stop turning on day 14 instead of 18????

[vpeterson]

According to "Storey's Raising Chickens" "Eggs do not need to be turned after the 14 day of incubation and should not be turned during the last three days before the hatch" Anyone have luck stopping turning after day 14? I have a staggered hatch so this might work for me.

 

[calgal98]

I'm on my first incubation and wondering some of the same things. My question regards the turning and lock down issues. The hen doesn't quit turning her eggs in the nest when she is brooding them. Why do we quit? The hen doesn't suddenly take a shower and increase the humidity on her clutch. Why do we increase the humidity? I can understand removing them from the egg holders as that is unnatural, but why the rest?

 

[rizq]

I believe the hens DO stop turning their eggs and most do not get off the nest in the last few days. Sitting tight probably does increase humidity, though I have obviously not stuck a hygrometer under any of my hens, lol. The chicks hatching and drying would definitely raise the humidity, as it does in the incubator.

My thoughts on humidity is that their is a lot more area in the bator to humidify than there is under a hen. My drying chicks might raise the humidity 5% in the bator, but will not bring it from the 35% that I incubate at to the 65%+ I like to hatch at. Lower humidity and my chicks definitely stick in their shells. I have had a lot of problems with hatches at lower humidities.

A lot of people want to try to compare what we do in an incubator to what happens under the hen, but I think we need to remember that there is nothing natural about artificial incubation.

 

[calgal98]

Thanks for the input. I'm really not questioning the doing of it, but more in the why of doing it. What you offered makes sense although I'm guessing the hen doesn't count days. Could be her response to the talking of the chicks I suppose.

 

[DANNY]

It is possible that the hen might stop turning the eggs when she feels movement or pecking. I am also not sure that stopping the turning at 18 days is neccesary. I have accidently left eggs turning until they hatched and they hatch fine. I know there are reasons for the incubating guidelines but i am not sure what is neccesary. Another thing i see is people afraid to open their incubators during hatching. I open my incubator whenever i need to without a second thought. I do however replace any lost moisture with by spraying the eggs. I have been having hatches in the 90% plus range of fertile eggs.

 

[Chick-a-roo Girl]

You stop turning so that the chick can get in hatch position. I have left the turner on and chicks hatched out of it too. I have also gotten my dates wrong and stopped turning a day early. They still hatch. But the more you handle them in the last 2-3 days, the slower they are to hatch. Perhaps because the chick is working hard in the shell to compensate for movement, changes in air, temp, whenever you open the bator.