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

[Phillyndilly]

My first hatch went horrible and I followed all the 'rules'. It was depressing. I don't know what went wrong. I think I got 1 chick out. Same with the first time I hatched ducks and turkeys. Lots of dead in the shell right at the end. I do mostly dry now because it works better for me. There's definitely a learning curve with hatching and it can be brutal. Hugs and hope you have better hatches in the future. Mine have improved but I'm still learning and some still die.

Thank you for feeling my pain that’s terrible ugh! Do you know what went wrong with them?

 

[Mylied]

Thank you for feeling my pain that’s terrible ugh! Do you know what went wrong with them?

I'm not sure. They were more liquidy inside so maybe too much humidity. Some even externally pipped and then died. I was leaving them alone because that's what I read. I wasn't part of a hatchalong either. Just winging it.

 

[Phillyndilly]

Meaning no harm but this is a response I just received which is a great example of what I mean. Besides the fact that my eggs look exactly like the shrink wrap pictures I’ve searched it’s easy to be swayed when you are new and know nothing on the subject and a lot of people make straight out statements like this. Thank you everyone on here for all your help once again though the majority of course give great advice!

 

[Phillyndilly]

I'm not sure. They were more liquidy inside so maybe too much humidity. Some even externally pipped and then died. I was leaving them alone because that's what I read. I wasn't part of a hatchalong either. Just winging it.

Oh wow scary that it can go either way. Both extremes I guess. Ya I was trying to kind of wing it that’s why I wanted to trust the process and not drive myself nuts oh well guess that didn’t go so good lol

 

[Mylied]

Oh wow scary that it can go either way. Both extremes I guess. Ya I was trying to kind of wing it that’s why I wanted to trust the process and not drive myself nuts oh well guess that didn’t go so good lol

I actually do more trust the process now, to use your phrase. I'm way more loose about the rules. I watched my broodies a lot and saw they didn't stress as much as us humans. ;-)

 

[Kiki]

Meaning no harm but this is a response I just received which is a great example of what I mean. Besides the fact that my eggs look exactly like the shrink wrap pictures I’ve searched it’s easy to be swayed when you are new and know nothing on the subject and a lot of people make straight out statements like this. Thank you everyone on here for all your help once again though the majority of course give great advice!

A four day old dead egg could look like many things.
Stuff changes fast inside the egg once it dies.

This is not shrink wrapped.
I didn't follow your hatch but my first tow questions would be:
How many calibrated thermometers did you have in your bator and was your humidity gauged salt tested.

If you can't answer those then don't set eggs again until you have both done.

 

[FortCluck]

I had one duck egg with blood ring and a chick egg that quit.

I have internally pipped chicks.

I'm trying to decide if I'm spraying these duck eggs or not this time. My Pekin eggs seem better than the duck eggs I just hatched. They seem to be losing unlike the last ones.

 

[gmjarvi]

My first hatch went horrible and I followed all the 'rules'. It was depressing. I don't know what went wrong. I think I got 1 chick out. Same with the first time I hatched ducks and turkeys. Lots of dead in the shell right at the end. I do mostly dry now because it works better for me. There's definitely a learning curve with hatching and it can be brutal. Hugs and hope you have better hatches in the future. Mine have improved but I'm still learning and some still die.

(Also replying to @Phillyndilly )

I only hatched out about half of the viable eggs I set during my first hatch. When I set the eggs I only had a theoretical understanding of the artificial incubation process, so I was pretty happy with this result. I wish I knew why half of them died right before they hatched, but I will probably never figure it out.

 

[Mylied]

I had one duck egg with blood ring and a chick egg that quit.

I have internally pipped chicks.

I'm trying to decide if I'm spraying these duck eggs or not this time. My Pekin eggs seem better than the duck eggs I just hatched. They seem to be losing unlike the last ones.

I've been spraying mine. Who knows if it does any good but it makes me feel better and February ducks hatched great.

 

[Phillyndilly]

A four day old dead egg could look like many things.
Stuff changes fast inside the egg once it dies.

This is not shrink wrapped.
I didn't follow your hatch but my first tow questions would be:
How many calibrated thermometers did you have in your bator and was your humidity gauged salt tested.

If you can't answer those then don't set eggs again until you have both done.

A four day old dead egg could look like many things.
Stuff changes fast inside the egg once it dies.

This is not shrink wrapped.
I didn't follow your hatch but my first tow questions would be:
How many calibrated thermometers did you have in your bator and was your humidity gauged salt tested.

If you can't answer those then don't set eggs again until you have both done.

Can you tell me why it looks identical to the shrink wrapped photo then?

I had three thermometers to set it and one inside and 6 humidity gauges which aren’t salt tested but all within a few numbers of eachother so it gives me a good idea of where the humidity was. The combo of my hatch being very dry and falling below 20 and so many eggs not making it and two chicks getting stuck and needing assisted hatches because they could not get through the membrane does make me believe it’s the humidity. I wanted to confirm and I respect your opinion but what does a shrink wrapped egg look like then and how do you know if it’s actually shrink wrapped?
( one of the shrink wrapped photos I compared it to for any others who are wondering)