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

[gmjarvi]

I checked mine it holds around 22% I'm dry hatching too. Unsure if to add any water later on (lock down) or leave it dry.

I think I technically did a dry hatch last time without realizing it - my humidity never got above 35%. I did bump it to 50ish during lock down.

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

I am sitting on my hands (figuratively). Batch 1, Day 21 starts this afternoon and there are no visible pips. Do any of you candle to check for internal pips or do you listen for muffled peeps?

I've done both. Just depends on the hatch. Once I get a feel for how close they are, to pipping, I do my best to leave them alone.

 

[julskinka]

I am sitting on my hands (figuratively). Batch 1, Day 21 starts this afternoon and there are no visible pips. Do any of you candle to check for internal pips or do you listen for muffled peeps?

You can play a recording of chicks hatching on YouTube next to the incubator for a few seconds and sometimes the internal pips will respond. lol

I do the recording, and I confess I also shmush my face up against the incubator and bock like a mother hen. If there are no external pips at all, I don't think it would hurt to spot check a few. I probably wouldn't be able to resist, myself.

 

[AgnesGray]

My crested/blue Swedish cross is usually pretty clean, at least with her eggs. My silver Appleyard was a giant hog and made sure to lay her eggs in all of the worst places (in the water dish, in the food dish, in the biggest pile of poo they had in their house...) then I gave her an old EOS lip gloss container (didn’t have any fake eggs haha) in the corner nest box and she’s been laying beautiful clean eggs in there ever since. I had tried one of her other eggs in there and she tossed it out and laid the next one in poo. she seems to have gotten it figured out now, though.
If we’re talking cleanliness in general though, both of my girls are filthy in the mud puddles in the yard. Then they come back to their kiddie pool or the water tubs and wash it off.

on another note, I have development in every egg I’ve checked from my 2 batches of eggs!

That's awesome! Mine were initially dropping them by the pool and wherever, but seem to have gotten it also. Great idea about the eos container!

 

[FortCluck]

Dry hatchers: how dry have you run your incubators before? My Janoel is holding at 19% and in debating if I want to let it stay that dry.

18% and I got a 100% hatch rate

 

[julskinka]

Dry hatchers: how dry have you run your incubators before? My Janoel is holding at 19% and in debating if I want to let it stay that dry.

My incubator gets too dry if I run completely dry (like, will drop to low teens, and then the eggs lose too much weight). But I try to keep my humidity around 25-35%. A wet sponge in the channel I put water in helps, I only have to add a little once every or every other day.

 

[Jules929]

I do the recording, and I confess I also shmush my face up against the incubator and bock like a mother hen. If there are no external pips at all, I don't think it would hurt to spot check a few. I probably wouldn't be able to resist, myself.

Ding ding ding!
That's the enabling answer I was hoping for, lol!

 

[FortCluck]

Think it would help if we knew what incubators everyone has. I have a farm innovator 4250 so styrofoam. Mine probably incubated differently than others I'd assume.

I don't want people dry hatching because they think they'll get better hatch rates or better hatches overall. You have to do what's best for your hatch.

**Want to ask everyone's opinion. What do you think about making a thread where we keep track of our hatch rates, incubators, and other info?

I can make spreadsheets of it and share on there. It may take me a few days, but I think it would be awesome.

We need a name for the thread as well...

Whoever wants in just say you want in or give your opinions or whatever

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Good morning everyone! I’d participate in that thread @FortCluck.

Up to 10 babies this morning.
Flip is staying upright now! Yay.

 

[Jules929]

Think it would help if we knew what incubators everyone has. I have a farm innovator 4250 so styrofoam. Mine probably incubated differently than others I'd assume.

I don't want people dry hatching because they think they'll get better hatch rates or better hatches overall. You have to do what's best for your hatch.

**Want to ask everyone's opinion. What do you think about making a thread where we keep track of our hatch rates, incubators, and other info?

I can make spreadsheets of it and share on there. It make take me a few days, but I think it would be awesome.

We need a name for the thread as well...

Whoever wants in just say you want in or give your opinions or whatever

I'm in!