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

[TexasLisa]

I live in the sticks and it's probably not considered civilized to many suburban folks...we eat our animals and shoot our neighbor's pets when needed, so that may seem pretty uncivilized.

Enola has it right....I'm sort of different than most folks and I've grown to accept it, though many would consider it weird. I wanted to see if I could develop an incubation method with things on hand so that I wouldn't "need" to buy or borrow an incubator...it's sort of a self sufficiency quirk I have developed over the years and cannot shake. It's sort of fun to try and solve a problem without throwing money at it or doing it just like everyone else has.

That probably puts me under the uncivilized and sticks category too....

I like results driven conclusions and then I let everyone else do the double blind studies to prove me wrong.

Yes...even if my way is not always successful, it's still my way.

Me thinks you like Frank Sinatra!

You have alluded to him several times now:

Oh Bee! You're so funny! The things you think about and compare other things to!

But Lacy Blues, you did get the picture didn't you???

Bee, don't ever change!!!

Lisa

 

[TexasLisa]

Bee, I was just over on the 'Candleing and Hatching Diary' forum. SASIMPSON posted this video (this is Day 14 for this egg):

Lisa

 

[aart]

.......I'm going to use the same heating pad and will be putting it up on one end as soon as I get a pip, sort of like a hen raises up a little to tend to the chick and to let the moisture of the hatch escape. Then it will be attached to the underside of a piece of fencing wire, cut to fit, and I'll be able to manipulate it to the desired height according to the chick's needs. I'll post a pic of that as soon as I can......

OK thanks!

Well, I got my two little babies put to bed tonight. I finally figured out how to put the heating pad in there and have everything work.

I had a strip of 1x3 lumber about 16" long, a wire oven rack from a toaster oven and a piece of 2x4 that was about 5" long. On the bottom edge, I used the 1x3 on its wide side and put some short screws in it to hold the little oven rack in place at the edge. At the other edge of the oven rack, I put the piece of 2x4 to hold the front up at an angle so that as these chicks grow, they can move forward to whatever their comfort range is. I put my heating pad on top of that and then on top of the heating pad, I put a gallon baggie with some rice in it for weight and I wrapped those two items in a plastic grocery bag from Walmart and taped it all shut. I'll be watching to see if they start to peck at the plastic... if so, I'll have to put something else on there but for now, this will work.

I was really amazed at how easily these two went to bed. Usually, when I turn the lights out, chicks cry and cry, calling to each other for a good 20 minutes. Makes me want to strangle ALL of them! But these babies were only afraid of the monstrosity that I put in their box with them. After they got over that, one jumped on top and investigated a bit and the smaller one joined him. Then I turned out their closest light and guided them underneath... they went without a hitch! Good little babies!

OH,OH,OH this!! THANK YOU!! The words oven rack inspired me to finally actually get one of these built....I've been thinking about it since Bee first mentioned it weeks ago.
So I grabbed a baking cooling rack and U-tacked it onto a couple 2x2's and added 4 adjustable furniture feet I had on hand...and it's warming up now, I have 2 day olds in the brooder and 4 more in the bator, also using a red 100watt bulb..... we'll see if it works out.

I would post a pic but my 15 year old camera I think just finally bit the dust...which really stinks, I love taking and posting pics!

 

[enola]

$6000 for an incubator??????? NOT happening at this house!!!

I can feed a LOT of broodies for that kind of money. Not to mention all of the extra manure for composting, the eggs they would lay while not brooding, the electricity they would save, free baby sitting by the broody and time saved by not having to sterilize in between hatches.

I am positive that incubator would be a chicken keeping expense I would not be able to justify........

 

[Beekissed]

Well, I got my two little babies put to bed tonight. I finally figured out how to put the heating pad in there and have everything work.

I had a strip of 1x3 lumber about 16" long, a wire oven rack from a toaster oven and a piece of 2x4 that was about 5" long. On the bottom edge, I used the 1x3 on its wide side and put some short screws in it to hold the little oven rack in place at the edge. At the other edge of the oven rack, I put the piece of 2x4 to hold the front up at an angle so that as these chicks grow, they can move forward to whatever their comfort range is. I put my heating pad on top of that and then on top of the heating pad, I put a gallon baggie with some rice in it for weight and I wrapped those two items in a plastic grocery bag from Walmart and taped it all shut. I'll be watching to see if they start to peck at the plastic... if so, I'll have to put something else on there but for now, this will work.

I was really amazed at how easily these two went to bed. Usually, when I turn the lights out, chicks cry and cry, calling to each other for a good 20 minutes. Makes me want to strangle ALL of them! But these babies were only afraid of the monstrosity that I put in their box with them. After they got over that, one jumped on top and investigated a bit and the smaller one joined him. Then I turned out their closest light and guided them underneath... they went without a hitch! Good little babies!

We'll be needing a pic! I'll try to take a pic of my "heating rack" setup today so that folks can see what I'm using. Mine is very lightweight and has no wood, is adjustable by just bending the wire to a different height. I'll bend it into different configurations for the pics.

Me thinks you like Frank Sinatra!

You have alluded to him several times now:

But Lacy Blues, you did get the picture didn't you???

Bee, don't ever change!!!

Lisa

Y'all are funny! That's an expression we use quite a bit here in the sticks about temperature but had never really thought about what other people may see when we say it!

I could never stand Frank Sinatra!

Bee, I was just over on the 'Candleing and Hatching Diary' forum. SASIMPSON posted this video (this is Day 14 for this egg):

Lisa

I love this vid! Rosemarie1 has a similar one on her channel and you can really see the chick going to town in there....so sweet and also so humbling to think that us humans can apply heat and humidity to an egg and produce a life in there. It's a big responsibility. I won't rest easy until these chicks are hatched and show no deformities from my methods, are healthy and vigorous on the bedding.

 

[ocap]

doing the other kind of incubation technique and day 21 plus 12 hours I have one chick out of 26 eggs, hoping for more before I float test at the end of day 23

 

[Beekissed]

doing the other kind of incubation technique and day 21 plus 12 hours I have one chick out of 26 eggs, hoping for more before I float test at the end of day 23

Tell me about this float test..I think I've read about it but am not sure if I have the idea right.

 

[enola]

I use 3 incubators. 2 for incubating 1 for hatching. I candle once a week to remove infertile eggs. Before I move eggs into the hatcher I float the eggs just to make sure they are still alive.

I put luke warm water in a bowl and gently put each egg in the water. It is simple, if the chick is alive it will jiggle back and forth Iin the water. Any egg that just sits there is a dud.

Contrary to what everyone says this method does NOT kill the chick inside the egg by letting in billions of bacteria. I have been floating eggs for 50 years. My Granny taught me this trick.

I got my chicken loving genes from her, my horse loving genes from my daddy and my gardening loving genes from my moma.

 

[enola]

My boy friend says he sure does wish some one in my family tree had shared some love of house keeping genes with me....

 

[foxvalleyfarm]

I noticed that most of my eggs end up pointy side down. But one had the air cell at the pointy end. In not sure if there is s baby in there or not.