Set 3/9/12 HATCH ALONG!

[DirtCreature]

SWEET! and super cool about your babies!

Results of Day 14 candling - According to the pictures, they look more like day 11-13 development. There is alot of space toward the bottom of the egg yet, the air sac is still small, and the dark band that is the developing chick is about 1/2"-3/4 inch width in the middle of the egg. I think my temp is a bit low. The thermometer that came with the incubator is still reading 99.5-100 on top of the eggs, but the two aquarium thermometers lying between the eggs is showing about 98*. Tempted to bump it up a bit, but will wait till morning so I can monitor better. The good news is, out of my 35 remaining eggs (out of 41), they all appear to be alive and developing. It's kinda fun watching the little embryos jump around in there. Since they're so far behind, I'm thinking of waiting until Wed. to start lockdown. I set my eggs at 10:30pm, so they'd start at that time on Wed. Any thoughts?

Dirt Creature - I'll try to get some pics of the shed conversion posted.

 

[Domestic_goddess]

Day 15!!! 3 more days until lockdown. I think I'll candle one more time just before lockdown, how is everyone doing? I'm getting excited

 

[audrey02026]

Day 15!!! 3 more days until lockdown. I think I'll candle one more time just before lockdown, how is everyone doing? I'm getting excited

Day 15 for me too. I have 4 out of 5 Red Sex Links with moving embryos and 7 Brahmas moving and 1 iffy...It's dark and has lots of veins but I see no movement. There were 12 so 7 or 8 out of 12 for the Brahma's......Yay!!!

 

[Domestic_goddess]

Sounds like you'll have a nice hatch audrey. I decided to candle I few today, just because I wanted to see how things were going. It's harder now to see much going on....they are getting so dark, I am hoping and praying I get some of them to hatch!

 

[DirtCreature]

so my humitity went down from 50ish to 45% should i add some more water, or is the benifit of adding some out weighed by the loss of the current humitity? anyone? should i wait until it gets a little lower then add some?

 

[audrey02026]

Sounds like you'll have a nice hatch audrey. I decided to candle I few today, just because I wanted to see how things were going. It's harder now to see much going on....they are getting so dark, I am hoping and praying I get some of them to hatch!

I have staggered hatches. I will have some hatching just about every week in April. I have one due to Hatch March 30th but they are with my broody. She only has 4 eggs I'm expecting 2 to hatch the others I could not tell. Good Luck with your hatch!!

 

[CALI CHICK]

so my humitity went down from 50ish to 45% should i add some more water, or is the benifit of adding some out weighed by the loss of the current humitity? anyone? should i wait until it gets a little lower then add some?

I judge how much humidity to add/remove by the size of the aircells. How do the eggs' aircells look? At Day 14, they should be about the size of a fifty-cent-piece....They should continue to enlarge until hatchday. I will take and post a picture of my Day 15 EE which show Day 7 and Day14 aircells. I draw a line around the aircell when I candle. I have my humidity running between 35-45%, because TOO much humidity can limit the egg from losing neccessary moisture. The chick needs room to pip into an "aircell" not pip into a watery membrane causing it to drown. 50% works just fine for some people, but I'm trying to keep mine around 40% average.

 

[CALI CHICK]

so my humitity went down from 50ish to 45% should i add some more water, or is the benifit of adding some out weighed by the loss of the current humitity? anyone? should i wait until it gets a little lower then add some?

Hi DirtCreature, below is a picture of Day7 and Day14 aircells on the blue-green EE eggs. Notice how they have gotten bigger.

The whiter eggs are my Day 8 Silkie eggs. The last time I incubated I used the "dry hatch method" keeping my humidity at only 20-35% for the first 18 days....then bumped it up to 75% for lockdown. Unfortunately (I didn't know about watching the aircells) and the aircells got way too big. Only 4 of the chicks hatched and the others basically shrinkwrapped under the membrane. Humidity plays a big role in the success of a hatch and like so many others, I'm trying to find the "magic number" to keep my humidity at.

Good luck with your hatch. I'm biting my nails hoping for a better hatch rate this time. If all 5 EE's hatch it would be 100%. Last time 4 out of 10, so I only had 40% success.

Here are the aircell markings for the EE's on the top. Click on the photo to make it full screen:

 

[DirtCreature]

WOW that is so cool! ya know, i was looking at your picture, and then relised i would never ever think to draw with a pencil the air sacs.... LOL. idk why, that is a really good idea to be able to keep track of everything. i added a little more water, and then a dixie cup with a cut sponge that was wet in the bator and it brought it back up to 50%... so thats good i guess. Idk if I can go from around 50% humitity "way" of hatching and lower it once they have been started to the "dry hatch" way... or if once you start one way you just keep it..... so my plan is try to keep it around 50%...if it gets low, no biggy add alittle water and see. This is my first real batch. the last one all either died or where not fertile (which im sure you all rememeber)....

I have my eggs in they got put in on the 22nd i believe, and i was going to leave the egg turner off for atleast 4 days, then turn it on. Everyone says since they where shipped this is a good day, i think at this point that is the only thing im really worried about. I know i was told not to touch them or turn them and i havent but im just so scared that they will die cause i havent turned them a little bit and the chick needs that movement to release the pressure.... IDK!

Hi DirtCreature, below is a picture of Day7 and Day14 aircells on the blue-green EE eggs. Notice how they have gotten bigger.

The whiter eggs are my Day 8 Silkie eggs. The last time I incubated I used the "dry hatch method" keeping my humidity at only 20-35% for the first 18 days....then bumped it up to 75% for lockdown. Unfortunately (I didn't know about watching the aircells) and the aircells got way too big. Only 4 of the chicks hatched and the others basically shrinkwrapped under the membrane. Humidity plays a big role in the success of a hatch and like so many others, I'm trying to find the "magic number" to keep my humidity at.

Good luck with your hatch. I'm biting my nails hoping for a better hatch rate this time. If all 5 EE's hatch it would be 100%. Last time 4 out of 10, so I only had 40% success.

Here are the aircell markings for the EE's on the top. Click on the photo to make it full screen:

 

[Domestic_goddess]

Day 16!!!! How is everyone doing? I candeled a few yesterday and I didn't see much, it's really dark in there. I don't think my candeler is bright enough! 2 more days until lockdown, getting excited! My hubby is going to a business meeting out of town and asked if I wanted to go....darn, I have my eggs due on the 30th and do not dare leave!