I killed them all.

[Susan10]

Duck eggs, forced air with auto turner incubator, 99.5 degrees, 57% humidity, candled alive amd moving through last candle just before going on lockdown. Increased humidity to 65%. Skip to day 29 and 1 egg wiggled. Day 30 nothing. Day 31 candled with no movement so I opened the eggs. All had died in shell but had not absorbed the yolk, looked positioned correctly. See photo:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v394/dreamwave00/Mobile Uploads/image.jpg

I don't understand what I did.

I read this link and scrolled down to where it listed causes for "no pip, dead in shell, yolk not absorbed" and it listed several reasons.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/egg-failure-to-hatch-diagnosing-incubation-problems

"Full term embryo, did not pip, dead in shell. Eggtopsy shows yolk sac not absorbed, or only partially absorbed. May be some residual albumen (egg white).
- Inadequate turning during incubation, especially during the first week, resulting in decreased embryonic membrane development and nutrient absorption."

- Humidity too high during incubation, or after lockdown.

- Incubator temperature too low, or too high.

- Nutritional deficiencies.

- Hereditary.

- Disease in the breeder flock.

- Eggs stored too long prior to setting.

- Inadequate ventilation."

So how did I kill them? How do I keep from killing my second set that's incubating now. I don't want to kill any more.

 

[wynn4578]

Was this your first hatch attempt? What are you trying to hatch. I can't get photobucket to load.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Forced air with auto turner incubator, 99.5 degrees, 57% humidity, candled alive Nd moving through last candle just before going on lockdown. Increased humidity to 65%. Skip to day 29 and 1 egg wiggled. Day 30 nothing. Day 31 candled with no movement so I opened the eggs. All had died in shell but had not absorbed the yolk, looked positioned correctly. See photo:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v394/dreamwave00/Mobile Uploads/image.jpg

I don't understand what I did.

I read this link and scrolled down to where it listed causes for "no pip, dead in shell, yolk not absorbed" and it listed several reasons.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/egg-failure-to-hatch-diagnosing-incubation-problems

"Full term embryo, did not pip, dead in shell. Eggtopsy shows yolk sac not absorbed, or only partially absorbed. May be some residual albumen (egg white).
- Inadequate turning during incubation, especially during the first week, resulting in decreased embryonic membrane development and nutrient absorption."

- Humidity too high during incubation, or after lockdown.

- Incubator temperature too low, or too high.

- Nutritional deficiencies.

- Hereditary.

- Disease in the breeder flock.

- Eggs stored too long prior to setting.

- Inadequate ventilation."

So how did I kill them? How do I keep from killing my second set that's incubating now. I don't want to kill any more.

I would put my money on the high humidity. 57% humidity in my opinion is WAY too high. I believe in low humdity incubation and checking air cells for proper growth as detailed here: http://letsraisechickens.weebly.com...anuals-understanding-and-controlling-humidity.

First off, make sure that you have a thermometer and hygrometer that is checked for accuracy. A faulty thermometer/hygrometer will devestate your hatch...ask how I know....I relied on a BRAND NEW thermometer for my first hatch only to have my hatch compromised and to find out it was 6 degrees off...so first, check your equipment. Second, lower that humdity. I would follow the method in the link I gave you. Check the air cells and compare to the chart to see how your humidity needs to be adjusted. I prefer 30-35% for the first 17 days and then up to 75% for lockdown and hatch. That is where I would start. Good luck.

 

[Pywakyt]

Are you doing ducks? I think they take longer. So maybe try give them a couple days more chance beyond day 31?

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Ok, so the one picture that I can actually see, it appears to be a duck and a very wet one at that. So, there are people that use the low incubation method for ducks as well. You just need a different pictorial for air cells so:


Also, for ducks, most people mist at least once a day.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Are you doing ducks? I think they take longer. So maybe try give them a couple days more chance beyond day 31?

Average duck incubation is 28 days.

 

[Susan10]

I read in the Metzer Farms website that 57% humidity during incubation was proper for ducks, and everywhere else I've read says ducks need between 55-60% humidity during incubation. You would definitely say that's wrong? Should I lower the humidity in my remaining duck eggs that are due in 2 weeks?
Also I did Calibrate the thermometer and hygrometer for both incubator and hatcher... Unless the hatchets hygrometer or thermometer stopped giving. Correct reading during lockdown. I'll go recalibrate now to make sure.

 

[Orca5094]

Where did you get the eggs? Were they shipped? Are the parents possibly related? Could they have the crested gene? Were there any big temperature fluctuations at any time during incubation?

There are so many things that can cause things like this to happen, sometimes it's really hard to figure out what it was. Just my opinion, but 57% humidity isn't all that high. I run mine between 45% and 55% until lockdown when I raise it to 60-65%. Really it's up to keeping an eye on the air cells like AmyLynn said because the needed humidity can vary alot just in where you live in the world and the ambient humidity level of your area. How did your air cells look during incubation and at lock-down? Did they follow that chart up there AmyLynn posted? That is how I monitor my egg's humidity level, based on the air cell size.

 

[Susan10]

They were shipped and had saddle air cells but really not very bad. I've hatched shipped quail, chicken, and duck before in a crappy Bator with no fan, temp and humidity fluctuations, turned by hand, and had better hatches than this. This time I was meticulous and did everything so carefully to a T and had them all die in lockdown. Makes no sense and I feel horrible. I'm worried my other eggs are Ll going to due in lockdown too.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I read in the Metzer Farms website that 57% humidity during incubation was proper for ducks, and everywhere else I've read says ducks need between 55-60% humidity during incubation. You would definitely say that's wrong? Should I lower the humidity in my remaining duck eggs that are due in 2 weeks?
Also I did Calibrate the thermometer and hygrometer for both incubator and hatcher... Unless the hatchets hygrometer or thermometer stopped giving. Correct reading during lockdown. I'll go recalibrate now to make sure.

Lots of places quote 50%+ for chicken eggs as well and that's just too high. Some people get lucky and do hatch out at higher perecentages but a lot have compromised hatches too. If you look at the pic in your link, there seems to be a lot of excess moisture still in the egg. I believe if something is not working you try another. I would compare your air cells to the air cell chart for the duck eggs and if they seem on target then look at a different possibility and leave the humidity levels where they are at. Like I said, I do know that some people use the dry method for duck eggs though it was originally geared toward chicks, but if your air cells look like they are progressing fine, then maybe it's not that.

Overall, something is causing the deaths, so if your temps are good, I would try to eliminate possibilities by changing one thing at a time so you know what it was and are only fixing that.