Too Early for Feb Hatch-A-Long Thread??

[CluckNDoodle]

Hi so I wanted to know what humidity I should have my Janoel 12 incubater at I'm on day 19 with no pips but I do have a damaged egg that is cracked

Cracked eggs will lose moisture faster and of course are more delicate but you may be fine since you're so close to hatch day. I usually increase my humidity to about 65% for hatch.

 

[LynnaePB]

We have had that before with the guinea pigs, if it was hanging by a thread we would snip the extra toe off with nail clippers so it doesn't get caught and pulled off when they are running around. Depends how attached the toe is.

I thought about snipping it off as well since it's not attached by much. I'm a little nervous about it (there isn't any bone attaching it but I'm not sure how much of a blood supply it has) so I'm just watching it for now and making sure it isn't causing any problems. At least with the silkies the extra toes are high enough on the leg they don't really touch the ground so I'm hoping it won't cause issues. It's good to know snipping toes off worked for your guinea pigs when they weren't very attached, makes me feel a little more comfortable with the idea of taking it off if I need to.

Oh my goodness they're beautiful!!! View attachment 2033629 And thank you for the happy birthday wishes! I had a great day!

That is really unusual about the Silkie chick with only 4 toes. Remind me, did these eggs come from your own flock?

Glad to hear you had a good birthday!

These ones aren't from my flock, they are shipped egg babies from another breeder. I got one with extra toes from my flock in my last hatch though. I've gotten some odd toe numbers in my silkies from several different breeders in the past. From what I've researched the gene that causes polydactyly often has some odd results. Incubation issues can effect number of toes in silkies as well I've heard. I think if you breed enough silkies extra toes and sometimes too few toes just pop up occasionally. I've seen lots of silkie breeders mention it as one of the criteria they use to decide which chicks to keep and grow out so it must be a relatively common thing.

Here are the toes on the one that hatched on the 11th from my flock that has an extra little toe coming off the 5th toe on each foot.

 

[Floydie]

I thought about snipping it off as well since it's not attached by much. I'm a little nervous about it (there isn't any bone attaching it but I'm not sure how much of a blood supply it has) so I'm just watching it for now and making sure it isn't causing any problems. At least with the silkies the extra toes are high enough on the leg they don't really touch the ground so I'm hoping it won't cause issues. It's good to know snipping toes off worked for your guinea pigs when they weren't very attached, makes me feel a little more comfortable with the idea of taking it off if I need to.

You can also tie thread around it until it drops off. I wouldn't try to remove it if it's attached by definite bone!

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

It was cleaning day for the brooder. So I snapped some pics to update everyone. These chicks hatched on 2/12 and Valentine's day. They're all so cute and sweet. I'll have a difficult time thinning to manageable numbers a they grow. There's too many for me to give them each one in one handling. So I'm focusing my efforts on ones I know I'm interested in keep even if it's a rooster. This is the Double Silver Laced Barnevelder, Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, Legbar, 1 of the Isbars and a couple that are likely Orpington/Barnevelder mixes with especially calm personalities.

First pic, in the brooder, are the assorted purebreds. The pic in the clear bin with mostly dark chicks are what I believe are the Ayam Cemani mixes. Then some chipmunk or brown chicks that I think are the Barnevelder mixes. Lastly all 27 chicks! So colorful! My husband joked "It's like Cal-Ranch!". That's our local farm store

I was concerned I would struggle to identify who's who. Fortunately I was worried for nothing. With two exceptions (1 BLR Wyandotte, and Tom Petty) they're all easily identifiable. Those two I can identify too it just takes a little longer. As I must compare them to other chicks and use process of elimination.

 

[LynnaePB]

You can also tie thread around it until it drops off. I wouldn't try to remove it if it's attached by definite bone!

Thank you, I might actually try the thread, that sounds like it would have less of a bleeding risk as long as the little one doesn't try pecking at it too much. It's definitely not attached by any bone, just a very tiny bit of skin/flesh.

 

[Merrymouse]

I have a little addition to my 4 silkies. My friend who breeds Swedish Flower did a test hatch and ended up with a singleton so she gave her to me. She’s so cute. She came out of her blue based pen. I love land races. You never know what they will look like. She fit right in with my 2 week old silkies even though she is only 3 days old. Isn’t she cute? Not the best picture. My hands are a mess I just came in from building an addiction 2 nest boxes

 

[UThobbyfarmer]

I have a little addition to my 4 silkies. My friend who breeds Swedish Flower did a test hatch and ended up with a singleton so she gave her to me. She’s so cute. She came out of her blue based pen. I love land races. You never know what they will look like. She fit right in with my 2 week old silkies even though she is only 3 days old. Isn’t she cute? Not the best picture. My hands are a mess I just came in from building an addiction 2 nest boxes View attachment 2034040View attachment 2034041

Bummer for your friend but major bonus for you! She's gorgeous

 

[BuckeyeFoodie]

Yeah I tried with my phone before I bought my camera. They let me run it through streamlabs to youtube find with the camera but not with my phone.

And that's my thing, I dont want to "waste" more money on additional cameras, when I have two old phones laying around that do a better job that the $100 camera! Plus, I just had to buy more camera equipment for my photography biz, and I I'm still in pain from it, lol

 

[smfarman]

I'm sorry to hear this! Like other mentioned, sometimes it just takes a little longer, especially if your temps are low. Did you candle or try to open the air cell on any of them?

I tried to candle but couldn't see inside the shell, no I don't know how to open an air cell

 

[LynnaePB]

I tried to candle but couldn't see inside the shell, no I don't know how to open an air cell

I like to start my eggtopsies the same way I would an assist in case the little ones are still alive. I start with a small hole at the top of the large end of the egg where the air cell is and then chip away at the shell until I have a good view of the baby. As long as you just remove shell that is over the air cell you shouldn't have any issues with hitting any blood vessels if the baby happens to still be alive.

This is a good article on assisting that might help to show you how to open the air cell.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/