Secret to hatching Marans

[marymac]

I have tried to hatch Copper Marans eggs 4 times now. I have a silky sitting on 3 BLC marans eggs now for 22 days and there is no sign of hatching yet. She is so determined to hatch these and is a real good sitter. My previous attempts have been in an incubator twice and under broodies and I have never hatched a Marans yet. Are they too hard to hatch? How do the rest of you get them to hatch? I would so like to have a few BCM but this buying them and not getting any is getting pretty expensive. What is the secret?

 

[Chicky Tocks]

Are you trying to hatch shipped eggs? What kind of bator do you have?

 

[Sooner]

Need to know more about the eggs. I would say shipped eggs or fertility.

 

[marymac]

Quote:
Yea they were all shipped eggs. I have tried using a Little giant with a fan and me turning the eggs and I have tried 2 other attempts using a broody, with no success. Each broody had 6 eggs under her. This time I started out with 7 eggs, and 4 got trampled on, I believe by a couple of young roosters that were bullied by a hen. Long story short It left my broody with 3 eggs which she has been on really well. I'm just starting to believe they must be hard to hatch.

 

[Katy]

I'd say it's the shipping more than anything else. I have good hatches from my own Marans eggs and don't treat them any different than I do my other breed's eggs.

 

[peewee6765]

do you have any humidity?

 

[marymac]

Quote:
I guess there is humidity, I have a broody silky sitting on the 3 eggs.

 

[Chicky Tocks]

You're most likely having problems because you have shipped eggs. I tried hatching in a homemade bator and like you, spent tons on having maran eggs shipped to me. I did finally manage to get three FBCM's to hatch from one of these shipped attempts. THEN I bought a real incubator. I spent $99 on a Brinsea Octogan. I found a reputable breeder of FBCM's about an hour away from me and I drove to get the eggs myself. Every single one of them hatched. I also have to add that I've been attempting to hatch serama eggs forever and a day but managed to get 100% hatch in my Brinsea along with those FBCM.

Another thing, I've heard a lot of success stories, but myself I'm not a big fan of the LG. For the same amount of money, the Brinsea Octogan is the way to go.

 

[sewandgrow]

Quote:
I haven't tried a broody hen but I did buy Silkies just for that purpose after not having good luck hatching last year. This year my hatch rate was waaaaaay better. I did buy an incubator with an egg turner though. What I have found was that some of the Marans eggs take loner to hatch than other eggs. Even out of the same batch. I have stopped taking them out right after the hatch date has passed. This year I had some hatch 4 days after the day I had them scheduled for & I was thinking I must have marked them wrong until another breeder tols me she had a batch hatch over a seven day period.....Go figure!!!!

 

[marymac]

Since this is only 1 day late I plan to let her sit some more just to be on the safe side. I'm not sure where I read this, but seems some place I read you can lightly sand the Marans eggs with fine sandpaper before trying to hatch. Does any one know any thing about that?