Serama eggs seem to quit right before hatch, whats the deal?

[HenThymes]

Honey, plan and simple Serama eggs are hard to hatch!!! They seem to quit at various stages before hatching and if they make it to hatch day, you better be on top of things.. My last set I started with 22 and got 8. (note that one hens were not fertile at all) Three of those had to be helped, one pipped on day 20 and could not zip so on day 21 after a full 24 hours from first pip I just broke him out and he is fine. I had two others that had done nothing so I pulled them out and sure enough chicks were peeping and could not pip. I broke a hole in them at the beak area and they had internally pipped but could not get thru the shell its self. I put them back and let them work at it. About 10 hours later one managed to get out on it's own and two hours after that I just wen ahead and broke the remaining chick out. All had absorbed their yokes and were ready to come out. They were super tiny as they were from my A hen but they are all doing great and about 4 weeks old. It is just something about these little birds that you end up loosing more than hatching.

*Forgot to mention the I use a Brinsea Eco20 for both incubation and hatching*

Here are the three I helped

 

[MuranoFarms]

I have never tried to hatch seramas......but I'll be firing up the brinsea cabinet bator in a few weeks and if you feel like driving them down here you're welcome to borrow some bator space. It'll be on anyway!

I'm by grove city outlets.

I had terrible luck with the LGs (still have 2 of them in storage lol) once I switched to brinsea bators I had much better hatch rates!

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

this is my experience with Serama, they hatch better in winter, I don't candle till day 18 I've found the jiggling from candling will kill the embryo's, I keep my humidity at 50% and temp at 100. and if the breeder you got your eggs from at anytime 'helped' the chicks hatch you will have lower hatch rates, I've read about people how 'help' every egg hatch sell the eggs from those birds and the receiver of those eggs have 0% hatch or a very low hatch, because the breeder never told them about the help. I never help it. my hatch rates are 85% to 95% of hatchable eggs every time. plus size of the parents make a difference in hatch rates too B to C are best

 

[HenThymes]

Size does make a difference, I don't think I would hatch many from my A hen, as hers just don't seem to make it by themselves. My B's and C's have not needed any help. I am lucky enough not to have to pick up eggs for candling as they are upright in rows in my brinsea, we can candle everything without having to touch it.

Not sure about the whole not hatching thing from birds that have been helped???, never heard that one from anyone, guess I will test that theory from this group when they are of age.

 

[ZooMummzy]

My first and only hatch with Seramas went well (shipped eggs) and we didn't even monitor the temp or humidity (3/4 and all were girls) I have 8 Serama eggs (shipped) in the LG right now. It's only day 3 so I haven't candled yet. The LG is doing fine. It does have some issues when the temp in the house changes. We've went from 40s to 60s in just a few days time so I'm kind of struggling with that, but it's holding its own really. I don't have a fan so I'm incubating at a higher temp (101-103).

 

[BHep]

I have 5/15 out right now. 1 zipped, 3 pipped. (1 pip is a silkie )

I am having a much better hatch in the Brinsea 20 ECO then my homemade.

for the rest.

 

[penthesillia]

I find my girl lays particularly hard shells. They can break through so I have to keep a very close watch and external pip for them, then break them out the next day. I've had near perfect hatch rate since doing this.