Why an early hatch?

[jloftin60]

I'm using a Hova-Bator with an auto egg turner. I kept my temp between
99.5 - 101* I had my first peep on day 19 and complete hatch on early day
20. Thirty-six out of forty-two eggs hatched. All seem to be healthy and well.
My question is, why did they hatch so early?

 

[silkiechicken]

1) Some lines are a bit faster on the hatching.
2) Thermometer is off.
3) Some how you counted at 24 hrs off of 21x24 hours.

But hey, if they are out and happy! All is good!!!

 

[danrut101]

Consistant 101 temp will do it. But early is not bad. Late is an issue. I keep my temp set at 100 and it varies between 99.5 and 100.5. If it consistantly stays between 100 and 101, i'll get an early hatch also.

85.7% is not a bad hatch either. What did the ones look like that didn't hatch? Clear or some formation? If some started to form but died, it could of been too high temp. You could also get another thermometer and put inside to double check your temp to make sure it's not creeping up to 102. I like the digital ones that shows temp and humidity.

And as silkiechicken said, what breed were you hatching?

If this was your first hatch, excellent job getting 85%.

Danny D

 

[kentuckysilkies]

Hatching time is not an exact. 21 days is the average for most breeds of chickens, but you can see hatching anywhere between 18 and 24 days. Temps and humidity can play a part as well as breed.

Usually when you get an early hatch it is an indicator that you have strong, healthy chicks.

 

[mothergoose1963]

Your temp is too high. Even half of a degree can make a difference! Hope this helps,
amy

www.fancygeese.com

 

[CindyS]

did you count the day you set the eggs as day 1 if not, they hatched on time.

 

[jloftin60]

Out of all the 36 chicks that hatched, only one chick looked like a premie
and didn't make it. Everyone else is running, jumping, eating and drinking.
They are mixed breeds (mutts) between rir, br, and wlh. By doing the pencil trick, all of the black chicks with a white dot on it's head shows to be
a boy.
I had two digital thermometers/ humidity meters in the bator. Both read differently, one degree higher and one percent higher on humidity.

If you've never heard of the pencil trick, post me and I will explain.
You might think I'm stupid, but it works.

John

 

[mothergoose1963]

What is the pencil trick?? I have never heard of it.

 

[chicken_dad101]

I'm using a Hova-Bator with an auto egg turner. I kept my temp between
99.5 - 101* I had my first peep on day 19 and complete hatch on early day
20. Thirty-six out of forty-two eggs hatched. All seem to be healthy and well.
My question is, why did they hatch so early?

In my experience, my broody hen already sat on her eggs for almost a day or more. When I let er incubating the eggs, some are already developed before others, so it might explain why some hatched early than others