The 5th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-a-long!

[BroosterSpringsteen]

So this is my first time actually hatching shipped eggs. I started with 18, 14 made it to lock down and I currently have 8 hatched. Is this a good hatch rate for shipped eggs? A few more may hatch but I was just curious since my first 3 tries with shipped eggs resulted in no Hatchers.

That's a pretty good hatch rate. With shipped eggs, I consider 50% to be success. My hatches on shipped eggs average somewhere around 40%. I've have much higher rates, and hatches that we're a total bust. There are so many factors you can't control on shipped eggs. The biggest challenge I have is our not-so-charming mailman

 

[SoManyHats]

Whats the earliest someone has had a chick hatch or at least external pip? I have 2 eggs that I candled on Day 14 that almost looked like day 17-18 eggs to me with no more room left except for the airsac. I don't want to candle again till day 18 (Day 16 today) but am afraid they might pip sooner.

So given the situation, is it ok to increase humidity on Day 17 or will it drown them or the others that are not gone that far.

I have small spare incubator I can move those 2 into, but wondering if change of conditions will affect them.

I know everyone is busy counting their chicks right now   but would appreciate some help.

Thanks!

What do the air cells look like? Are they a different breed than the others? If it were me, I'd be more likely to move those two than increase humidity on all of the eggs. Moving them right now won't hurt them - they can be out of the incubator for a little time with no problems. That said, I locked down a day early my last hatch because I counted wrong, and all was well. Hopefully someone more experienced will chime in.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: It doesnt appear that it could have hatched by itself, it also looks like infection as its green and not orange yellow....
@Susiederkins please see this article

Mushy Chick Disease​

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#4 just hatched! Beautiful gold laced English orp. Yay!

I processed for the first time tonite with dh and our neighbor!!!

Our NYE hatch-a-long roos are getting big and there are 7 roos to 7 pullets in the run and it is just too much for the poor pullets. So I pulled the biggest two that I wasn't planning on breeding anyways. The hardest part of it was sitting there in the coop talking to them and making the decision of who and how many to process.

It was easy after watching the neighbor do his...and I am so proud of myself because I really didn't think I could do it! But I did the biggest one myself.

Dh was surprised that I did, but like I said...it wasn't nearly as bad as I anticipated! Not traumatized, but it will be strange going out in the a.m. and not seeing them there. *sigh*

Easter dinner will be delish!

Last day to enter your guess!


Contest #17: Guess How Many Jelly Beans

Go here to enter: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...eans-5th-annual-2014-easter-hatch-a-long/0_50

Contest #17
Guess How Many JELLY BEANS!

ONE GUESS! & NO EDITS! ​

tks

Good morning!! Today is Day 21 for me! I started with 27 eggs. Went into lockdown with 20. 6 chicks out and 7 pips so far. All shipped eggs! My Marans that hatched last night was out of a deep saddle shaped air cell and it was the best hatcher yet! I was shocked!

I have three chicks out this morning!

I didn't see any other pips, yet.

Quote: agree

 

[amyfitz100]

After a billion hatching (okay, 18, but it looks like a billion in the bator) yesterday, there are still several eggs with tiny pips, and three with bigger holes that were there last night and now look yellow. I've had trouble with the temp being too low (90 ish) and even have my flashlight sitting on the window generating a little heat. What do you think of these yellow membranes? Is this still normal?

 

[cerridwyn1st]

I woke up this morning to 3 live ducklings and one dead one. Looks like a cat pulled its head through the bars of the cage and killed it. I have put hardware cloth over the opening in the hutch to prevent any more mishaps. More eggs are pipped so there are more ducklings on the way.

These are Welsh Harlequins. Looks like I have 2 girls and a boy at this point. Maybe one girl is silver and the other gold.

 

[Junibutt]

What do the air cells look like? Are they a different breed than the others? If it were me, I'd be more likely to move those two than increase humidity on all of the eggs. Moving them right now won't hurt them - they can be out of the incubator for a little time with no problems. That said, I locked down a day early my last hatch because I counted wrong, and all was well. Hopefully someone more experienced will chime in.

One of the airsac looked like it was starting to draw down (this is a blue egg from a CCL) other was about the day 14 size (this egg is from a Bantam Chocolate Wyandotte)

 

[BroosterSpringsteen]

This morning I moved my SS and Polish chicks to the brooder. So fluffy! I have 2 OE eggs pipped, and no signs of life so far in the game fowl eggs.

Does anyone else have experience with late hatches in a Brinsea? Mine seem to primarily hatch on days 22 and 23. I'm not using the auto cool feature, which I know delays the hatch a bit. I know I should calibrate it. I'm considering raising the temp half a degree on my next hatch. I also have an extraordinarily high rooster ratio...80% overall since I started using this incubator. I know it could be a statistical fluke on small hatches, but still. I know roosters are more likely to hatch on the cooler side of incubation, and frankly, I'm up to my eyeballs in roosters.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote:

I was under this assumption as well, but changed my thought process after researching. I actually studied this a bit, and it is shown on many studies/abstracts that starvation decreases the utilization of the yolk tremendously, and feed is more important than water, whoda thunk! See the link below in the paste (under grow gel) and read page six, this is only one of many research papers on the subject. I have seen the difference using grow gel in the bators at hatch, and using provites the first few months of life, not only do the chicks grow stronger, bigger but they feather faster and I rarely have a chick die the first week.



I always use growgel in the incubator right from the start of hatch, then when chicks are fluffy they go in brooder and begin with the PRO VITS seen below from jefferslivestock.com and they continue with this in water until the chicks are out of the brooder stage, I also start adding small amounts of fermented med chick starter, after that about 2 months old I will do another vits in waterers, I will add that type in a comment area below. I continue with the fermented med chick feed until close to laying HERE are the provits, this stuff goes a long way, its a little scoop per gal of water, very good product its both probotics and vits!

"Provides a source of vitamins, direct-fed microbials (probiotics) and prebiotics (inulin) that selectively help the good (beneficial) bacteria only."

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Vets Plus Poultry ProVita
www.jefferspet.com

http://www.jefferspet.com/vets-plus-poultry-provita/camid/liv/cp/0040957/

GROW GEL & FEED Newly hatched chick! ​

WHY I always add little soda caps full of grow gel when my first chick is fluffed in the incubator.
Does it do anything? I thought they had the yolk!
Read PAGE 6 http://www.thepoultrysite.com/focus/contents/ceva/OnlineBulletins/ob_2007/Article-No12-May07.pdf​

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GROW GEL Gro-Gel Plus is the perfect solution to getting your poultry off to that all important great start. For baby poultry to grow and live efficiently they must readily start to eat and drink. Gro-Gel Plus provides immediate nutrition and hydration for all baby poultry in a very concentrated and digestible form. Research has shown that it has improved livability and mature body weights substantially thus saving you bird loss and money in the long run.

ADULT FLOCK VITAMINS:
And as OZ suggested I use that for my adults get in waterers, 1 gram enough for gal waterer, or at the link is the manufacturers label which tells you how to make a liquid concentrate in a gallon jug and then I think its an oz per gal. I do it this way and keep the jug in the fridge aside my lower level sink, it works easier and quicker for me, plus my hubs would think I was a druggy had I keep small backs of white powder all over the place! adding what he adds.... ozexpat "It lacks 2 things that I want to give my birds - Biotin and Selenium I add some ground up human tablets I buy in bulk - just 5 tabs per 100lb of feed for adult birds."
http://www.jefferspet.com/vitamins.../camid/LIV/cp/A2-V5/

 

[Sally Sunshine]

I woke up this morning to 3 live ducklings and one dead one. Looks like a cat pulled its head through the bars of the cage and killed it. I have put hardware cloth over the opening in the hutch to prevent any more mishaps. More eggs are pipped so there are more ducklings on the way.

These are Welsh Harlequins. Looks like I have 2 girls and a boy at this point. Maybe one girl is silver and the other gold.

 

[chickenlisa]

Well I was going to try and catch up on posts before I posted my status. Realized I was extremely behind. So far I have 12 chicks hatched out. Have about 6 more that have pipped.



Awesome first hatch and yeah its safe to say I'm hooked.

Yep, another one is addicted!

That was me and my kids some years ago. They have pretty much become blasè about it...my 16 year old daughter still will check it and then run in to say "Mom! Another chick hatched or Did you know there are 6 chicks in there?" But I am an addict and even when I say I won't hatch anymore the coming Spring, and even go so far to think about selling all of my incubators, I end up dragging it all out and buying eggs, hatching multiple clutches of chicks and sometimes even bring in my Mandarin's eggs and hatch them indoor. Mostly, I let them keep their eggs and do the hatching...much less work that way. (but way less fun!)