Position of 21 day eggs

[Cindilong]

Hello! I went ahead and brought in about nine eggs that my Broody hen has been sitting on, because she gave up on them this morning now that she has eight chicks up and running around. I've got them in a warm box on a non-slippery surface with a heat lamp and a hot room. I don't have any way to humidify so I have the bathtub full of water and a container of water in between the heater I'm using and their container, hoping that adds some humidity to the air. My question though is, does it matter which side I laid them on? I've never incubated, and I know these might not make it, but I've been starting to read about air pockets and whatnot, and if I laid them down the wrong way, will that prevent them from being able to hatch?

I candled a few of them, with a flashlight, my first time. I can't see through the dark brown shells but the lighter ones I can see through and they all look like there's a chick in there. Plus I swear I keep hearing peeping, but below me in my garage are multiple brooders with multiple age chicks and maybe I'm just hearing them.

Next question, I have a brand new brooder set up with 2 day-old chicks in it. I suppose they'll be too big if any of these hatch tonight or tomorrow for these to go in to that same brooder. Can I just try it and see what happens? I've watched multiple videos and some people leave the chicks in the incubator for 2 days and some move them to the brooder right away even while still wet. What is the right way? Thanks!

 

[Spartan22]

Hello! I went ahead and brought in about nine eggs that my Broody hen has been sitting on, because she gave up on them this morning now that she has eight chicks up and running around. I've got them in a warm box on a non-slippery surface with a heat lamp and a hot room. I don't have any way to humidify so I have the bathtub full of water and a container of water in between the heater I'm using and their container, hoping that adds some humidity to the air. My question though is, does it matter which side I laid them on? I've never incubated, and I know these might not make it, but I've been starting to read about air pockets and whatnot, and if I laid them down the wrong way, will that prevent them from being able to hatch?

I candled a few of them, with a flashlight, my first time. I can't see through the dark brown shells but the lighter ones I can see through and they all look like there's a chick in there. Plus I swear I keep hearing peeping, but below me in my garage are multiple brooders with multiple age chicks and maybe I'm just hearing them.

Next question, I have a brand new brooder set up with 2 day-old chicks in it. I suppose they'll be too big if any of these hatch tonight or tomorrow for these to go in to that same brooder. Can I just try it and see what happens? I've watched multiple videos and some people leave the chicks in the incubator for 2 days and some move them to the brooder right away even while still wet. What is the right way? Thanks!

17 eggs is a little much for hens to cover but not impossible. Try to wet some paper towels or rags and place them close by the eggs for humidity 55-65% keep the temps to near 100*. There’s no way to find now how they position themselves in the eggs to prepare to hatch, just watch for it, if you need to turn if you see pipping under (facing down) to face it up. Sometimes they roll on their own any ways. You can leave the chicks in the incubator until they fluff up unless it gets too crowded.
Normally I leave mine 24 hours or so. I have mixed brood chicks that are 1-2 wks old together as long as they’re running around & can drink and eat not being stepped on.

 

[Cindilong]

18 is a little much for hens to cover but not impossible. /QUOTE]

Thank you! A couple are for sure peeping every so often. But a couple of the dark brown ones that I haven't been able to candle feel pretty light... She's a huge hen, and I couldn't see any part of any egg when she was setting, so hopefully that's a good sign. Her she is with her chicks. The one that hatched first was already leaving the nest yesterday morning. She only had two others hatched and she wouldn't go with the brave one. But today more had hatched and I guess she decided she has enough.

 

[Cindilong]

Whoopsie, I sure goofed up that reply, didn't have my reading glasses on. But it's all there, in the quote. Thanks again.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Hows the peeps?

 

[chickens really]

If they hatch you can try to give them to the Hen once she has the others tucked in at night.

 

[h2oratt]

The best ifoyou can find on all aspects of hatching is the thread by sally sunshine.

The eggs will normally roll into the correct position for hatching ie the aircell will be on top.

 

[h2oratt]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-sunshine-hosts-bantychooks-and-more.1137467/

The first pages of this thread has all the info you need to hatch. Just keep scrolling through starting at the first post until you find the info you need.

 

[Cindilong]

Hows the peeps?

Well I've read and read and read and my brain is on overload. One hatched of the ones I brought in. He's doing great. Nobody else has an external pip yet and I don't know enough about candling to recognize an internal pip plus the shells are all very very dark. Nobody is peeping. I tried the float test that I read about on this site and had six that sank hard. That supposedly means they are duds. So before just tossing them all I cracked one open and sadly it had a live chick that looked to be at about day 17 or 18. I don't know what the deal is with that float test but I just put all the eggs back in my fake incubator. News on their siblings living outside, the mom had eight live chicks last night, but only had four chicks today. She lives in a sand enclosure that has a wire floor and wire sides and that way I don't lose chicks in wet grass... But I found two that look like they just couldn't find her at night time when they were cold. Couldn't find the other two. So I went ahead and took her four remaining chicks away and put them in my brooder. Makes me sad, but I don't want to lose any more, and now she can go back to starting to set on everybody else's eggs and then I guess she'll start laying her own at some point. My little hatchee is so cute though. Here's a picture. He's in my electric blanket where it's 92 degrees.

 

[aart]

I don't know what the deal is with that float test

Well, it is not a good thing, either for eggs during incubation or to tell if eggs are 'good' or 'bad' for eating...and the two are often confused.

Haven't absorbed this entire story yet...but OyVey!
Glad you got some live chicks out of it.