ACaskey
In the Brooder
- Mar 13, 2015
- 15
- 0
- 22
5 Ayam Cemani eggs from a GFF roo over TMA hens.
Egg #1.
I was sitting at my computer when I heard a chirp. I ran to the incubator and found a pip!
The first chick hatched yesterday and is so far an obvious cull (I won't be using for my breeding program). The skin is pink, toes have some color, nails are clear, and has white leakage (which may even molt out) no idea.
Four hours later
"What do you see?" I texted my man.
As you can see, the tips of its wings have white down. Maybe they'll fade out when feathers comes in- my Svart Hona's did.
The second chick has black skin, and is still wet, I don't want to open the incubator so I can't see much. Toes are black. Will update along the way!!
(He's out!!)
Pretty pleased with his coloring.
In the picture above, you can see egg #3 is almost fully zipped! Also chick #1 and all its "imperfections"
Egg #4 is rocking around and has been since last night
Egg #5 has just began to rock around!
So if all hatch that will be EXCELLENT!
For this hatch, we used the dry hatch method for the first time after I had problems with "shrink-wrapping" my last batch. I have had 2 100% hatch rates before hand and it prompted me to purchase another incubator of the same, but after I lost $500 in ayam cemani eggs due to shrink wrapping (all fully developed. They drowned in their egg), I wanted to give dry hatching a try.
When we first got them, we weighed them.
Egg #1 43g
Egg #2 37g
Egg #3 44g
Egg #4 42g
Egg #5 45g
We waited 7 days, candled and weighed again
Egg #1 36g
Egg #2 31g
Egg #3 38g
Egg #4 35g
Egg #5 39g
As you can tell, they lost a bit of weight. We read that as chick develops, their mass decreases due to water in their egg evaporating. This theory proves true.
Day 14:
Egg #1 38g
Egg #2 26g
Egg #3 34g
Egg #4 33g
Egg #5 37g
The eggs continued to lose mass, but not as significantly at the first week.
Day 18: Candled and lockdown
Egg #1 36g
Egg #2 27g
Egg #3 42g
Egg #4 32g
Egg #5 36g
So as you can tell, the decrease wasn't constant. Some of the eggs gained a gram or two in mass before they went into lockdown.
I found these results interesting and I'd love to hear your theories on it!
Dry hatching meant that we left the humidity completely alone. On lockdown day, we added a teaspoon of water to the water wells. To bring up humidity 10% from where it usually was. Then after a chick pips or hatches, humidity will usually increase on it's own. After a pip, if it went up, and it hadn't come out yet, I stuck a straw full of water through the air holes and added another teaspoon. So I made sure my humidity stayed above 50% or lockdown.
When the chicks hatch, the humidity rises on its own to 70%.
Egg #1.
I was sitting at my computer when I heard a chirp. I ran to the incubator and found a pip!
The first chick hatched yesterday and is so far an obvious cull (I won't be using for my breeding program). The skin is pink, toes have some color, nails are clear, and has white leakage (which may even molt out) no idea.
Four hours later
"What do you see?" I texted my man.
As you can see, the tips of its wings have white down. Maybe they'll fade out when feathers comes in- my Svart Hona's did.
The second chick has black skin, and is still wet, I don't want to open the incubator so I can't see much. Toes are black. Will update along the way!!
(He's out!!)
Pretty pleased with his coloring.
In the picture above, you can see egg #3 is almost fully zipped! Also chick #1 and all its "imperfections"
Egg #4 is rocking around and has been since last night
Egg #5 has just began to rock around!
So if all hatch that will be EXCELLENT!
For this hatch, we used the dry hatch method for the first time after I had problems with "shrink-wrapping" my last batch. I have had 2 100% hatch rates before hand and it prompted me to purchase another incubator of the same, but after I lost $500 in ayam cemani eggs due to shrink wrapping (all fully developed. They drowned in their egg), I wanted to give dry hatching a try.
When we first got them, we weighed them.
Egg #1 43g
Egg #2 37g
Egg #3 44g
Egg #4 42g
Egg #5 45g
We waited 7 days, candled and weighed again
Egg #1 36g
Egg #2 31g
Egg #3 38g
Egg #4 35g
Egg #5 39g
As you can tell, they lost a bit of weight. We read that as chick develops, their mass decreases due to water in their egg evaporating. This theory proves true.
Day 14:
Egg #1 38g
Egg #2 26g
Egg #3 34g
Egg #4 33g
Egg #5 37g
The eggs continued to lose mass, but not as significantly at the first week.
Day 18: Candled and lockdown
Egg #1 36g
Egg #2 27g
Egg #3 42g
Egg #4 32g
Egg #5 36g
So as you can tell, the decrease wasn't constant. Some of the eggs gained a gram or two in mass before they went into lockdown.
I found these results interesting and I'd love to hear your theories on it!
Dry hatching meant that we left the humidity completely alone. On lockdown day, we added a teaspoon of water to the water wells. To bring up humidity 10% from where it usually was. Then after a chick pips or hatches, humidity will usually increase on it's own. After a pip, if it went up, and it hadn't come out yet, I stuck a straw full of water through the air holes and added another teaspoon. So I made sure my humidity stayed above 50% or lockdown.
When the chicks hatch, the humidity rises on its own to 70%.
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Pictures once I open the incubator
