Shipped eggs, received FOUR eggs-tras! :) The only problem is....

[misslady]

My incubator is not BIG enough!

I purchased the Brinsea mini advance because of all the great things I have heard about Brinsea's incubators, and while I was excited and ready to go for it, I simply didn't want to spend the super big bucks to get something any bigger. So my issue is that I ordered 6 hatching eggs from My Pet Chicken and they sent me 4 extras, which is GREAT, but all of the eggs look to be in good condition. And while I know I could just chuck a couple of the extra eggs, I would like to give them all a chance, since they are Blue Splash and Black Copper Marans. I know I can take my turning tray out and they will all fit, but I am cautious of hand turning because I don't want to chill the eggs, (this is my first time incubating too, FYI, and I am SO excited and nervous.) Should I try that? And could I put the turning tray back in if they don't all turn out to be viable after candling? Or (and maybe this will be a really silly question) could I try to mark the eggs and sort of stack them on top of each other and watch to see if they turn enough?

Any input is appreciated, I'm a total newbie to this so I need the experience and wisdom of all of you chicken experts on here!

Thanks a bunch!

 

[stephanie1992]

Quote:
id hand turn them, turn them 3 times a day, and u dnt have to worry about them chilling, it wont take long to turn them, put an x on one side an O on the other so each day u turn the x to the O and soo on.. good luck!

 

[corancher]

I don't have a Brinsea incubator so I don't know how they are set up but if I was you I would try to get all the eggs in the incubators somehow. Since shipped eggs don't do as well, you certainly don't want to take a chance of tossing the eggs that may be the only ones to hatch. I think I would try to stack them if possible and then rotate every day or two so all of them have some time in the turner. Once you candle and discard any that don't show growth then you should have room. Worse case would be to continue to rotate them because all of them grow and we would all hope to have such a problem. Good luck with your hatch.

 

[yinepu]

they should fit or come close to it if you remove the turner..
hand turn them.. then check for clears on day 7.. pull the clears and if you can replace the turner

at least that's how I would do it if I were in your situation

no worries about the eggs chilling while you turn them.. just make sure you get the lid back on nice and snug when you close it back up

 

[Cherstin]

Wow ... I wish this thread would've been going this morning when I had the exact same question. Unfortunately, I already gave my extras away and only saved three, although I could've fit five in the incubator.

If you do "overload" your incubator, please stay in touch and let me know how it works out! I have a 3-egger and was sent A DOZEN from ebay! (The auction had been for 4+ ... Yikes!) This morning, I went over them with a fine-toothed comb and selected the best looking three, of even size, etc. I was afraid that if I smashed them into the bator, I might end up losing the whole hatch if the forced air couldn't find its way around the stack of eggs. I'd been planning to do like you said, which I'd still do if I were you: candle on day seven and see what is happening.

Best of luck to you and yours! Although no one answered my question on the thread, I'm glad to see you got a response.

 

[misslady]

Thanks for the input everyone! It is so very appreciated. I don't want to botch this too badly for fear of traumatizing my 5 year old who is looking forward to this as much as I am, so fingers crossed that it goes well!

Also, would it be okay if I did a test run with some store bought eggs to see if they would stack and turn well on the turning tray?

And one more question, (I am just full of them

,) when/if I use the auto-turn, what are is the ideal time interval between turns? I was just wondering if it might be different from hand turning because of less heat and humidity loss. Thanks again!

 

[misslady]

Quote:
Wow! While the extra eggs are so generous it makes for a hard decision on which ones to keep! I will keep you posted on how everything turns out! And thanks for the luck, I have a feeling that I am going to need it!

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
using a pencil write an X on one side and O on the other, then turn them 3-5 times a day. choose an odd #, that way they're not overnight on the same side each day... i keep a calendar near the bator so i could write times and x or o so i knew where i stood...

when i turned by hand i also rotated position in the 'bator too, in case one spot was warmer than the others, even by a teeny bit.

don't worry about cooling when you turn, as long as your hands aren't cold... momma gets off the eggs periodically to eat drink poop etc, so she's not on them 100%. a few minutes won't hurt, and the 'bator will come back to temp quick enough.

i realized this morning i was stressing over minor details myself, and i've done this a bunch of times, just not in the last 15 years... so this will be my first hatch of the millenium!

good luck with em. my only problem now is how to fit close to 70 eggs on a 42 egg turner...

 

[Cherstin]

Quote:
You are speaking my language! The first time we did this, my son was also five! We did this as a summer project before he started kindergarten. It was a tough experience for both of us. (Maybe a "learning" experience is a better term.) Considering the small size of my incubator, we could only have three eggs. One hatched a day early, a beautiful yellow fuzzball, and despite prior warnings, I made the mistake of thinking I could just open the incubator for *a second* to scoop him out while the other two eggs were rolling and pipping. He'd already dried and fuzzed-out, and kept beaking at the top of the incubator which translated into my mind as "Free me! I want to be with you!"

Well, free him I did ... at the expense of the other two eggs. When they stopped rolling and peeping, I assumed they were in the "resting" portion of the hatch, but when a full 24 hours went by again with no sound, we had one very lonely chick and one very guilty mom and one very sad son.

I went to a nearby farm and picked out 10 day-olds, but a lot of them didn't make it, either. They're just so stinking fragile. We lost one or two that first night: no real reason, just a failure to thrive, and ended up losing the one we hatched (he's my avatar) on day ten. Your son is going to learn a lot from this, and a lot of it he might be too young to really grasp or hold onto, but I believe it gives kids a sense of responsibility, and also a peek at that "life lesson" about how sometimes things don't work out the way you want.

I'm excited for you. I started three eggs this morning, too, with my now seven-year-old son, and of course we had the talk about how they may not all make it. I will never make the mistake of opening the lid again. When I finally did break into the shells two years ago, I saw two beautiful black chicks, perfect in every way, but definitely passed on.

If you need or want any advice or tips, this forum is definitely a good place to go, but it's also nice to have an ear at your beck and call. If you want to be hatch-buddies, please stay in touch. There's a lot I have forgotten, too, but I'm enjoying catching up. These 21 days are going to seem like an eternity!

PS: What kind of chickens did you get??!

 

[misslady]

I would love to have a hatch buddy! Those experiences are sometimes rough for kids, but it always is a learning experience, and I think it's a good one for kids to have to learn about life cycles, and to help them understand loss in a small way. Hopefully these three you have now will turn out great.

I ordered 6 Blue Splash Marans and they sent me the 4 Black Copper Marans as my 4 extras.

What about you?
When did you set your eggs? Or have you already? I am kind of debating on how I want to go about it, because some people say to let them sit at room temp. for a while, and some people say to put them in the incubator right away...

I'm confused already! I received them around noon and am debating on when I want to put them in the 'bator. Why do these feel like such HUGE decisions!? I think I may be over-thinking this.