She said/He said Who's right? Who's wrong? No one!

[snowbird]

Quote: My favorite Incubator is the GQF 1202 with the electronic thermostat, I put these in myself and get them from Cutler Poultry Supply. I have never had one of them fail. I also have the big Brower 1200 egg for Incubating. I bought three of the GQF Genesis couple of year ago but do not like the reliability. Something in the range of the GQF 1202 can be bought around here for somewhere in the 200-300 range.

 

[snowbird]

Quote: I use nothing different for the BC Marans eggs. Will ad that I set the eggs in a positioner and also have them that way in the hatcher. This way they tend to pip where the air is located not on the side like what happens a lot.

 

[scflock]

I know. So when people tell me to "run the bator dry" for bcm eggs, I'm like- really? Would rather hear " shoot for 28%" / which would be dry for you, but I'd still have my humidity pump on!

What do you do at lockdown? Incubate in the bathroom with the shower on?

I haven't finished catching up yet, so forgive me if it's been said, but after reading the post about BCMs not loosing moisture as easily and seeing the size of your giant chicks (lol), is it possible that air cells were too small and therefore the chicks grew so big? Honestly, I know I have the mini but I can't do 40-45% without getting sticky chicks. Best was 30-35% for me. Just a thought. Back to reading

I did 35% with hybrid eggs, and I did get the big air cells with big chicks. The lower humidity just didn't work for me. With all the talk of 30% for BCM, my guess is either the chicks were just too big for the size of the eggs, or they possibly drowned. After my lockdown candling, I expect all but 2 of them to be fully developed. I just hope they DIS before I eggtopsy

I have heard of folks lightly sanding off the dark brown on the BCM eggs and getting a better hatch rate. It makes sense if you think about it. The dark on the shell is a paintjob not the actual shell. In EEs the blue is egg shell and not paint. A paint job will fill in the porous shell and cut of the oxygen. My guess is that you have a bunch of almost full grown chicks DIS that ran out of oxygen when they started using more oxygen in their late stage. Since you don't have to pay for the eggs I would try washing a batch just before I put them in the bator. Just lightly with luke warm water until the color comes off.

That's too red. I ain't sandin' no aigs

Send some up here and I'll show you how to do it....lol You can even have the babies back...lol I want to hatch!! lol

Honestly, I would love to see what you could do with them in that microwave. If you hatched BCM well in that, LG should pay you

 

[rossfam06]

I've done that, too. It's tough. Wrapping them in a paper towel makes it easier

Welcome to the page and the thread!!  I'd go with an incubator.

Send some up here and I'll show you how to do it....lol  You can even have the babies back...lol  I want to hatch!! lol

Scissors is the most common one that I have found in my research for hatchlings with "wringing" their neck being the second.

Not quite. I can handle the topic. I don't know if I could ever do it myself. I guess if I had a real deformed suffering one I could. Other than that I see myself calling for help.  Sick dying chicks and culling is understable. Killing a chick/bird because it doesn't meet some man made standard is what will get me.  If I had to do it/when I have to...yes, I will be blatting like a baby.

Can we?????  I think we should. Hey if they are  that hard to hatch....... 

Not true!!!

That was my reaction...lol

I wet a sponge in the winter and it keeps it right at that 30% that I shoot for.

So you guys have never heard of using the gas method????? Much more humane. They just breath in the carbon monoxide gas and fall asleep. Painless and less messy. Mix vinegar and baking soda in a tall glass and place the chick in the bottom of a small bucket and put the glass in the bucket and the gas will fall to the bottom of the bucket and that's where the chick is, so it breaths the gas in. Easy.

 

[scflock]

So you guys have never heard of using the gas method????? Much more humane. They just breath in the carbon monoxide gas and fall asleep. Painless and less messy. Mix vinegar and baking soda in a tall glass and place the chick in the bottom of a small bucket and put the glass in the bucket and the gas will fall to the bottom of the bucket and that's where the chick is, so it breaths the gas in. Easy.

The oak tree is humane. over in the blink of an eye. The gas method may be easier on the executioner, but scissors and oak trees are extremely efficient

 

[FridayYet]

Oops, sorry... ok, shoot for 25-30%...

LOL, not aimed at you particularly, it happens all the time on BYC. Sorry if I sounded snotty.

Sidewing and I have to deal with altitude as well, which has its own challenges.

 

[Ravynscroft]

LOL, not aimed at you particularly, it happens all the time on BYC. Sorry if I sounded snotty.

Sidewing and I have to deal with altitude as well, which has its own challenges.

No, you are fine... I've gotta get into that habit... most that I've talked to live in similar humidity as me... my bad for not taking that into consideration...

 

[RubyNala97]

So I just got an email from USPS that my eggs are being held for pickup at the post office.....in JACKSONVILLE! I call Jacksonville, spoke to the woman there and she said this breeder ships eggs every day with a big pink sticker of an egg on the package and there is usually never a problem but for some reason my eggs have been held and now misplaced! She's going to work on locating them and call me back.

So you guys have never heard of using the gas method????? Much more humane. They just breath in the carbon monoxide gas and fall asleep. Painless and less messy. Mix vinegar and baking soda in a tall glass and place the chick in the bottom of a small bucket and put the glass in the bucket and the gas will fall to the bottom of the bucket and that's where the chick is, so it breaths the gas in. Easy.

Really? Never heard of this but am going to save this information. I would much prefer a method that doesn't involve direct contact. Thank you so much!!

 

[FridayYet]

What do you do at lockdown? Incubate in the bathroom with the shower on?

LOL, that's why I bought the Brinsea with the humidity pump. At lockdown, put water in both wells, set it at 70% and walk away. If I open it, I spritz the humidity pad with a squirt bottle so the pump doesn't have to work so hard. Temp and humidity stabilizes in a minute or so.

Could you imagine if I had a styrobator here?

 

[silkiecuddles]

So I just got an email from USPS that my eggs are being held for pickup at the post office.....in JACKSONVILLE! I call Jacksonville, spoke to the woman there and she said this breeder ships eggs every day with a big pink sticker of an egg on the package and there is usually never a problem but for some reason my eggs have been held and now misplaced! She's going to work on locating them and call me back.

So you guys have never heard of using the gas method????? Much more humane. They just breath in the carbon monoxide gas and fall asleep. Painless and less messy. Mix vinegar and baking soda in a tall glass and place the chick in the bottom of a small bucket and put the glass in the bucket and the gas will fall to the bottom of the bucket and that's where the chick is, so it breaths the gas in. Easy.

Really? Never heard of this but am going to save this information. I would much prefer a method that doesn't involve direct contact. Thank you so much!!

I hope your eggs arrive safely, and soon!
Great idea, Ross. Sounds much more pleasant than snipping with scissors. Or worse.