Hatch rate???

[stanell]

I have a approx 50% hatch rate on my first set is this too low??  Also (3) of the chicks have spradel leg even on DCAP cardboard.  What do I do???

[komori35]

chicks get spraddle leg from being on slippery surfaces when they're young.  if the cardboard is hard for their toes to grip (i dont know what DCAP cardboard is, if it's corrugated it's still slippery) the you should move them to wood shavings or wire with a paper towel.

50%-for a first hatch, i guess it's not TOO bad...myguess is it will get better in the future  

-komori

[JRHUNTER]

Right now I have about 115 Bobwhite hens in a 12 by 13 cage with males in there too. I have 1 male for every 2.6 females. My hatch rate is 92% and these are first year birds. My guess is that you have too few males in there, or your pen size is too big/small for your number of birds. I am going to add males to my pen so I can get my hatch rate closer to 100%, but I doubt I'll ever get it. About the spraddle legs, in my brooders, the ground is concrete and I have only had about 5-10 spraddle legs out of the last 600 chicks. I dunno if it is luck or one hell of a floor. Just though I'd let you know what has been working for me.

[Don McGowan]

are these your own eggs or were they mailed in??  my eggs give me mid 90% hatch rate and eggs i have shipped in the hatch rate is quite a bit lower.  If they are eggs from your birds it could be a humidity problem. once I goat a incubator that I had good control of the humidity the hatch rate went way up. most of my hatches now are about 200 a week. I also use DACB board for the first week and I get a few spradle leg chicks so I don't think it's the board, it's just part of the game.  Give us more information and we can try to help you out

[britguy33]

try some sawdust,or wood chips. easy to clean, and if you have a saw mill near by like me they give the stuff away.

[shagomatic]

Splayed leg is NOT caused by a slippery floor.  It is caused by one of two problems.  Either a nutritional deficiency in the egg yolk or poor genes (hereditary).  The splayed leg is actually the symptom of weak ligaments that hold the "knee" joint.  Splayed leg is almost always the right leg.  The reason for this is, during hatching the chick uses its right leg to push himself out during the final stages of hatching.  This action puts an incredible amount of stress on the leg and this is what stretches the ligaments out.  You will probably not notice the slippage immediately simply because they don't walk right away and that it progresses over the next 1 to 2 days.  There is no way a chick wieghing a fraction of an ounce could damage its leg by slipping.

[power]

delet

[Sterling-Ranch]

chum them waters power....I'll throw my hook in before long if the big 'uns come up...

[britguy33]

careful doggus he just might take the bait and run with it! LOL

[shagomatic]

I have in the past.  I don't think it's gonna stop me. :twisted:   You can only run in circles with a splayed leg!

I have been trying to get this across to people but no one wants to believe in scientific data for some reason.

[Reeves]

This is what I use. It is a rubber coated shelf linner, common in RVs. Non slip, easy to clean & sterilize. Comes in several colors.

[RedOakGamebirds]

We use the same liners for our chicks when we floor brood or have too many for the battery brooders.  Works excellent and is very easy to clean.  Sawdust wouldnt be a good idea because the chicks may eat it if theyre small enough.


Larry

[Reeves]

I too will not use sawdust/chips ! I look at it as : is it good for them to eat ? If not, I will not use it. At about 4 weeks I use good alfalfa hay, mostly chaff. (supply grit from day one) Good eats for em.

[Fivehollers]

You all probably know more than I but this is what I have noticed with this second batch of babies. The first was late to hatch and almost all of them had a really hard time staying on their feet, legs seemd not to work and they would just turn around in circles. Funny yes but the healthy birds would peck on them. The second batch, where not late in hatching in fact a little early and none of them had that problem, with the exception of one and he/she was late in hatching. I think the first batch stayed in the egg too long, maybe it was bird nutrition or just old birds laying eggs...time and more successfull hatches will tell. My .02 cents worth.