Runner Duck Hatch-a-Long! 2021

[JoJoM]

@JoJoM they are SO cute!!
I’m happy you are having a good hatch!
Can I ask, out of curiosity, what temp and humidity you had during incubation and lockdown?

I did my best to maintain around 99.5 through out and about 50% humidity. My house is super dry and my Amazon cheapie incubator made it really hard to maintain the humidity though. I did keep it in the Styrofoam, so that helped at least to keep the temp stable.

Lockdown was a bit of a sh!tshow, I must admit. I kept the temp steady at 99.5 and put a tupperware and sponge it to try to get it over 60% but unless I kept topping up with hot water constantly, I couldn't get it higher. I opened the lid way too frequently and kept checking them so then, I worried that they'd shrink wrap so if they had pipped, I made a safety hole worried that the pip didn't break the membrane. I opened the one I lost and he had pipped internally but then quit so I was afraid he'd run out of air. I assisted the first little one, the other three have hatched on their own. I'm really sorry you didn't have a super successful hatch. We spend so much time on them and to get that far to suffer such a loss is awful.

 

[MGG]

The last egg didn’t make it @MGG
The white membrane was pretty tight to it in places, I couldn’t even peel it away. is that shrink wrapping even though the membrane was white?
Just curious for next time.
The duckling wasn’t ready to come out though, I could still see some large veins and yolk, so I don’t think there could have been much else I could have done.

Thank you for your help.

Awww.
I'm so sorry. No, if the membrane was white I can't imagine that it would have been shrinkwrapped. In all of the shrinkwrapped eggs that I've seen, the membrane is yellow/brown.
Yeah, you did all you could. I'm sorry.

 

[AAcres]

Awww.
I'm so sorry. No, if the membrane was white I can't imagine that it would have been shrinkwrapped. In all of the shrinkwrapped eggs that I've seen, the membrane is yellow/brown.
Yeah, you did all you could. I'm sorry.

Well I'm glad it wasn't shrinkwrapped. I left it for 5 hours to sleep and came back and there was no breathing movement anymore. The ducklings beak was near the centre of the egg and facing down.
Who knows what happened really, just very disappointing!

I do one hatch a year and it just never seems to go well and I can't figure out why!

I'll try again next year, lol

 

[MGG]

Well I'm glad it wasn't shrinkwrapped. I left it for 5 hours to sleep and came back and there was no breathing movement anymore. The ducklings beak was near the centre of the egg and facing down.
Who knows what happened really, just very disappointing!

I do one hatch a year and it just never seems to go well and I can't figure out why!

I'll try again next year, lol

I'm so sorry it didn't work out! You didn't get any to hatch?
Here's a pic I dug up of one of my shrinkwrapped ducklings. You can see the yellow membrane.

 

[AAcres]

I'm so sorry it didn't work out! You didn't get any to hatch?
Here's a pic I dug up of one of my shrinkwrapped ducklings. You can see the yellow membrane. View attachment 2602136

ahh okay, yes I see the yellow.

I had one hatch out of 5 this year.
Last year I had 20 eggs make it to lockdown and only 7 or 8 hatched.

 

[MGG]

ahh okay, yes I see the yellow.

I had one hatch out of 5 this year.
Last year I had 20 eggs make it to lockdown and only 7 or 8 hatched.

Weird! Do you have all of the vents open during the hatch?

 

[AAcres]

Weird! Do you have all of the vents open during the hatch?

Yes, I had the vents open. Is that good/bad?
I have a hunch that my hygrometer wigged out on me and was incorrect...I’m currently testing it again.

 

[MGG]

Yes, I had the vents open. Is that good/bad?
I have a hunch that my hygrometer wigged out on me and was incorrect...I’m currently testing it again.

Oh that's good. You want them all the way open.
Hm, yeah that's possible. I don't think that would be bad enough to make them quit like this though.

 

[AAcres]

In happier news, here is our little hatchling with her friends

 

[AAcres]

Oh that's good. You want them all the way open.
Hm, yeah that's possible. I don't think that would be bad enough to make them quit like this though.

yeah I’m stumped. I really thought I did everything right