Please help! What am I doing wrong? (warning: semi-graphic photo)

[Bravo]

Quote:
Yikes! I am so sorry. I had no idea how a marans hatch would go so I bought test eggs off of ebay. It wasnt bad pricewise but I see what you mean about the difficulty to hatch. In a week another board member is going to send me some of his eggs and the pics I have seen of his flock and eggs are just gorgeous.

Armed with a new Genesis incubator and a boatload of knowledge from these last 2 hatches I am praying for a bit more success.

I guess we all live and learn.

Are you going to buy chicks this time or do you think you might try again?

 

[Katy]

Quote:
Yikes! I am so sorry. I had no idea how a marans hatch would go so I bought test eggs off of ebay. It wasnt bad pricewise but I see what you mean about the difficulty to hatch. In a week another board member is going to send me some of his eggs and the pics I have seen of his flock and eggs are just gorgeous.

Armed with a new Genesis incubator and a boatload of knowledge from these last 2 hatches I am praying for a bit more success.

I guess we all live and learn.

Are you going to buy chicks this time or do you think you might try again?

I really don't think them being Marans eggs has anything to do with it. I've had good hatches from shipped Marans eggs and my own Marans eggs many times.

 

[mstricer]

Quote:
Yikes! I am so sorry. I had no idea how a marans hatch would go so I bought test eggs off of ebay. It wasnt bad pricewise but I see what you mean about the difficulty to hatch. In a week another board member is going to send me some of his eggs and the pics I have seen of his flock and eggs are just gorgeous.

Armed with a new Genesis incubator and a boatload of knowledge from these last 2 hatches I am praying for a bit more success.

I guess we all live and learn.

Are you going to buy chicks this time or do you think you might try again?

I really don't think them being Marans eggs has anything to do with it. I've had good hatches from shipped Marans eggs and my own Marans eggs many times.

I was going to say that it was probally me. But my eggs did look just like the one in this thread, died the say way. When I did a test run on jersey/orp eggs I got 4 out of 5 to hatch. I have EE's now in bator and will see how they go. Out of eight eggs, 2 quiters and 1 porus no development. Due on the 7th of FEB.

 

[rancher hicks]

Ya know I just reread the OP and if it keeps happening some things to think about.

Humidity is to high to start. Read up on incu and pick something you think is safe. I've read different ideas on the ideal degree of humidity and perhaps there is a recommendation in the instructions. Follow those. I might try something in the middle if I were in doubt.

Genetics, are the roo and hens related? How old are the hens who lay the eggs your using. Some say eggs from young hens should not be used. Perhaps because the shells are harder?

Turning, are you turning by hand or machine? Some say 3 times a day others say 8. Makes me wonder which is it? Does a hen turn the eggs 8 times a day? I do know I've never seen her turn them pointy side down.

I washed my incu and did not use bleach, just a little dish soap and not the top. If you use bleach give it some time for the chlorine to evaporate. Days not hours. I would not use a disenfectant they leave a residue.

Leave all the chicks til they've hatched in the incu. Last time I removed them as they hatched and one I'm pretty sure might have made it if the others were there to roll it around alittle just like in the nest.

I figure incu's are like cars learn your own individual querks.

Finally quiters never win. Never give up, never surrender.

 

[Katy]

Quote:
I agree for the most part with rancher hicks except the rolling around in the nest comment and the young hen's eggs.

Eggs really aren't rolled around in the nest under a hen while they are hatching. They are actually nestled in pretty tightly and the earlier hatching chicks aren't rolling them around like they do laying on the bottom of an incubator. That is the main reason I switched to hatching in egg cartons...they aren't being rolled around. My hatch rates have went up since I made that change.

I've hatched a lot of young hens eggs....not the tiniest of the pullet eggs, but not full size either. They hatch just fine. The chicks may be a little smaller, but they quickly catch up in size.

 

[Bravo]

Quote:
Thanks Rancher.

Yes, this is the second time this has happened. Each time the eggs were shipped eggs and totally unrelated.

I am using an auto egg turner.

During my first hatch I had humidity around 50% for the first 18 days. After the poor hatch the general consensus was the humidity was too high for the first 18 days.

This time the humidity was exactly at 35% for the first 18 days. I tried to keep the humidity at 65% but the humidity spiked to 75% after the first chick hatched. I didnt know it was too high.

With regard to humidity, there is just so much conflicting info on this board and on the internet. It's a catch 22--someone is always going to say it's too high or too low regardless.

I have done 4 hatches and for conversations sake I will refer to them as hatches A-D. Hatches A & B were done with related eggs all from the same roo that were not shipped. I incubated both A & B at 50% humidity and hatched at 75% humidity and had 5 of 5 eggs hatch and thrive in the first hatch and 21 or 22 hatch and thrive in the second hatch (the 1 egg that didnt hatch was clear).

Hatches C & D were both from shipped eggs and have been very poor--I have lost many right before they went into lockdown and then most others around day 20.

Some factors make me wonder if it is due to shipping or if I got some kind of nasty bug in my bator from one of the eggs in hatch C (2 cracked eggs I put in the bator come to mind). What about time of year? A was incubated in the summer and B was in the fall. C & D were both in the winter. Granted I dont live in a very cold area but I wonder if it makes a difference.

In a couple of weeks I am going to give it another shot. I should have a brand new incubator and will watch my humidity very closely.

Heehee...no quitters here! There is nothing I love more than the sound of little chickies!!

Here are my two little miracle babies. The little survivors