Simulated Natural Nest Incubation~Experiment #1 So it begins....

[Zombified]

Quote:
Writing all this down now.

Can you explain a little more about the way you're going to brood them? Do you mean you're going to keep the heating pad elevated off the floor? Are you going to raise it as they get older before they're put outside? I don't plan on even having mine for more than a week, so I don't know if I'm going to worry too much about raising it with age... Just making the box large enough that they can go to one spot if it's too hot near the heating pad.


EDIT:
I actually read more about humidity, and it seems that ducks, as a whole, require less humidity during incubation than chickens. Too much humidity can cause the duckling to grow too large, thus making it difficult for the duckling to move around in the egg. I think, for my experiment, I'm going to try to use less moisture than you're using, to make the humidity lower than what yours is at.


EDIT2:
I'm going to make a thread in the duck section, so more experienced duck-hatching people can comment and help me out. I'm linking back to this thread so hopefully even more people will see this and maybe try it.

Bee, I think you're going to start a whole new way of incubating eggs!

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Rotnot, I think the whole point is using something you already have available or is multi purpose. If you have no use for a large flashlight and your only goal in candling eggs and you wanna buy something for it.... Buy a candler. Nobody's stopping you. If you happen to have a flashlight of this variety or similar around or could use another high powered flashlight anyhow, get a flashlight. It's far more useful than a candler in the long run, and using warm wavelengths of light could help people jury rig something out of what they already have which is kind of the point.

If you don't care about not spending money why make a natural nest anyhow? Go buy yourself a nice expensive incubator and an egg candler! Some models have extremely good proven hatch rates and are fully automated. For those of us without big incubators, candlers, etc.... Things like this are a possibly unforeseen solution to the problems faced. The answer can't always be "go buy something" for everyone. Otherwise the answer to the entirety of this experiment would be "go buy an incubator". So using a high powered flashlight with warm wavelengths could be a solution to help people see into their eggs if "go buy something" isn't a good solution for them.

 

[ronott1]

Rotnot, I think the whole point is using something you already have available or is multi purpose. If you have no use for a large flashlight and your only goal in candling eggs and you wanna buy something for it.... Buy a candler. Nobody's stopping you. If you happen to have a flashlight of this variety or similar around or could use another high powered flashlight anyhow, get a flashlight. It's far more useful than a candler in the long run, and using warm wavelengths of light could help people jury rig something out of what they already have which is kind of the point.

If you don't care about not spending money why make a natural nest anyhow? Go buy yourself a nice expensive incubator and an egg candler! Some models have extremely good proven hatch rates and are fully automated. For those of us without big incubators, candlers, etc.... Things like this are a possibly unforeseen solution to the problems faced. The answer can't always be "go buy something" for everyone. Otherwise the answer to the entirety of this experiment would be "go buy an incubator". So using a high powered flashlight with warm wavelengths could be a solution to help people see into their eggs if "go buy something" isn't a good solution for them.

I did not offend you did I? It is hard to tell with text like this. Sorry if I did.

I like the idea of of the different colored lights.

Perhaps a main point was missed--You Can Look up the Kelvin numbers of LED lights and pick,one that is yellow and then you can go look at what you have or hit the dollar store for a low cost yellow LED. They even have LED lights that change colors with a remote control. If you had one or found one at a discount(They make them for hot tubs) one could DIY a candler with it.

LEDs are cool(low heat). If you use a regular mag light to candle, you run the risk of cooking the eggs and killing the chicks.

 

[Zombified]

Doing a little more reading about hatching ducklings, I've decided to use the weight method to measure humidity, so I don't need a hydrometer. I already have a good little scale, so it should be no problem.

 

[spaceylocust]

Forgive my dumb question,

but has anyone tried candling with a real candle made from bees wax??? Recently I purchased good old fashioned pure bees wax candles and was thoroughly amazed at how much brighter they are than the candles I've been buying. Since the term is candling........ Just a thought! I'd be real interested to know if a good bees wax candle works better than the flashlights of any ilk.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Ronott, it felt a little like you were telling people to go buy a price of equipment they didn't necisarially need if they wanted to candle and that was the only way to do it. I dont like when people have an "you have to do it this one way" attitude.
If you are lifting an egg out of a nest to candle it probably cools down a little and 20 seconds of incandescent light close to the egg probably wont hurt it. Again, at one point people used candles for this. There had to be a way this could work despite low lumens, heat, etc.

Spacey, I don't think that's a dumb question. I suspect most people have not tried it but they probably used something like a reflective box or tube to put over a candle flame to candle an egg. Id look it up and see if you could make it work if you were interested. They used more wax types than beeswax back in "the day" but if beeswax burns extra bright then use it! I bet you could rig a reflector out of tinfoil for candling.

 

[Beekissed]

I tried a regular flashlight but I suspect it was still a "white" light and just not as bright as the LEDs. Anyhoo....candled and have eggs in all different stages of who knows what. Some are clearly not fertilized. Some look like they might have quit? I see an eyeball~or more likely a blood spot?~ in those but nothing much is developing. Some have a lot of darkness in them but nothing I can make out as distinctly a chick. I saw one that looked like it had a blood ring....but it's very dark as well like there is development going on. One is VERY dark except for a small space...can't see anything in that one but darkness.

I have no idea what all that means, if I have chicks developing at different stages, or some developing while others quit. I take it the blood ring indicates bacteria and it will kill the chick, but what if it's not a ring but just blood vessels? Can't see the whole ring.

In any case, I'm leaving all eggs in the nest until I candle about day 15, then will remove the obvious quitters and unfertilized and leave the others that have darkness and who knows what growing in them. Real scientific process, I know, but it's the best this old gal can do without having much experience at this.

Question: What are the possible causes of quitters if others in the nest are developing with the present temps and humidity in the nest?

 

[Beekissed]

Never mind...looked it up! Two of the quitters are from a 6 yr old hen who had just started laying once again from a winter slow down. Could be the reason for hers being quitters but not fully sure.

 

[Adelina]

Know the 5 older eggs in my nest (was 2 groups- 3 days apart) 2 kept developing after the temp drop, but didn't survive past day 16 or so judging on development.. Thinking it was my error as this was my first incubation..

 

[foxvalleyfarm]

So are the ones that are really dark good or? I'm gonna try to haul my whole box into a dark room tomorrow and report my findings sometime tomorrow, but I have already seen that several seem mostly fun of dark. I'm on day 6.