Hatching percentages

[Guest]

Discussing breeds with someone this weekend, they mentioned they had been told that Ameraucanas have a low, 40%!, hatchability. Of course I doubt this but it did bring to mind if , as a breed, we have hatchibilty statistics?

[Blue Egg Acres]

Looking back at random through last year\'s records, I show 30%, 58%, 75% 86% and 100%

[John]

I gave up on figuring hatchability percentages years ago.
I do a few things to help with fertility, such as trimming the feathers around the vents on all breeders and start them on a game bird breeder pellet feed a month before collecting eggs for incubating.
Because the hatchability can vary between the different breeds, varieties and strains of Ameraucanas I think using one percentage figure can be misleading.
I do know that the silver bantams are hatching great so far this year.  I had 28 hatch out of 29 eggs last week.  The last one didn\'t pip and may have not been fertile since I don\'t bother removing unfertile eggs.

[Guest]

I\'ve got 24 RIR (mating by Ameraucana rooster -- so the results of these are Easter Eggers) eggs in there and 22 pure-bred Ameraucana (Silver and Wheaten). The RIRs are 100% fertile. I pulled 3 infertile Ameraucana eggs out of the incubator on Day 8. I had changed the egg turner and three would not fit any more. There are another 5 I know to be infertile, but left them there for now to keep things even in the incubator. I\'ll pull them after the day 16 candling which is this Saturday.

14/22 = 63.64% Ameraucana fertile so far.

Now...consider: 4 of the Ameraucana eggs I had in the refrigerator. I put them just because. I could not reasonably expect those to hatch...I put them in just to fill out the incubator. So...let\'s work with:

14/18 = 77.77% Ameraucana fertile so far.

Now...my flock was a little different. I had two roosters and 7 hens, 3 of which are Ameraucanas. This might account for the high fertility rate -- so far -- remember I\'m only on day 12 now -- anything can happen -- but these are good numbers to start with.

Considering that the eggs were in the nest boxes at temps barely above freezing, these numbers are fantastic. If all goes according to plan, I should have 38 birds when this is done.

For those of you wondering why I\'m hatching RIR/Ameraucana crosses, I had to give up my roosters, so I decided to hatch everything I could get my hands on. Whoever gets the mongrels will know what they are.

[Guest]

Barbara, did your percentages go up as the year (warmth) progressed, with different roosters/pens, or were they random?
John, have you found a difference in hatchability in breed/colors? Could you guess to rate them best to worst (understanding this is not exact and will vary greatly depending on strain, enviroment, and nutrition).

[Mike Gilbert]

My experience in breeding Ameraucanas (or any other kind of chicken) is that the more inbred they become the lower the hatchability becomes.   I don\'t think it has anything to do with which color variety, though weather conditions can have an influence.    For example, when I have hatched eggs that have experienced very low temperatures but still managed somehow to hatch, mutations can and do occur.   One year I hatched three bantam albino chicks out of purebred wheaten Ameraucanas.   Their eyes glowed red.   I think they were blind, because they didn\'t eat and did not live long.  So much for evolution.    The lesson in all this is that different lines of each variety must be maintained or eventually the one line will be lost because they will become too inbred.   Been there and done that - several times.   One way to get around this problem is outlined in my article in the Breeders Handbook.   The easiest way, of course, is to network with other breeders, being careful not to exchange stock with them too often.      I work with my neighbor, Bob Walchak, in this manner and also with John Blehm.   This year I hope to be getting some chicks from Michael Muenks to invigorate my line of brown red bantams.     For those of you who may wonder why I am writing this in mid-day, I\'m home from work with the flu.   It\'s my second day off since mid-January.     I don\'t think my virus will affect your computer.    Best to all.

[Guest]

Here\'s an update -- yesterday was Day 16, so I candled the batch.

Of the Ameraucanas, the 5 infertiles that I had left in the incubator from Day 8 were pulled (remember that I had put 4 in from the fridge just to fill out the incubator). So, out of 22 Ameraucanas, 8 are gone.

I found three more that looked like a dark mass in the shell followed by whitish suspension and a red ring. This is not good -- I suspect these are dead germs. If anyone here can can confirm that, I\'d appreciate it. I\'d like to know by tonight or tomorrow morning, because if they are dead germs, they need to be pulled before I pull the turner and begin the final three days. I found 4 RIR eggs in a similar state. I\'ve relocated all these eggs to the left-most tray, so I can easily differentiate them from the rest, without having to-recandle the who batch.

If these 7 eggs are dead germs, my numbers will so far be:

Ameraucanas 11/22 = 50% or 11/18 = 61% (disregarding the four from the fridge).

RIR 20/24 = 83.3%

Thanks.

--Ron

[bantamhill]

You are correct, the blood ring means dead chick.

Depending on the pen my fertility is running from 100% to 30%. Pens headed by cockerels for the most part are doing much better. If you have the room try removing the cocks/cockerels for a few days and then return them . . . that sometimes will help. It has been dark/cloudy/cold here for a week so I suspect fertility will be taking a dive!

Michael

[Guest]

Well...I had to give up my roosters. They\'re illegal where I live and I got cold-busted. :-( . Such is life. Anyway, I just got finished removing the egg turner and setting the eggs back in the incubator, which I flooded the moisture rings to maximize humidity and put a humidifier in the room as well. I don\'t have a separate hatcher, so this incubator is doing it all.

The dead germs are gone. There were four Ameraucana dead germs and 3 RIRs. My roosters loved jumping the RIRs like there was no tomorrow. While the Ameraucanas had some feather damage from mating, it paled in comparison to the feathers of one of my RIR hens. That might account for the very high fertilitiy rate of the RIR eggs. I also suspect that RIRs are much stronger birds than Ameraucanas -- in terms of tolerating lousy conditions. I could be wrong, but it\'s just a hunch. I enjoy Ameraucanas for their beauty and unusualness -- the RIRs for the breakfast eggs -- but they\'re all characters. :-)

Anyway, now I just have to wait till 3/23 and see what happens. I imagine the action might start 6 hours early at 4 PM, or it may start right on time at 10. My brooder box is nearly ready. The incubator will not opened again at all, unless the humidity drops to an unacceptable level. It\'s been holding 99.5 rock solid.

[Guest]

One thing I used to do to add water when using a styrofoam incubator is to take some slender aquairum tubing and a large bore syringe. Suck some clean water (distilled or filtered) into the syringe. Wiggle the tubing through the small vent hole on the top of the incubator so that the end is in the water channel. Attach the syringe to the tubing, and gently add water to the channel(s) until you have what you’re looking for. This allows you to add water without removing the lid. Be sure your incubator is sitting on top of something waterproof, those smaller ones tend to leak.

And I will say again, DO NOT REMOVE THE LID until all chicks appear to have hatched, especially if one is pipped. Doing so will cause the interior of the pipped chick’s egg to dry out and lock it in the shell, preventing it from hatching. Very distressing…

[Guest]

Laura,

Thank you!!!! Funny, I was thinking of getting a funnel for that purpose.....I have one vent hole which has a clean shot down with no eggs near it. I\'ll keep that incubator sealed! I promise!

--Ron