Set on 2/4...who's with me?

[LilyD]

I looked at a few and didn't see much. I think I need a brighter light.

I have a small LED light but I had to change out my batteries before it was bright enough to see anything but blobs. I still have some eggs that are blobbish because the shell is darker but most of them I can see the little babies growing just fine inside. So exciting.

 

[Spangled]

I candled tonight, what can I say... I'm so impatient! Of the 22 shipped eggs (smashed box, two cracked eggs I had to polish) I put 6 under a first time broody and 16 in my bator. well I am stoked to say that I have 14 eggs going in the bator and 5 under my hen!! I cannot believe these eggs pulled through such a terrible shipping. just goes to show, you just never know!!

oh, and to the person interested in my nail polished eggs, one is doing great and the other had a detached air cell that never recovered.

19 out of 22 shipped eggs is brilliant. Wow! Excellent. Gives me hope for my next hatch as I think I may do the egg swap by MrHeinz77 (or something like that) and then set them in Mahonri's BYC Easter Hatch. They've already started signing people up for the egg swap. And the Mahonri's Easter hatch for that matter. Anyone else here doing that hatch? We have to set on March 17.

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I looked at a few and didn't see much. I think I need a brighter light.

What are you hatching again? They were shipped eggs, right?

My update: I couldn't candle last night, nor tonight. I do not think I'll get to it until at least Tuesday am or pm. I'm not sure. It has to be dark out to candle since I have windows in my hatching room (the office this time). Candling is difficult when the eggs are double stacked; I feel like I'm juggling dynamite.

I accidentally splashed water on one of the eggs this morning when I was adding a bit (a lot!) of water to the incubator. I don't think that's good, but I don't think I've ever read anything about it. Anyone know? The water was warm, so maybe that's a plus, but it wasn't filtered.

 

[Spangled]

I can see the little babies growing just fine inside. So exciting.

I think it's exciting, too. I'm so glad that it's only 21 days.

 

[LilyD]

I think it's exciting, too. I'm so glad that it's only 21 days.

Definitely glad its only 21 days. My sister is hatching dick eggs this year which are 28 lol. Not sure I could do another week.

 

[AriLovesChickens]

What are you hatching again? They were shipped eggs, right?

Yes, they are shipped eggs - lavender and lemon cuckoo Orpingtons. I was able to see some veins in 9 out of 22 eggs. The others, I wasn't sure. Some had dark, mottled shells, and I couldn't see anything. Others just didn't look like they had much in them. I don't expect all to fully develop, but if this many turn out to be infertile, I will not be pleased.

 

[Spangled]

Yes, they are shipped eggs - lavender and lemon cuckoo Orpingtons. I was able to see some veins in 9 out of 22 eggs. The others, I wasn't sure. Some had dark, mottled shells, and I couldn't see anything. Others just didn't look like they had much in them. I don't expect all to fully develop, but if this many turn out to be infertile, I will not be pleased.

Lavender and Lemon Cuckoo Orpingtons sound fancy, particularly the Lemon Cuckoo. They would be quite a beautiful sight in my backyard. Let's hope you get some males and females of both varieties.

I have such low expectations with shipped eggs because I've probably got about an overall hatch rate of 5% on shipped eggs.

(After that admission, no one will ever send me hatching eggs. In my defense I've had at least one 100% hatch, though, with my own hens' eggs from nests here at home.)

 

[Spangled]

Candling update:

I candled and ... I've already forgotten. Um ... thinking. I removed a few eggs. I remember one totally clear egg, just a glowing orb. I removed an egg that I thought had probably gotten frozen that quit developing, it wasn't clear, but not much was in it. And another I took out for some reason I can't remember. I ended up candling yesterday before going to town, so my memory is now rather sketchy.

Um. Oh! The three eggs that had been in the refrigerator for about 24 hours look fine (so far)! Yippee.

I can't believe we still have so much time left on this hatch. We're on about day ... 10? Really? Only half way? (Where's the smiley icon for whining and impatience?)

 

[AriLovesChickens]

I candled again today and added two more 'maybes' to the bunch. That still leaves about 10 or so that are either not fertile, just had a blood ring (I guess this means fertile but didn't develop at all?) or were too dark/mottled to see anything.

 

[cupman]

I set my eggs on 2/3 so I have just completed day 11. I am not so sure about these eggs. They were all laid by my own hens and were handled properly but I just get such strange results. Some eggs I can clearly see veins growing inside and other eggs it's just too dark to see through the egg. Then there's the egg that looks like nothing is in it.. about 90% sure it's a dead egg but I put it back in. I really don't know. Maybe I'll just wait until a later day.

 

[Spangled]

Some eggs I can clearly see veins growing inside and other eggs it's just too dark to see through the egg.

That's how mine look, too. I figure the ones that are too dark to see through are fine (on some level) because that's how it usually works out. But, of course, I'm not sure. Usually I never see the veins, but I usually wait until day 14 when most of them are just dark blobs in there.

I just remembered today while reading another thread that if I wanted to candle at day 20 or 21 that I might be able to see a chick that has broken through into the air cell at the top of the egg (inside). That sounds like fun. I'm not sure I'll try, though, because I sort of don't want to goof things up. Have you ever read that poem or story about the person who found a butterfly emerging from its cocoon? And then he tried to help it out, but killed it in the process? I often think of that and then just want to keep my hands off of nature and let it do its job on its own. But incubating is so artificial, so what's the difference? I don't know.