Couple more pix showing how the egg carton method works. You can see how the chick zipped around the shell and then just flipped the top back - like opening the hatch on a tank.
Then it rested a bit and hopped right out - even leaving a "hinge" on the lid.
Well, after my delayed hatch with most of them hatching during day 23, I ended up with 9 chicks total:
3/5 shipped welsummer eggs
4/15 shipped cuckoo maran eggs
2/5 of my "mutt" eggs
I opened up the leftover eggs to see what was what, and there were 3 more developed chicks that died before hatching. One welsummer, one cuckoo, and one of mine. Picture:
I'll also post individual pix of the marans and the welsummers to get opinions of their sex under "Breeds In General". Next hatch due Thursday.
I have a batch (mostly silkies) due to hatch today - my second "carton" hatch. The best part is that the clean up is quite a bit easier this way. Sure, they still make a mess, but a lot of it is in the cartons.
Congratulations Katy! I'm glad it worked great for you. I too am hatching like this from now on. I am in Spain right now on vacation and actually miscalculated my hatch. My son is at home and is going through his first hatch by himself. He is using the egg carton method and hopefully he'll get a good hatch. I am going crazy being so far away and today is day 19....... Can't wait to hear an updated status...
Again, thanks for confirming this method and congratulations!
Ive also hatched a few more using the carton; last night I hatched some blue and black orps, and I really like how it keeps things very neat and tidy. Im sold on the idea for sure.