what will happen if I forget to turn?

[spaka74]

okie doke, here is the issue.

for a couple of days, I ignored the possibility of my chickens hatching anything that I could incubate, but it turns out Oscar Wilde (my rooster) has been doing his "job" and the eggs will hatch- they are fertile! (I found this out after candeling)
BUT for a couple of days (maybe three or four) I hadn't been turning the eggs, just incubating them. by this time, i'd given up on the chance they would hatch, but it turns out they are going to anyway.

but here is my question, what are the consequences of not turning? Will I get some weird birth defects? and in which case, should I turn the incubator off- and let them pass? Because I'm incubating alot of eggs, and ids hate to have a whole gang of well, yeah.

 

[nivtup]

We have had low hatch rates due to poor turning when the auto turner in our sportsman broke.

Other than that, they should be fine.

 

[wolftracks]

Quote:
There are some people who never turn and they do just fine. I use auto turners, but I forgot about one of my bators once. Long ago. And got 100% hatch out of it. I mean I really forgot it. Didn't lockdown, nothing. I had pnemonia and when I got better didn't remember the bator in the garage until I heard peeping. Had a whole bator full of chicks that were just fine.

I wouldn't recommend not turning, because like I said that was an accident, but if you hadn't done it for a few days and went back to do it, I thik you'll be alright.

 

[panner123]

One of the kids in our 4H group set eggs just before going on vacation and didn't tell anyone.
She get back just in time to watch the last egg hatch. Those eggs were never turned and she
hatched 14 of 15 feritle eggs with 9 being unfertile. So there you have it, don't worry.

 

[MustLoveHens]

When we had a feed store, we had a customer frantic because his bator broke and needed us to incubate. My dh said no since we were moving the store at the time and did not want to deal with eggs. DH eventually relented and he set up the bator in a corner, tossed is some water and completely forgot about them. I do mean completely. So, one day, our 4-H helper walks around a display that was set up by the corner with the bator and said "I didn't know had an incubator going." DH's reply: "We do?" She replies;" Yeah and it's over flowing with chicks! Want me to set up the brooder?" At this point the customer walked in to get his chicks. He was very happy with the results" 23 out of 24 eggs hatched. The 24th was not fertile. And the chicks never knew they were forgotten and never turned. They came out fine. No defects or abandonment issues!!! LOL!

So you are probably fine.

 

[Luvducks]

Quote:
Cute Story! Little chicks are tough.

 

[MuscovyMad]

From what i've read sounds like your chicks will be fine.

I think the whole point of turning is to prevent the embryo from sticking to the membrane and dying but obviously this doesn't always happen if you don't turn.

On the brinsea website it says that turning the eggs changes the embryos position in the egg and provides it with fresh nutrients from the egg. But maybe it doesn't matter too much because of the extensive veins and diffusion of nutrients to regions of lower concentration.

I don't know just a wee out load thought process.