Shipped eggs / incubator question

[Epedrazz]

Hello!

This is not my first time hatching shipped eggs (or my own ) but I've just come across a bit of a dilemma and need chicken people's help!! I ordered two dozen eggs from Southern California (we're central, so not very far). Problem is, one dozen arrived today and the other dozen arrives Monday!! My 'bator is calibrated and ready to go tomorrow morning, giving the eggs time to settle before being incubated. So I can put one dozen in tomorrow morning (Sunday) and the other dozen will be set Tuesday morning. Should I wait and put all eggs in together Tuesday morning or buy another bator () and incubate two lots separately? Ugh, so frustrating!

Thanks for any advice

Emily

 

[Ridgerunner]

Personally I would not set eggs in the same incubator two days apart. That is still a staggered hatch, which are often stressful and may not be really successful. I'm not worried about turning them or even increasing the humidity for hatch. I think those are minor issues. I'm more concerned with the mess the first ones that hatch make. That can be an invitation for bacteria to set up which could put the later hatch at risk. I've had my incubator start stinking pretty badly on an extended hatch, let alone one intentionally drawn out.

I see two options. You can buy another bator even if you just use it as a hatcher when the first batch goes into lockdown.

Or you can start them all at the same time. I don't know when the early eggs were actually laid or how they have been stored. I'd be tempted to let the first eggs rest a day and then start turning them as you store them while you wait for the later eggs. You can typically store eggs for at least a week before hatchability drops off, sometimes even longer.

I don't know where that letting shipped eggs stabilize 24 hours before you start them came from. Somebody long ago probably came up with it because they needed a number and it stuck, no real science behind it. I don't know how much better 24 hours is than 12 hours. I don't know how much better, if any, 48 or 72 hours might be than 24 hours for the first set of eggs. If it were me I'd probably wait something like 12 hours after I got the second set and start them all at the same time.

Will this be any better than getting two incubators as far as hatchability? No, but it will be less expensive and more convenient. I doubt it would change the odds of how many hatch very much either but I don't know that.

 

[Epedrazz]

Ok thank you for your response. I guess that was my question - will the hatch rate decrease if I wait on the eggs I currently have before setting them? If they arrive early enough on Monday I could even set them Monday night.
A friend offered her incubator for me to borrow, so I could do two separate hatches or wait and set them all in mine (which I know and am comfortable with) on Monday night.

 

[Alipete21]

Ok thank you for your response. I guess that was my question - will the hatch rate decrease if I wait on the eggs I currently have before setting them? If they arrive early enough on Monday I could even set them Monday night.
A friend offered her incubator for me to borrow, so I could do two separate hatches or wait and set them all in mine (which I know and am comfortable with) on Monday night.

How did the hatch go? What did you do. I have the same dilemma

 

[Kiki]

How did the hatch go? What did you do. I have the same dilemma

Check this thread out:
Thread 'Is this shrink wrapped? PIC WARNING' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/is-this-shrink-wrapped-pic-warning.1574826/

 

[wolfcat87]

Personally I would not set eggs in the same incubator two days apart. That is still a staggered hatch, which are often stressful and may not be really successful. I'm not worried about turning them or even increasing the humidity for hatch. I think those are minor issues. I'm more concerned with the mess the first ones that hatch make. That can be an invitation for bacteria to set up which could put the later hatch at risk. I've had my incubator start stinking pretty badly on an extended hatch, let alone one intentionally drawn out.

I see two options. You can buy another bator even if you just use it as a hatcher when the first batch goes into lockdown.

Or you can start them all at the same time. I don't know when the early eggs were actually laid or how they have been stored. I'd be tempted to let the first eggs rest a day and then start turning them as you store them while you wait for the later eggs. You can typically store eggs for at least a week before hatchability drops off, sometimes even longer.

I don't know where that letting shipped eggs stabilize 24 hours before you start them came from. Somebody long ago probably came up with it because they needed a number and it stuck, no real science behind it. I don't know how much better 24 hours is than 12 hours. I don't know how much better, if any, 48 or 72 hours might be than 24 hours for the first set of eggs. If it were me I'd probably wait something like 12 hours after I got the second set and start them all at the same time.

Will this be any better than getting two incubators as far as hatchability? No, but it will be less expensive and more convenient. I doubt it would change the odds of how many hatch very much either but I don't know that.

The letting them sit 24 hours is in order to try to reattach air cells that have been detached. Detached air cells reduce hatches by about 20% based on these studies.

https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/776861/1-s2.0-S0032579119X66973/1-s2.0-S0032579119554736/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=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&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20230716T150919Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTY3R5VXEXX/20230716/us-east-1/s3/aws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=fb852c89f5d0f8924ec0dae3697909b2d1850d4d2d7d5a66ea8a4bd3ecb6e83c&hash=754d4b4c8a58528cabdf4580f333e90308e3c05942cec9e87a508b94b898fd64&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S0032579119554736&tid=spdf-9011824c-16dc-4c5f-8dd0-a10ecd8d7661&sid=b6e061024799c249ec4915c691b55b46cba5gxrqa&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LnNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QuY29t&ua=13105805540555035052&rr=7e7b2a61d81a092f&cc=us