Last Saturday, I set 6 mutt eggs from the neighbor (sold for eating, but one that I cracked open was fertile, so I stuck the rest in the 'bator), and 9 beautiful Cochin eggs that I received from PeepsInc.
The temperature in my Brinsea Octagon 20 ECO has been fluctuating between 99.5 and 99.7 since I put the eggs in - and I candled them for the first time early this morning! I'm using a LED flashlight that has 14 little bulbs inside - making it relatively easy to see the little peeps.
The 6 mutt eggs from the neighbors were all clear - no difference whatsoever from when I first candled before setting them, and since I really didn't have my heart set on hatching any of those, I discarded them. I didn't want them to go bad and mess up my Cochin eggs - my little sister is SO excited about having a Cochin to show in 4-H next year
So - of the 9 Cochin eggs, I have 3 that have excellent veining. Another has a thicker, more porous shell, but I definately see some veining, just not quite as pronounced as the others. Two more don't show any veining, but they look like they're just a bit behind the others - I'll give them at least until day 10 before I give up on them.
Of the remaining three - two had ruptured air sacs that must have missed when I initially candled to check for cracks, and the other had a ruptured yolk - I know I couldn't have missed that before I set them, so I'm guessing it was already damaged from shipping and the turning of the incubator was enough to rupture it fully.
Still, at 4 (possibly 6) out of 9 developing is a pretty decent percentage for shipped eggs!
The temperature in my Brinsea Octagon 20 ECO has been fluctuating between 99.5 and 99.7 since I put the eggs in - and I candled them for the first time early this morning! I'm using a LED flashlight that has 14 little bulbs inside - making it relatively easy to see the little peeps.
The 6 mutt eggs from the neighbors were all clear - no difference whatsoever from when I first candled before setting them, and since I really didn't have my heart set on hatching any of those, I discarded them. I didn't want them to go bad and mess up my Cochin eggs - my little sister is SO excited about having a Cochin to show in 4-H next year
So - of the 9 Cochin eggs, I have 3 that have excellent veining. Another has a thicker, more porous shell, but I definately see some veining, just not quite as pronounced as the others. Two more don't show any veining, but they look like they're just a bit behind the others - I'll give them at least until day 10 before I give up on them.
Of the remaining three - two had ruptured air sacs that must have missed when I initially candled to check for cracks, and the other had a ruptured yolk - I know I couldn't have missed that before I set them, so I'm guessing it was already damaged from shipping and the turning of the incubator was enough to rupture it fully.
Still, at 4 (possibly 6) out of 9 developing is a pretty decent percentage for shipped eggs!
