 9 hatched out of a possible 13, gives you a 69% hatch rate if my calculations are correct. How many eggs were set?

 

[CindyS]

Lovely babies! 9 out of 13 is a good hatch and sometimes some just do not make it. Depending on what kind of incubator you used there could have been a few areas in the incubator that were not ideal temp for some eggs, but since you got 9 to hatch, things are pretty right on for your eggs, Congrats!

 

[walkswithdog]

That's not a bad average. Upside down/backwards/wrong position happens in nature all the time, those die unless the hen happens to smash them open. Nothing you can do about it but catch it.

Really not a bad average. Sure 100% would be lovely but it's not all that common. The unhatched ones that weren't fully developed could be bad luck. Nature isn't exactly perfect. It just has good averages.

Not all eggs are going to develop fully and properly and hatch. Of those developed well enough to hatch, some will be mispositioned and not be able to hatch on their own, they live if you help at the right time, and don't if you don't. Some will flat make mistakes hatching, pipping through their own veins or umbilical cord or yolksac, it just happens now and then. They don't get a very big book to read on the topic before trying it for the first time.

Unless you consistently get a group that quit at 16-18 days from the same hens, I wouldn't worry about it. Afraid once in a while falls under the "spit happens" clause.

While we'd all like 100% hatches, every single time, it doesn't usually work that way and that's a good start.

Remember to disinfect the bator well when you're done.

Good luck with the next group.