Tis Time for a March 2020 Hatch-a-long!

[FortCluck]

Someone cheer me up by telling me how your first incubation attempt was a disaster but you've rebounded because you learned so much from the experience!!! Showed what I thought was extreme patience by not candling my eggs for the first time until tonight which is day 5 heading into day 6. The air cells were disasters on all but 5 and even 2 of those are saddled but I kept in the bator because there was a clearly developing embryo. Zero of the Lemon Pyle Brahma eggs had intact air cells nor any signs of development

Not even a week in and I am bracing myself for the learned the hard way about shipped eggs lesson.

My first hatch was a disaster. I had 42 eggs... 29 made it to lockdown, but I had 11 dead fully formed chicks. A lot that I pulled before lockdown were clears (infertile). My hatch rate was awful that time. These were eggs from my flock. My humidity was a huge problem. It was an awful experience, but I'm still hatching chicks.

I now dry hatch now and my hatch rates are 90% from my flock. I'm on my 5th or 6th hatch now.

 

[aliciaplus3]

With shipped eggs you are bucking the odds. Postage can be really hard on them, they get older every day they are in transit, elevation could be an issue? I feel any that survive after shipping are miracle babies. That being said some folks get decent hatch rates with shipped eggs. ( I think my biggest hurdle here is the 6000 feet elevation)
Now do not get me wrong I will not stop trying to hatch we have had some decent hatches with our own eggs and even sometimes with eggs received locally.

 

[gmjarvi]

With shipped eggs you are bucking the odds. Postage can be really hard on them, they get older every day they are in transit, elevation could be an issue? I feel any that survive after shipping are miracle babies. That being said some folks get decent hatch rates with shipped eggs. ( I think my biggest hurdle here is the 6000 feet elevation)
Now do not get me wrong I will not stop trying to hatch we have had some decent hatches with our own eggs and even sometimes with eggs received locally. View attachment 2027235View attachment 2027237

I travelled about 3 hrs round trip today getting eggs and tried to be as gentle as possible with them. I'm curious if you think these eggs will have a hard time like shipped eggs tend to?

 

[hysop]

I’m incubating 23 eggs (10 white leghorn, 8 olive egger, and 5 black jersey giant and/or red sex link).

I put them in on February 11th at around 7pm. I read we shouldn’t consider that first night day one, so Feb 12 is day one making today (feb 15) day 4.

Unfortunately I didn’t do much research on thermometers prior to starting my first batch so I will be buying one tomorrow. The one I have right now can’t be calibrated by submerging in hot or cold water.

My Black Jersey Giant fertilized the BJG hens and the Red Sex Link hens. So it’s a 50-50 if the brown eggs will be pure BJG or a mix with RSL.

My white leghorn eggs will most likely be half Olive Egger unless our white leghorn rooster was able to sneak in without being noticed. We shall see when and if any hatch.

The Olive Egger eggs will be 100% Olive Egger.

March 4th is Day 21 for me, it feels like a long way away!

Does anyone have a thermometer suggestion that they think is just amazing? My husband said he would be getting a mercury one (I don’t know anything about thermometers).

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Someone cheer me up by telling me how your first incubation attempt was a disaster but you've rebounded because you learned so much from the experience!!! Showed what I thought was extreme patience by not candling my eggs for the first time until tonight which is day 5 heading into day 6. The air cells were disasters on all but 5 and even 2 of those are saddled but I kept in the bator because there was a clearly developing embryo. Zero of the Lemon Pyle Brahma eggs had intact air cells nor any signs of development

Not even a week in and I am bracing myself for the learned the hard way about shipped eggs lesson.

I'm sorry! If it makes you feel better chicks can still hatch with messed up air cells.
My very first hatch was under a broody hen and it was such an epic disaster that I was sure I would never consider hatching again or even come close to allowing my hens to...well I had about 7 or 8 broody hens last year and hatched over 100 chicks, goslings, quail, turkey poults, and peachicks. Every experience is a learning experience no matter how many you've hatched but there is definitely a huge learning curve on that first experience no matter how much you read.

 

[FortCluck]

I’m incubating 23 eggs (10 white leghorn, 8 olive egger, and 5 black jersey giant and/or red sex link).

I put them in on February 11th at around 7pm. I read we shouldn’t consider that first night day one, so Feb 12 is day one making today (feb 15) day 4.

Unfortunately I didn’t do much research on thermometers prior to starting my first batch so I will be buying one tomorrow. The one I have right now can’t be calibrated by submerging in hot or cold water.

My Black Jersey Giant fertilized the BJG hens and the Red Sex Link hens. So it’s a 50-50 if the brown eggs will be pure BJG or a mix with RSL.

My white leghorn eggs will most likely be half Olive Egger unless our white leghorn rooster was able to sneak in without being noticed. We shall see when and if any hatch.

The Olive Egger eggs will be 100% Olive Egger.

March 4th is Day 21 for me, it feels like a long way away!

Does anyone have a thermometer suggestion that they think is just amazing? My husband said he would be getting a mercury one (I don’t know anything about thermometers).

I have a mercury one thats for a fish tank and it works amazing

 

[dougieee]

So i was supposed to get some copper black maran eggs to go in with my brahma-canas but the sale fell through........ so i cheated and bought a half a dozen chicks for virtually the same price.
They are now called cheat chicks but on the plus side the brahma canas only have three non starters and 1 blood ringed at 8 days, if i can get a dozen hatched i will be happy.

 

[dougieee]

Someone cheer me up by telling me how your first incubation attempt was a disaster but you've rebounded because you learned so much from the experience!!! Showed what I thought was extreme patience by not candling my eggs for the first time until tonight which is day 5 heading into day 6. The air cells were disasters on all but 5 and even 2 of those are saddled but I kept in the bator because there was a clearly developing embryo. Zero of the Lemon Pyle Brahma eggs had intact air cells nor any signs of development

Not even a week in and I am bracing myself for the learned the hard way about shipped eggs lesson.

I tend to incubate all my shipped eggs upright as the air cells are always a complete mess, saddled isnt bad but a lot of them tend to be completely detached.
This has been spoken about a lot in other threads and with a bit of experience (and fresh fertile eggs) 75% hatch rate is relatively easy to hit, i have heard horror stories though of low fertility and rotten eggs sent shipped.

 

[TriskeleFarm]

well I just candled my first incubation attempt, 12 red laced blue wyandotte eggs, and I *think* at 8 days in, I have 4 out of 12 that are still viable. they are shipped eggs, I saw a few blood rings, and a few clear. I have 6 more eggs that have only been in a couple of days, and are Blue Copper Marans, so they're dark eggs. in another week I'll see what they all look like.

 

[hysop]

Why do people buy eggs to hatch instead of just buying chicks? I always figured people hatched their own eggs from their own flock. It wasn’t until last year that I found out people buy eggs from hatcheries to hatch them themselves.