The Quack Shack

[Jenbirdee]

@Luv Ducks here is your picture of your little darlings

 

[Luv Ducks]

@Luv Ducks here is your picture of your little darlings View attachment 4114511

Thank you so very much for posting them for me JenBirds, I really appreciated it.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

We paid up for the Brinseas exactly with the idea that if something goes wrong, we'll know it was not the machine so there is one less variable we need to account for.

The process is:

- set humidity low like 40-44 % until day 24 or whenever chirping starts (in our first hatch we did 50-55% humidity, air sacs developed super weakly, 20% of ducklings survived, so we're leaning dry)
- temp to 37,5 C
- starting from week 3, until the day above, do the daily cooling for 20 min + misting with a plant sprayer (fine nozzle)
- in the final stage, stop turning, boost humidity to 70%+
- whenever we see an attempted external pip, check with candling where the safe area is (no veins) and enlarge it if OK

The biggest problem we seem to be facing is:

1 - some embryos starting but just not becoming fully formed (giving up in week 3 or so?)

2 - some ducklings, while fully formed, being seriously entangled, almost like tied like in a knot, upside down, etc, unable to find their way out in a good place, eventually dying even if we try opening the egg but are too late (because we waited as not to cause bleeding...)

Regarding 2, I see that as possibly weak genetics? I don't really see how this could be fixed by using a different hatching method.

We noticed that Khakis tend to pip very early (days 23-24...)

My 2¢: Something went wrong during the eggs journey through the postal system. Not all mail-services are treating egg packages as special as the USPS does. If eggs are exposed to harsh acceleration, especially of the twisting kind, the embryonic disk can be damaged.

 

[Magnolia Ducks]

We're told field/fodder peas can also be eaten by people, so here goes... The yellows are leftovers from seeding, it's untreated seed and the ducks have taken to it happily once it's soaked - they ignore the dry kernels.

View attachment 4114314

Don't feed that to ducks I want that.

 

[Magnolia Ducks]

My 2¢: Something went wrong during the eggs journey through the postal system. Not all mail-services are treating egg packages as special as the USPS does. If eggs are exposed to harsh acceleration, especially of the twisting kind, the embryonic disk can be damaged.

Ha I should send you the picture of my welshie egg box. It was covered in fragile stickers which meant punch a hole in the box and drag it behind the truck. I only got two of 18.

 

[Supercow]

My 2¢: Something went wrong during the eggs journey through the postal system. Not all mail-services are treating egg packages as special as the USPS does. If eggs are exposed to harsh acceleration, especially of the twisting kind, the embryonic disk can be damaged.

This was my explanation for the low result with the Welshies -- but this last batch, the KC's, were our own eggs which have hatched at 80% in the previous year, so now I'm just ... puzzled.

 

[Magnolia Ducks]

I live in a very humid climate so I often do better with dry hatching.

 

[Supercow]

This was my explanation for the low result with the Welshies -- but this last batch, the KC's, were our own eggs which have hatched at 80% in the previous year, so now I'm just ... puzzled.

The little Khakis (all 7 out of 24 of them) are so lively though - just by looking at them you'd never tell what an ordeal it was to get them alive and healthy out of the eggs.

And the Welshies are starting to get their voices -- somewhat surprisingly it's one of the largest that started quacking first

 

[Jenbirdee]

Goslings hatching now !on day 29!

 

[Luv Ducks]

Goslings hatching now !on day 29!

Oh how absolutely PRECIOUS!!!! Thanks so much for sharing and I am sooooo happy that so many of them have hatched so far!!!!