Setting eggs today...20th May...anyone else?

[ashem0]

Here’s hoping your Mille’s and Buffy’s hatch successfully then. The drive home sounds like an opportunity to acquire more eggs you really want. And you have more control over them than posting.

What do you suggest I put the IB’s in to hatch? My incubator came with a plastic mesh I’m supposed to lay down to stop them rotating during lock-down. But I wonder, if I improvise with some cardboard on one side, I could in fact keep the Maran’s turning on the rotator on the other side. But if any of the chicks got out that would be fatal! If I make the sides tall maybe…? Will have to get crafty!

Staggered hatches difficult indeed! And it’s my first hatch!

 

[loopy12]

Something like a shallow $-store plastic basket, or one of those holey greengrocer punnets might work - as long as its something very holey for air and moisture to circulate - got anything like that?

 

[ashem0]

I'm looking round the house for something now....but the bloke who gave me the eggs has just sent me into a tizz... he emailed that his first egg has just hatched.

I put the mesh down so that at least they stop rotating. Poor things must be so discombobulated! MY incubator is VERY small.

Would it matter if the dish was ceramic? Or a shallow plastic one without holes? I know the plastic ones with holes you mean, but don't think I have one.

Add to the mix a 3 and 5 yr old home sick today!

 

[ashem0]

A very exciting update from this end – after receiving an email from the IB breeder that one of his chicks hatched this morning, I checked mine and was greeted with the sweetest little cheeping sound coming from one of them. I have rearranged the incubator so they can't rotate. These eggs have certainly been through the ringer. No lock down, lots of toing and froing and 4/6 are still alive!!

I removed 2 quitters giving the IB’s more room to hatch. I laid them on a thin cardboard cut out – you can see it in the pic. Hopefully there is enough space between them for air and humidity. This should confine the mess and will stop them bumping into the Marans eggs, which are now squished around the outside of the incubator. I will have to hand-turn those for now.

I have bumped up the humidity. Don't really need to turn the Maran's until this evening now, so will leave well-enough alone.

Have I got it covered? Anything else I should do for them?

 

[Alaskan]

Looks good!

Can't wait!

Yeah of you!

So....I was thinking, you only incubated these eggs for four days, and now they hatch? That is wonderful!

 

[ashem0]

I know funny hey. I suspect the breeder was telling furfies when he said they were only 5 days along. Cheeky man!

But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, because he helped me out in a hurry. Just don't understand why he wasn't straight with me, I'd have taken the eggs anyway.

 

[Alaskan]

So no chicks yet? This part...the waiting and not knowing....ooooooh

 

[ashem0]

It's so funny watching them, 2 eggs are rockin'n'rollin in there! Lots of action going on inside... nothing to show yet though. This can go on for ages can't it? E.g., 24-48hrs? They must be getting tired with all that movement. It's as if they're saying "Help, let me out".

 

[ashem0]

Maybe they're looking for the EXIT sign?

 

[comptonsgonecountry]

Could I join in? I added 2 and 1/2 dozen eggs at 6am on May 20th. All my eggs are backyard mix from EE to various bantams. I also have a broody sitting on 3 of her banty eggs. We shall see if she hatches them. But as for my incubation run, temps have been anywhere from 95-102 because of the crazy spring weather we are having here in Clarke County Virginia. Not sure how the eggs are doing from the temp fluctuations. I will be candling this coming Wednesday to see how they are doing.

Ashem0, fingers and toes are crossed for a great hatch. Can't wait to hear how things went!