Update on my First hatch

[marie_martin]

Some of my eggs pipped but none made any progress and some never pipped but I could hear weak little peeps from inside on most. I was already down to 9 from 17. The rest, I opened, and only 1 had even started to develop veins, the rest nothing. Anyway, out of 9 eggs, I have 5 chicks and one, my little Salmon Faverolle, does not look good. Very week. They were literally stuck to the membrane that surrounds them. The air cell was strangely located on the side, I guess from shipping. And they could not move to be able to pip because they were in that membrane like bubble wrap. I think it had to do with having to open the bator to turn the eggs. I am probably going to get a turner to do the next batch, if I do it at all. I have already paid for the eggs and they are being shipped monday. I know I will feel differently once I have time to get over the loss of my babies. One was in the shell backwards. His back was to the side where the air cell was and his face was in the opposite direction, No air cell where his face was, and he was so crammed he could not pip. I candled the egg and could not see anything but I could hear him peeping weakly. I opened the egg at the air cell and no face, so I sort of moistened the membrane and waited a little while. Then his peep got weaker, so I assisted. I removed part of the shell all the way around the top trying to locate his face. I finally did and he was alive. I moistened a paper towel and put around him and the rest of the shell and membrane hoping that now that he could get air he would be ok, but he died within 20 min. Two more died over night, I had to help them too. They were completely shrink wrapped in that egg and could peep through the membrane but not the shell. I should have stayed up all night and got them to drink or something maybe, I don't know. They were just so weak. So I have the one salmon Faverolle, two silkies and two OEGB's. I will try to get pictures up later. TI know some wont agree with what I did, but I raise goats and have lots of animals and I just knew in my heart I had to do something or none of them would have lived. hanks for listening.

Marie

 

[Llysse]

Oh, I'm sorry you lost so many in your hatch, but it sounds like they would have gone, anyway. At least this way they had a chance. There are people who don't help in a hatch, Marie, but I always think it's a personal choice. I had to help my last little one who hatched with a bleeding umbilicus, and he was touch and go for a while, but is thriving, now. I think with experience, you'll find the level of assistance that you're comfortable and successful providing. After all, you still have 5 you were able to help.

 

[fowlweatherfriends]

Hi Marie,
Thank you for updating us-I was wondering about your hatch. I think I had beginers luck on my hatch. I did start with 18 silkie eggs and end with 9 in the bator. I think shipping has alot to do with fertility and the overall egg condition.

I think you did a fine job on helping your chicks out. I think intervention is based on instinct and if you raise goats you probably has good inctinct. I helped two of mine and one is alive and thriving, the other just weakened over the days and had to be put down. Still, with what you have, you have a good start. Like you, I did not have a turner in my bator and stopped turning on day 18. Along with the 9 silkies, I had 9 OEGB's and those are hardy, healthy little guys! Every egg from begining to end hatched of the OEGB"S!

You did great-good luck with the babies!

 

[urbanhomesteader]

Marie,
so sorry to hear about your losses.

But glad to hear some of the peeps made it.

Looking forward to seeing pictures.

Don't beat yourself up... It probably had more to do with a rough shipping than anything else. I didn't have a turner and I was opening the havo-bator every day to turn and add water and I had a great hatch. But my eggs wheren't shipped. I attribute my good hatch to that.

 

[blue90292]

marie, what was your humidity? i forgot to add water one time while hatching and i had an experience like that.

 

[marie_martin]

Thanks everyone. My humidity was pretty good as far as I know. I checked it in the morning and then in the evening after work and before bed. I turned the eggs three times a day. I did not have any trouble keeping the humidity up. I did have some trouble keeping the temps stable but nothing too outrageous. I think my humidity went down when I turned the eggs but it was never really low. It was high a few times early on, but like I said, nothing to mention really. You are right about the OEGB eggs. They are hardy critters. I only put three in total, just seeing if they were even fertile really, and one was not so I took it out early on. But the other two are doing great. Guess they are a hardy breed. The two silkies I got are so cute but they look different. I supposedly had black silkies, and blue silkies. They were marked. The one blue one diied. He was turned backward in his shell. Well one of the ones I have is black all over, a little lighter on the tummy area, but the other one is a bit lighter and his tummy area is grey, not black. Almost silver really. And there is an almost white, maybe silver color on the tips of his wings and under his chin. Could it be blue? I hope so. They are all too cute. The little SF is holding in there. I just can't let it die. I feel so guilty. I think there was some shipping issues because the post office forgot to call me and they were up there an extra day before I picked them up. No telling what they went through in shipping. She wrapped them all very well and I don't think there was anything she could have done. It is what it is. And I am glad some survived. Thanks so much for your advice and support. I will try to get photos uploaded later.

Marie

 

[speckledhen]

I'm really sorry, Marie. I lost a couple in my last hatch for unknown reasons, but I have a suspiscion that those shells had some porosity on one end and maybe the water evaporated in them too quickly. My others were fine and I had good humidity all along.
Guess you just have to be happy for the ones that do make it and try again another time. Sure hope you have a better experience.

 

[marie_martin]

Well, the little SF is doing great now. I just kept trying and I think I got her/him over the hump. It was the first to find the water and drink on it's own. How about that. Watch it be a mean old roo now!! How funny will that be. Everyone is pecking at the food and the rest have not drank on their own yet, but I have shown them several times and I am sure they will catch on. Guess that is why they need a chicken mom. I am so excited that she is up and walking around, she was so weak, her neck was like a noodle. I hope she progresses. I will let you know. I updated my computer to Vista and now my camera wont connect to download the pics? So I will have to figure that out. But they are doing good and I really appreciate everyones help. I think you are right, some of the egss did seem porous too. That could have been a big part of the problem. Thanks for not telling me I did the wrong thing. You know you just do what you feel is the right thing at the time and hope it is the right thing. I really appreciate everyone. And I have eggs being shipped on Monday, so I have to clean out the bator and get it ready. I think I am going to get the turner, maybe it will help. Thanks again.

Marie

 

[Foghorn]

Marie, glad to hear you got some to hatch. Shipping is what killed my success rate, I'm sure. The ones I picked up did very well, as opposed to the ones I had shipped, which only hatched 2 out of 12. Good luck with your new babies!

 

[marie_martin]

Thanks so much for all the support. Everyone seems to be doing great so far. They are eating great. I boiled a couple of eggs and I am feeding them the yolks, crumbled up, a little at a time. I am also giving them the starter feed and they are eating up a storm. I got the electrolytes and put in the water. Hard to know how much to use on that stuff. It said like 4 oz. to 128 gallons of water. I just put a tiny sprinkle in my quart jar. I hope that is ok. They are pooping and so forth so I assume they are good. My new eggs ship out tomorrow so I have the bator cleaned out and I just hooked everything back up. I am going to try once more without the turner and just keep a closer eye on everything. I may put the eggs in a carton and just tilt it back and forth each time. I will let you know how it goes. Plus my OEGB hen is sitting on those 7 eggs. I have to figure out how to move her down to the ground or close to it. I did not know much about chickens when I got them and I built the coop all wrong. she is sitting in a nest that is at the top of the coop. If the chicks come they will be tumbling down. So I guess I have to figure out how to get her and her nest down from there and into a lower nest. Anyway, Have a great night.

Marie