How many Eggs Can we Hatch?

When I left the story of the chicks on Friday we had one still trying to make its way out of the shell. On Saturday morning, when I went by the office for a club meeting guess what? That one had not only made it out but another one to keep it company. I quickly fixed up a new brooder box and put the two chicks in their new temporary home. When I looked in the incubator, you guessed it there was one more trying to peck its way out. So I left the office that morning to carry on about our business and when I made it back that afternoon, there was the precious little chick. So I quickly added it to the two in the brooder box. In case you are wondering that takes us up to 26 chicks. When I looked back in the incubator, there was one more, pecking away (it has never taken this long to hatch eggs...of course I staggered the entry into the incubator as part of an experiment as well). So I went home and waited a few hours and called the wonderful person who agreed to take our chicks. She met me at the office and when we got there, you guessed it one more had arrived. She took all four to her father's house who is keeping the little ones happy and fed. This time when I looked back into the incubator that was it no more pecking their way out and no more showing any signs of life. So for our first round we have had an excellent hatch rate and we are looking forward to doing this again after a week off. If you would like more information about this project, or 4-H please contact Shea Ann DeJarnette, 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent at Shea_Ann_DeJarnette@ncsu.edu or (910) 671-3276. Stay tuned for more Embryology news from 4-H.