So TOTALY frustrated!!!!!!!!

[PAchickenlover]

I bought a still air incubator, followed the directions. Set eggs in, and had 2 hatch successfully... Actually one of the chicks just died. So I now have 1 chick out of 40 something eggs.... I tried doing it the dry incubation way, where you only add water the last few days... I have no idea what went wrong... Oh, after I added the water the incubator got a funky smell to it, and it was brandnew when I bought it.. I hope someone can give me some suggestions because if I can't get this thing to work then I am going to just give up on incubating all together... Please HELP!!!!!!!

Thanks

 

[silkiechicken]

It's your first time I take it? It'll take a good number of hatches to learn what works best for you. Don't be discouraged. LOTS of factors involved in getting eggs to hatch. Eggs themselves, shipping, flock fertility, humidity methodology, room the incubator is in, the humidy of the room the incubator is in, the day/night temps in the room.... one thing at a time and a few hatches later you'll find the sweet spot.

It would be helpful to open up all the unhatched eggs to see where development stopped.

 

[bobbi-j]

Is this your first time incubating? If so, don't give up! It's a never-ending learning process. Even people with years of experience are constantly finding out some new thing that may or may not work for them. If you have access to backyard eggs, start over and try it with a little more humidity this time. Clean your incubator out first, rinse it well. Did you candle all the eggs? If so, how long ago did your 2 eggs hatch? If it's only been a day or so, there is still hope for the others. Did any of the others pip? Any peeping from them? I could go on and on with the questions, but think about these to start with. Don't give up! Keep trying!

 

[PAchickenlover]

The two chicks that hatched were the last two in there.. I had a home-made bator last year and had some hatch but it was difficult with that one because I could not keep the temp at a constant. That is why I decided to buy one this year. I was going to take the incubator in to my son's classroom and let the class try to hatch some eggs but I am not so sure that is a good idea now. I opened up some of the eggs and they died at different stages of development or right before hatch or during hatch. one of the eggs that I opened, the chick actually had two lower beaks and two egg teeth on the top, the top beak yooked like it was two fused together. I took some pics of it and will try to post them.

 

[PAchickenlover]

now tell me that isn't the funkiest thing you have ever seen with a chick!

 

[bobbi-j]

The two chicks that hatched were the last two in there.. I had a home-made bator last year and had some hatch but it was difficult with that one because I could not keep the temp at a constant. That is why I decided to buy one this year. I was going to take the incubator in to my son's classroom and let the class try to hatch some eggs but I am not so sure that is a good idea now. I opened up some of the eggs and they died at different stages of development or right before hatch or during hatch. one of the eggs that I opened, the chick actually had two lower beaks and two egg teeth on the top, the top beak yooked like it was two fused together. I took some pics of it and will try to post them.

That's interesting! I'm sorry your hatch didn't turn out well this time. Like I said, keep trying! When you find a method that works for you, by all means take it to your son's class and incubate! I did that for one of my boys and it was alot of fun.

 

[PAchickenlover]

What should I clean the bator out with to get the funky smell out? I tried soap and water and you can still smell it..

 

[Knittycat]

Baking soda. Or coffee grounds, but baking soda does wonders. Put a bowl of it in there and let it sit for a couple of days.

 

[aveca]

yes thats strange beak formation..looks like chemical exposure of parent flock possibly?......is the funky smell like a rotten smell? incubators are just that..they are a petrie dish that also incubates bacteria...if there was an egg that escaped you at candeling time it probably went bad....use a mild clorox solution soak..you didnt say what brand of incubator you are using.how were your temps running ect..go to hatching troubleshooting guide on google and read several of them , deformed chicks can happen for several reasons..then adjust that for your next hatch...

 

[PAchickenlover]

Thanks