The Official Forum of the Ameraucana Breeders Club > Housing, Health & Hatching
IDEAL humidity for lockdown
dixieland:
I have read and heard so many different theories on this topic...Some say 60-70%, others say nothing above 30%.....
It seems like my Cochins will hatch out no matter what the lock down humidity is...... They usually average a 95-100% hatch....
I have just done my first Ameraucana hatch.....3 eggs that were all alive and viable went into lock down, only one hatched. At day 27, a necropsy (performed in my kitchen with my vet running the show) showed 2 fully formed chicks that never pipped. Humidity was maintained at about 60- 65% during lock down. Temperature was between 99.5 and 99.9.
Can someone shed some light on where I went wrong and what I can do to improve my hatch rate in the future??
Mike Gilbert:
I don\'t even use a humidity indicator ( is that called a hygrometer?), but I don\'t believe Ameraucanas need much extra humidity. They are distantly related to Araucanas; I used to raise them too and they are the same way - a lot of them drown in the shell. Keep trying until you see what works, but I would say don\'t over do it on the humidity with Ameraucanas. More important, however, is breeder health and diet. If you have vigorous breeders who have been on a proper breeder diet for at least a month, their eggs should hatch very well. Inbreeding depression is another issue that can dramatically lower hatchability.
faith valley:
Using a feed that has animal protein verses straight plant protein will also help in hatchability. We use a Hubbard game bird breeder pellet during hatching season.
John:
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I\'ve never heard of \"lock down\" associated with hatching, but think I\'ve figured out that means during the time from pipping to hatching from the context. I think Michael (not Mike) has had good results with dry hatches, but I haven\'t experimented with that at all.
Here are some of the numbers I shoot for.
In the egg storage room I try to keep the temperature around 55 to 60 degrees with as much humidity as possible...the goal is 75% on the hygrometer.
I try to keep the keep the temperature in the hatchery between 75 and 80 degrees with lots of humidity...50% or so. The room temp is much easier to regulate than the humidity. I use many water pans to increase the room humidity, but the outside weather affects it a lot.
In the setters I would like 57% humidity, but early in the hatching season it may only be 45 to 48%.
In the hatchers I aim for 75%, but there again I may settle for 66% when snow is on the ground.
Higher humidity in the rooms and incubators is much easier obtain after the spring rains come.
dixieland:
Thank you so much!!!
@ Patty- We have our first delivery from Hubbard on Tuesday. I am excited to hear that someone else is using it with great results. The sales rep encouraged me to get the game bird breeder pellets, so I got 3 bags to try.......
These eggs were not from my own flock. They traveled home from Indy with me, so temperature variables might be part of the issue..
Thank you for your encouragement and support!!! What a blessing it is to be associated with such a great group of people.
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