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

[Coopnana]

Bee....isn't some of the eggs still viable....? So you still could have success even if not all hatch...or did I miss something.

 

[Beekissed]

I am truly sorry everybody. I can't explain why I am doing this. It will not be on the thread any longer. I won't try more than one time through a personal message either, I'm just about done with the whole thing.

No need to apologize, Lacy Blue.

Blessed are the peacemakers and you are surely blessed! I thank you for trying to restore peace on the thread and for your courage in speaking out.

Bee....isn't some of the eggs still viable....? So you still could have success even if not all hatch...or did I miss something.

I have three eggs that show development right now and one quitter. The rest were taken out last night and cataloged as to their conditions upon cracking. Right now egg 11 looks the most promising because I can actually see the chick moving like a Mexican jumping bean in there!

 

[theawesomechick]

Mexican jumping beans!

 

[Pyxis]

I have three eggs that show development right now and one quitter.  The rest were taken out last night and cataloged as to their conditions upon cracking.  Right now egg 11 looks the most promising because I can actually see the chick moving like a Mexican jumping bean in there! 

Great that you have at least one! I just candled my eggs (done the newfangled way in an expensive incubator ) and they are all still coming along, despite my incubator bulb blowing in the night and the incubator getting down to 70 for who knows how long. My hatch date is the day after yours! Or at least it was. They may be late now.

 

[AandAranch]

Bee, how are you keeping track of humidity? Are you keeping an eye on the air cells? I would hate for you to get so far only to end up with drowned or shrinkwrapped chicks. Speaking of which, how do you plan on bumping up the humidity for the last three days?

 

[Peep-Chicken]

Just saw a chick moving in Egg #11!!!!  e                      :yiipchick          Couldn't see much in eggs 6 and 7 but dark areas.  One has a well defined aircell but the other does not or I just cannot see it, but don't know why.  Who knows what is going on in those eggs!  Egg #5 is a quitter but I'm leaving it in place to hold heat.  I gave them all a really good sniff and no bad smells, so they all stay where they are.  Who knows?  Might just get one chick from all this..... 

 

[aart]

Just saw a chick moving in Egg #11!!!!

Couldn't see much in eggs 6 and 7 but dark areas. One has a well defined aircell but the other does not or I just cannot see it, but don't know why. Who knows what is going on in those eggs! Egg #5 is a quitter but I'm leaving it in place to hold heat. I gave them all a really good sniff and no bad smells, so they all stay where they are. Who knows? Might just get one chick from all this.....

Oh YyyyyAAAAAYYYY! Isn't it just breath taking? Candling can be a now you see it now you don't....but ManoMan, when you see it, it makes your heart beat harder!

Leave them all in as long as no stinkers...cause ya never know!

Am playing with hating pad for brooder heat....have 2 hatched as of now and 4 more pipped.

 

[lazy gardener]

Bee, RE: Humidity, I'd just watch air cells. If there's too much moisture in the nest, not much can be done about it at lock down. But, if the aircells are not growing well, you could stop adding moisture at this time. I wish you the best of luck, and hope this thread can move on in a positive direction, Your sister in Christ.

 

[foxvalleyfarm]

When I removed the bad eggs from the nest last night my temps dropped pretty quickly and went all the way to 95 before I realized it, so clicked the control to the next setting up and gathered the remaining eggs into a smaller clutch next to the water wiggler.  Temps are now stable and everything is good there. 

Anyone else out there doing this experiment and are removing candled eggs, watch those temps for changes. 

I get them every time I mess with the eggs, but I just let them build back without increasing my temps because then I get spikes. I recandled last night and will report on my thread.

Just saw a chick moving in Egg #11!!!!  e                      :yiipchick          Couldn't see much in eggs 6 and 7 but dark areas.  One has a well defined aircell but the other does not or I just cannot see it, but don't know why.  Who knows what is going on in those eggs!  Egg #5 is a quitter but I'm leaving it in place to hold heat.  I gave them all a really good sniff and no bad smells, so they all stay where they are.  Who knows?  Might just get one chick from all this..... 

YaY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think you're gonna get more then 1. I think I may have seen 5 last night. I'm super excited!

 

[Beekissed]

Great that you have at least one! I just candled my eggs (done the newfangled way in an expensive incubator

) and they are all still coming along, despite my incubator bulb blowing in the night and the incubator getting down to 70 for who knows how long. My hatch date is the day after yours! Or at least it was. They may be late now.

That gives me hope that even when things go wrong the chicks can still progress, even in conventional incubators. I would like to do this same experiment again to see if I can get a better hatch rate.

Bee, how are you keeping track of humidity? Are you keeping an eye on the air cells? I would hate for you to get so far only to end up with drowned or shrinkwrapped chicks. Speaking of which, how do you plan on bumping up the humidity for the last three days?

I'm not keeping track of humidity and the air cells look great compared to many I've seen...perfectly round and centered on the tip of the eggs and very well defined on two of the eggs in development but for some reason one cannot be visualized. That egg is very dark and I'm not sure what is going on in it but it could be that egg is rotten instead of full of chick....I can't smell anything, so I'm leaving it in place.

This is the way I keep track of humidity....I lift up the nest material, feel the soil...if it doesn't feel like the ground outside to me, I'll take a cup of water and add it to the soil. That's it.

For the last three days, I'll add even more water to the soil. I guess that's how you folks do in incubators that use a sponge..just add more water?