Set eggs 3/5. Looking for others to hatch with!

[wholewheatchicken]

I don't lockdown until I get internal pips. So when they are close to when they should be put on lockdown I listen to them real quick while I'm turning them, and candle a few of them. Once I've got a pip in one I quit turning all the eggs due with that one.
I turn the eggs 5 times a day, 3 if I'm busy or have eggs hatching and don't want to open the incubator too much. If I have a bunch hatching sometimes I won't turn them at all for a day.
As far as the woodpellets, I'm keeping them on them until they go outside. I have a brooder with a heat lamp outside and it's nice enough now I don't plan on keeping anyone inside longer than 2-3 weeks. I let everyone out during the day for a little bit to mingle, and start introducing them to the big girl coop at 8 weeks.
I've only been hatching since last summer, but have been hatching a lot or trying to the last few months. I think I've finally got what works for me down.

Hope so, cause I'm getting more call duck eggs soon.

So you do it all in one incubator? Interesting. Do you start listening on day 18 and beyond (I feel like I'm a character on Toy Story there) to hear the peeping inside?
And if you hear the peeping inside the egg, that means they have pipped internally?
My last batch I could hear peeping inside so they must have pipped, if that's the case, and were too wrapped to externally pip? I will have to investigate that. I didn't realize if I could hear them they had pipped internally. I wonder if that makes a difference for me figuring out what happened.
So you incubate shipped eggs? I was just asking above for advice on the best way to handle shipped eggs and the best way to incubate. I have read so many different ideas. The only thing that seems consistent is to let them rest when they come before putting them in the incubator.
Do you have them come and the air cell is really wonky? What do you do for those? Someone suggested incubating them in an egg carton to help the air cell get situated again. Do you do that?
Do you mist the inside of the incubator every few days the entire time of incubation?

 

[mayberrygirl]

If I get eggs shipped to me, I put them in a carton and let them set for 24-48 hours untouched, no tilting or turning. So the air cell can settle.

Candled this morning, I am down to 23 from 33, and for sure have 11 moving, the rest I just cannot tell, they are browns, blues, and greens.

 

[CALI CHICK]

Good Morning

I have to finish teaching, but I will post later today.

It is Day 10 for my EE and Day 3 for my Silkies and I plan to candle tonight.

Hoping to see movement and veins in all of my EE'ers again. I'm having so much fun incubating this time. I can't describe how easy it is hatching in this Hova Bator compared to that old Brower....................and my new "air circulated" Hova Bator will arrive today or tomorrow!!

 

[JulieNKC]

So you do it all in one incubator? Interesting. Do you start listening on day 18 and beyond (I feel like I'm a character on Toy Story there) to hear the peeping inside?
And if you hear the peeping inside the egg, that means they have pipped internally?
My last batch I could hear peeping inside so they must have pipped, if that's the case, and were too wrapped to externally pip? I will have to investigate that. I didn't realize if I could hear them they had pipped internally. I wonder if that makes a difference for me figuring out what happened.
So you incubate shipped eggs? I was just asking above for advice on the best way to handle shipped eggs and the best way to incubate. I have read so many different ideas. The only thing that seems consistent is to let them rest when they come before putting them in the incubator.
Do you have them come and the air cell is really wonky? What do you do for those? Someone suggested incubating them in an egg carton to help the air cell get situated again. Do you do that?
Do you mist the inside of the incubator every few days the entire time of incubation?

When they internally pip you can hear a clicking sound. Sounds like the chick pecking at the shell but it's just their breathing. Usually day 18-19 for chickens, day 23-25 for ducks, etc. Wonky air cells I incubate big end tilted up, everything else on it's side.

If I get eggs shipped to me, I put them in a carton and let them set for 24-48 hours untouched, no tilting or turning. So the air cell can settle.
Candled this morning, I am down to 23 from 33, and for sure have 11 moving, the rest I just cannot tell, they are browns, blues, and greens.

I do that, and also don't turn them the first day in the incubator. I'm candling tonight, I'm sure a few of the wonky egg cell not looking so good eggs have quit.

 

[CALI CHICK]

Ok, I'm now caught up on this thread!! I cant seem to get caught up on the hatch along thread either!! WOW they are chatty!! LOL! I think I just need to keep up with this thread and just pop in on the other. This is my second hatch, so I'm with you guys on still figuring most of this out. Right now I have 22% H and 100 for the temp. This time I can't seem to keep the temp down to 99. I'm hoping that it won't kill my hatch but I think it should be ok since it is a forced air hovabator. I did succeed in getting the second bator from my uncle, so I have a hatcher now for this staggered hatch... and my DH decided I should just buy it from him instead of borrowing it, LOL!! Yep, he is learning chicken math too!!

So, I have a ? for you guys... I have just started letting my chickens free range her at my farm. They have been in a 8x6 coop with a 12x6 outside run. My nearest neighbor has 4 hens w/ 8 roos all free ranging with no coop. Now that my chickens are out, one of their roosters is down here trying to fight my rooster and steal hens!! What do I do?? I talked to them and they said," Oh well, just eat him I guess." I really dislike their rooster, but I'm not really sure about killing their rooster!! Any suggestions for me???  

Onawhim and Wholewheat
It seems like you two are doing opposites with your humidity! I'm surprised since you are both from Ohio!
(onawhim @ 22% and Wholewheat @ 50%
I'm curious onawhimfarm, did you use the dry hatch method on your last hatch and how did it go for you???? If it worked for you great. But, Wholewheat and I did it and most of our chicks were shrinkwrapped and didn't hatch....even though we raised the humidity to 75% during lockdown. I think WWC had 1 out of 12 hatch and I had 4 out of 10 hatch.

 

[mayberrygirl]

I am in NC and I don't do dry incubating either, just doesn't work for me. I keep humidity at 40-45% days 1-18 then bump up to 60-65% for lockdown.

 

[wholewheatchicken]

Onawhim and Wholewheat
It seems like you two are doing opposites with your humidity! I'm surprised since you are both from Ohio!
(onawhim @ 22% and Wholewheat @ 50%
I'm curious onawhimfarm, did you use the dry hatch method on your last hatch and how did it go for you???? If it worked for you great. But, Wholewheat and I did it and most of our chicks were shrinkwrapped and didn't hatch....even though we raised the humidity to 75% during lockdown. I think WWC had 1 out of 12 hatch and I had 4 out of 10 hatch.

That came out messed up, but I think onawhimfarm is closer to the Great Lakes and I am down here in the dry valley!!!! I'm thinking she's about a good five hours from me. Tell me if I'm wrong, onawhim. I was thinking you are up by Sandusky.
All I know is I did dry and it was miserable so the next thing to try is higher! Something has got to work here. If I don't get any chicks next Monday I will be having to buy myself something ASAP for my shipped eggs. I will be sick if I can't incubate them. The color of silkies I ordered will (hopefully) be just perfect for the colors I have now and I need the Ameraucanas to breed to the ones I have or else I'll end up with ten legged chicks!
JulieNKC, so on days 18 and 19 I just keep getting the eggs out that are due to hatch and keep listening periodically for the pecking noise and that's when I bump up the humidity and lock them down?
And why can you hear them breathing? Is that because they have internally pipped? And if they have internally pipped, how come it takes so long to day 21 for them to externally pip, if you know?
I find that to be fascinating!
For wonky air cells, how do you get the big end elevated up?
And if you are incubating and hatching in the same incubator, how much room do these chicks need when they hatch out? It seems like yours might be crowded and I'm asking because mine might be crowded for the eggs that are coming and I'm wondering how much room these guys need to be born in.
Has anyone hatched out in the egg crates? I was considering that this time to keep the eggs from being rolled around.


Now, here is something I have been considering. Maybe I killed the first batch with Miss Pretty by taking the eggs out too early. I was a little upset. On day 22 I took them all out . When we opened them up they loked fine. I felt really bad because my DH's first response was OH, GOSH, KIM, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? Okay. Thank you for the therapy, guys. I think about it an awful lot and it makes me feel really bad. I just thought they weren't going to be born.

 

[CALI CHICK]

I am in NC and I don't do dry incubating either, just doesn't work for me. I keep humidity at 40-45% days 1-18 then bump up to 60-65% for lockdown.

Yep...that is pretty much what I'm doing this time around. I'm comfortable with 35-45% humidity and just hoping for the best. I thought "dry hatching" was the "way to go", but I felt terrible when I opened up the 6 eggs that didn't hatch. The little chicks were completely formed and had all or most of the yolk absorbed...They just didn't have room to turn toward the aircell (which was huge) and pip and zip their way out of the shell.

This hatch is all local eggs (laid and gathered within 3 days of going into the incubator), which should really make a difference as well. I can't wait for hatch day for either of these groups of eggs.

 

[wholewheatchicken]

Yep...that is pretty much what I'm doing this time around. I'm comfortable with 35-45% humidity and just hoping for the best. I thought "dry hatching" was the "way to go", but I felt terrible when I opened up the 6 eggs that didn't hatch. The little chicks were completely formed and had all or most of the yolk absorbed...They just didn't have room to turn toward the aircell (which was huge) and pip and zip their way out of the shell.
This hatch is all local eggs (laid and gathered within 3 days of going into the incubator), which should really make a difference as well. I can't wait for hatch day for either of these groups of eggs.

So I find that to be confusing. If you had a huge air cell, why would they not have room to turn and get to it? What caused them to be stuck?

 

[CALI CHICK]

[
Now, here is something I have been considering. Maybe I killed the first batch with Miss Pretty by taking the eggs out too early. I was a little upset. On day 22 I took them all out . When we opened them up they loked fine. I felt really bad because my DH's first response was OH, GOSH, KIM, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? Okay. Thank you for the therapy, guys. I think about it an awful lot and it makes me feel really bad. I just thought they weren't going to be born. [/quote]

WWC--I didn't say anything in the last thread that we shared, but I was surprised that you were opening up your eggs so soon. I didn't do eggtopsies until Day 24 because I wanted to be sure they were dead. I even pipped all their shells and peeled off the stuck membrane, put them back in the bator and hoped they would be able to hatch. But they were gone. Their heads were tucked under their wings, like they couldn't move. (I'm sure mine basically suffocated inside the tight membrane) Maybe yours wouldn't have made it anyway. Don't beat yourself up! Just give them a longer chance to develop and hatch this time. I'm positive you'll have a great hatch rate this time.