Tomorrow's the day, scared excited and have tones of questions

KristyHall

Crowing
8 Years
Jan 27, 2011
5,047
190
288
North Alabama
so tomorrow is 7 days after I put in the duck eggs so I'll be putting in the chicken eggs. Should I candle the duck eggs to see if they are developing?
This is my first time using an incubator. Before I always let the mamas do the work. But it can be hard on them and I like keeping their feathered butts free to keep my garden picked clean of pests.
Also, I have more chicken eggs than I need, and they are all sooo lovely and I am having a hard time picking. I think I'll put in a variety of sizes and colors, though I won't be putting in the long narrow ones.

Ok check list
Humidity well not sure of the percentage I filled in the pan the machine told my to fill in and then before lock down i'm suppose to fill in the second fan. It's one of those simple , hand holding, does-all-the-work for you, incubators.
Temperature,100 degrees
fan, check
egg turner, working
eggs... well lots of them

Excitement... through the roof! Eeeeee!
BTW what is the usual hatching rate in an incubator? anyone know?
 
If you candle those duck eggs now- you should be able to see very clearly the vein network and little embryo if the eggs are good. If you are not to sure about any- leave them an extra day or two and then discard them- better to err on the side of caution- but dont leave them in long enough for them to go rotten- you wouldnt want to have to clean that mess out of your new bator.

Something you may - or may not have heard - is that ducks eggs do better laying on their sides being rolled over for turning rather than upright. It can be restrictive- to those who work or are away form home a lot- but I have always found hand turning gives better results.

I have had good and bad hatches- my last was ten from ten eggs - but the hatch rates can vary so much I wouldnt like to put a % on it. Especially for a first time. It can take a while to get the hang of your machine and tweek a few fine points to get it working at its optimum- even when it is one that is supposed to be a " set and forget' type.
As for the chicken eggs dont vary the size too much- colour is fine- but setting eggs of similar size is best.

Good luck with your hatch.
 
Quote:
Thank you for the luck, but I have to ask, is there a reason for the same size? I'm not doing extremes. My birds are largely mix breeds and i Have eggs from neighbors so the sizes will vary any how, I know that the very large ones are likely double yolkes and probably no good and the real small eggs are probably not good either.
 

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