what did I do wrong?

[crankster76]

this is my first time with a bator. I did the dry inc. temp swings on my havabator from 98.4 to 100.6 during the cycle.humidity was at 25%. on day 18 I moved the eggs over to a still bator with the bottom temp as 101.at 75% humidity. well this is only day 20 and I wake up to hatching eggs and 1 baby in the bator

. why are they hatchn early?

 

[Highlander]

Well first of all if they are hatching then you did something right, not wrong! Are they bantams? Sometimes they can hatch a little early. Otherwise your temps might have been a tad high. But sounds like things are going well so congrats!

 

[Chemguy]

From what I understand, there will always be variability in a hatch, just like humans aren't born at exactly 40 weeks every time. We just try to make sure that the variation is as small as possible by artificailly incubating. No two eggs are identical, and no group of eggs will be exactly the same as another. So, hatching 'early' is not a sign that something is wrong. If you want to track this down, it's possible that the readings on your thermometer are slightly off, which many agree can lead to a slightly early or slightly late hatch. To me, it sounds like you've done a lot right, the chicks just had other ideas.

 

[Loretta212]

i have ued a bator twice now and both times they started hatching at day 19. they were bantams both times doesnt mean you did anything wrong sometimes eggs dont hatch until day 22 i think ever hatch is different . sometimes the thermometer is off and temps can be a little higher or lower and cause eggs to hatch at different times

 

[pawtraitart]

I typically have an early bird or two. No worries about that. Enjoy your chicks.

 

[crankster76]

thanks for the replies. these are RIR so I thought they would hatch on day 21.live and learn i guess.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Why are they hatching early? Could be different reasons. Many have been mentioned by other people. If the average incubating temperature is a little warm, they can hatch quite a bit early. Heredity can play more of a part than many people realize. If the eggs are smaller, they can be early. Low humidity during incubation can cause them to be a little early. I don't know which model Hovabator you have, but the temperatures can be different in different places in the incubator, especially if it is a still air. If the eggs were stored a little too warm before you started incubating them they may have developed a little before you even put them in the incubator.

I'm sure I'm forgetting or just don't know several reasons that they could be early. The opposite of many of these can cause them to be a bit late. The normal reason for big swings is that the average incubating temperature is either a little high or low. Unless you calibrated your thermometer you really don't know what your temperatures were. Not calibrating your thermometer but just assuming it is reading right is the biggest cause of these surprises, though there can be others. If yours is a still air, you have to be taking the temperature at the right elevation.

But I don't consider a chick hatching on Day 20 to be a surprise at all. With all the different things that can affect the actual hatch time, I consider it really normal. I've had eggs pipping when I went into lockdown after 18 days of development. My incubator runs just a little warm.

I think congratulations are in order. It sounds like a successful hatch, especially for your first time.

 

[crankster76]

thanks. I have to havabators. 1 is a forced air with turner. it has a hydro/thermo I got from Incubator warehouse. it hangs about egg high through one of the vent holes. the other havabator is a still air. I move the eggs from one bator to the other for lockdown cause I got some sussix eggs still in the1st one that got another week to go. and I read somewhere that the still air was better for lockdown.

 

[crankster76]

here is the next question. got 5 eggs in the incubator with 2 that hatched this morning. how long do I wait on the other 3 to hatch? then how long before i transfer to a brooder? thanks

 

[crankster76]

got 2 more zipping!