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

[hysop]

I'm in for March. Making breeding pen choices and adding the rooster tonight. Probably start collecting to hatch on Monday. Plan to collect for 10-14 days initially and then set every week until I'm pretty sure I'll end up with ~200 chicks.

As usual, Barred Plymouth Rocks. Hoping to weed out a comb defect that came up last year, thus the high hatch goal.

Picking up another GQF 1588 HovaBator tonight from Facebook, so I'll be running 4. Probably 3 incubators and one hatcher.

Do you keep them all or what happens to the ones that still have the comb defect?

 

[Mosey2003]

Do you keep them all or what happens to the ones that still have the comb defect?

They'll be eaten.

 

[julskinka]

Very interested in the excel sheet if you wouldn't mind sharing a screen grab and some of the formulas. I can always make my husband help me if it's just a screen grab...he is way better at conditional formatting than I am.

I'll at the very least share a screen grab - see if I can just share the template too.

 

[gmjarvi]

I'll at the very least share a screen grab - see if I can just share the template too.

Awesome, thanks!

 

[julskinka]

I'll at the very least share a screen grab - see if I can just share the template too.

So there's a lot more information here than most people probably want or need, but I'm a data nerd. Not gonna apologise for that.

But you can see I record the D0 weight, then the D7, 10, 14, and 18 weight. The weight loss columns use a formula that colour codes the weight loss based on expected % weight loss by that day. Blues = too wet; yellows = too dry; greens = within acceptable range.

For this hatch I started with a "Dry" method and you can see there was more than ideal weight loss by the end of the first week. So I adjusted my humidity levels, and by the time I got to D18, a much greater proportion was green.

These eggs all hatched - there are two that went into lockdown but didn't make it, both shipped eggs with malpositions. They aren't in this list - I pulled them into an "eggtopsies" tab.

 

[gmjarvi]

So there's a lot more information here than most people probably want or need, but I'm a data nerd. Not gonna apologise for that.

I'm a biologist, so I get pretty pumped about data, too. Especially when it's in beautiful spreadsheets

 

[Lins_BE]

Thanks. I’ll start to bring tons of treats with me and talk softly to them. The rooster is my main focus, maybe if I win over the girls he’ll be more accepting. I’ve caught him almost like telling his girls “don’t you dare go up to her” when I enter the coop some of his hens will want to run to me but he’ll go after them and turn them around. Then once I throw feed or treats in the ground they come, but the rooster stands afar off and then comes closer to eat. Better that than him spurring me like he did once.

Soleone I know who has been raining chickens for over 30 years told me once I should always trow the food to the rooster and let him call his hens. To never call them myself. This way he doesn’t get threatened.

 

[Mvan42]

Y'all are making me want to candle my eggs so bad! I was trying to wait until day 7 since it's my first hatch and I didn't want to get discouraged if there weren't obvious signs of development.

Currently on day 3 (counting last Sunday as Day 0 as the eggs went in during the afternoon) and it seems like an eternity.

I know the feeling I am on day 4. I am so tempted to do a fast candle. My eggs are shipped and I am wondering how many are developing

 

[gmjarvi]

I know the feeling I am on day 4. I am so tempted to do a fast candle. My eggs are shipped and I am wondering how many are developing

I picked mine up, but they still had a 1.5 hour car ride and I'm an incubation newbie so I am so anxious about how things are going in those eggs!

 

[julskinka]

Here are the formulae and conditions. Sorry I can't just share the template.

The D-cell value in each formula is the D0 weight. So it's (D0 weight-D7 weight)/(D0 weight) formatted as a %.

Hope this helps someone!