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

[SilkieTime]

Did you wash the eggs?

Maybe water did it.

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Direct sunlight kills bacteria. I'd bleach it again, and then leave it in the sun for several days, maybe even a week before I would attempt to hatch anything else in it. Turner needs the same treatment. Either that, or get a new incubator. Those foam ones are hard to get clean after something like that happens. I wish you all the best of luck. It stinks to have bad hatches!

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

i have read that Oxine is good for disinfecting incubators and you can even spray it on the eggs. i just bought some, but have not used it yet. If you search it on this forum, you should find a lot of posts about it.

As for the eggs still in the incubator. i think at this point it's up to fate. Hope they make it.

 

[Brody's Broodello]

What are you feeding the parents. If you are feeding a layer feed, the calcium could be to high. The feed for layers makes the shells harder so they don't break easily when layed on a hard floor. Great for eating eggs, not good for a chick trying to break out. The chick get's to tired and can't finish the job. I had this problem when I first started to hatch, I fed the hens Layena, after i switched them to Flock Raiser, the problem went away. Hope this helps.

 

[Germaine_11.20]

What humidity did you hatch at? Too high and they will be "sticky" chicks.

I dry incubate at 20-40% and hatch about 65%. After I clean my foam Genesis I carefully pour boiling or close to boiling water on the foam parts to kill any germs. I do this with the wire too and even the plastic tray (but the water isn't quite so hot)
I keep the red plug in at hatch and out during incubation.

If you don't have any pips you could candle and see if they are alive. Then decide if you want to help any out.

Did you open the dead chicks shell to see if it was in good condition otherwise. Did it have anything wrong with it?

 

[Bravo]

Thanks guys. I think I am going to pitch it and start from scratch after this hatch. Hopefully it doesnt turn out to be another massacar.

Do you think I should remove the hatched chick so the bacteria doesnt infect it?

Brody: they are shipped eggs I bought off ebay.

Rustyswoman: I didnt open the dead peeps shell. I was too upset to go any further.

 

[Bravo]

My husband just called and said another egg is pipping and zipping. He is cheering it on. I mentioned it might be something bacterial going on and he said he was going to stay with the peep and keep encouraging it not to give up. I am praying this helps.

He's such a good guy!

 

[Bettacreek]

I had the same issue with my LG. I had disinfected it, but it was giving me the same issue. I started hatching out in my 1588 and didn't have the same issues. BUT, when I hatched in my LG, I learned to start helping them out of the egg. If I did this, my hatch rate increased by a LOT. You get used to helping them and learn how to do it properly. It's not as hard as one would think.

 

[Katy]

I think it's a humidity issue....if there's liquid coming out of the egg and it looks from the picture that there is I'd say they're drowning. The froth is more than likely from the chick trying to breath and inhaling fluid. 70-75% at lockdown is too high in my opinion. I generally only bump it up to 60%....no higher than 65%. It will naturally go up as you get chicks hatching.

 

[spikennipper]

What type of incubator is it? sounds like humidity may have been an issue here, sorry to hear about the chick, hope all the others make it for you