Unexpected hatching - help!

[Theblackpukeko]

Tell them to hurry up please.

The wait is killing me.

Haha same! They're regular chicken eggs though the pukeko was just one lucky discovery ♡

 

[Theblackpukeko]

I just discovered that she's eating and drinking fine on her own when she thinks I'm not looking! I guess I spoil her too much

These are some of the other eggs I'm worried about. The air cells are just so small and I've been letting the bator drop to 25% before refilling water the last days, but no luck. Anyone got a clue? Are they still able to hatch? I saw a bunch of posts about chicks that developed fully and never hatched because the air sac wasn't the right size.
The eggs are approx 3-5 days apart, I have three of each. The younger ones are at 14 days, the others at about 17 or more. Attached a picture of each. You guys are smarter than me. They definitely aren't fully grown yet, but the time is telling me to lock down somewhere during the next two days to prepare for hatch.

Help anyone ?

The younger egg

The older egg

 

[Theblackpukeko]

@Texas Kiki
When should I stop turning the eggs? Some people say day 18, but some say day 14. Will it be fine to stop turning them when the older ones start to hatch?

 

[Kiki]

@Texas Kiki
When should I stop turning the eggs? Some people say day 18, but some say day 14. Will it be fine to stop turning them when the older ones start to hatch?

Day 18.

 

[Kiki]

I just discovered that she's eating and drinking fine on her own when she thinks I'm not looking! I guess I spoil her too much

These are some of the other eggs I'm worried about. The air cells are just so small and I've been letting the bator drop to 25% before refilling water the last days, but no luck. Anyone got a clue? Are they still able to hatch? I saw a bunch of posts about chicks that developed fully and never hatched because the air sac wasn't the right size.
The eggs are approx 3-5 days apart, I have three of each. The younger ones are at 14 days, the others at about 17 or more. Attached a picture of each. You guys are smarter than me. They definitely aren't fully grown yet, but the time is telling me to lock down somewhere during the next two days to prepare for hatch.

Help anyone ? View attachment 1935241
The younger eggView attachment 1935239 The older egg

Are you sure there is movement in these?

The older one...do you see clear veins near the air cell?


Is the movement you are seeing the chick itself or does everything inside move when you rotate the egg?

 

[Kiwibird]

Are you getting heaps of rain there like we are in the Waikato? You may not need any water in the incubator at this stage, due to the high ambient humidity levels. However, I think your air cells look okay. It will be interesting to see what others think.

If you're stopping an automatic turner, you can still turn younger eggs manually. It's a few years since I have used an incubator, though. I prefer broodies for most purposes.

 

[Theblackpukeko]

Are you sure there is movement in these?

The older one...do you see clear veins near the air cell?


Is the movement you are seeing the chick itself or does everything inside move when you rotate the egg?

100% definite chick movement. I'm always careful and wait till I see movement before I actually start turning the egg around. And they're all moving on their own, all 6.
Veins are visible in all of them. In fact, the big egg you were asking about has a very very big vein right visible in the picture. Some definitely have them right up to the air cells, but for this one it's not as frequent up there and very strong in the center of the egg. It's like, it has bigger veins, but less, while the others have thinner veins, but more of them. There's actually another older egg like that so I think it might just be the hen that layed them.

 

[Theblackpukeko]

However, I think your air cells look okay. It will be interesting to see what others think.

Thanks, that reassures me a lot. I just remember the pukeko air cell being a lot more bigger and so I was a bit distressed.

If you're stopping an automatic turner, you can still turn younger eggs manually. It's a few years since I have used an incubator, though. I prefer broodies for most purposes.

That's one possibility, it's just that since I had to help the pukeko out because it was dried up, I'd like to avoid that and not open the incubator at all once they started getting close to hatching. But I think I'll just have to settle for the manual turn then.

 

[WVduckchick]

I think the air cells look fine. Maybe a bit on the smaller side, but I don’t think critically small.

And my suggestion for the other eggs would be to watch for the first pip in the first group of eggs, add the water then, and stop turning them all.

 

[Kiki]

100% definite chick movement. I'm always careful and wait till I see movement before I actually start turning the egg around. And they're all moving on their own, all 6.
Veins are visible in all of them. In fact, the big egg you were asking about has a very very big vein right visible in the picture. Some definitely have them right up to the air cells, but for this one it's not as frequent up there and very strong in the center of the egg. It's like, it has bigger veins, but less, while the others have thinner veins, but more of them. There's actually another older egg like that so I think it might just be the hen that layed them.

Great...it's so hard to see/tell in pictures sometimes.
Don't stress about the air cell size...there is still time.

It's better for the humidity levels to remain constant so I don't think you should continue to let it drop and then raise it again.
Steady is better.