Incubator Update: Day 14

Two weeks down, 1 week to go! These little babies have done a lot of growing over the past week.  

Here is what has been happening inside the shell this week:

Eighth day - beginning of feathers

Tenth day - beginning of hardening of beak

Thirteenth day - appearance of scales and claws

Fourteenth day - embryo gets into position suitable for breaking shell

(source: here)

I've been sneaking peeks inside the egg using a process called candling. I use a high power flashlight to shine a light through the shell to try to see what is going on inside the egg.  All 9 eggs appear to be developing on schedule. They all have a clearly defined air cell and we can actually see the little embryos swimming around inside the egg. AMAZING!!! I tried to capture photo and video of our egg candling process but I had difficulty capturing a worthy shot. So, here is a photo of an incubated egg at day 14 from http://keeping-chickens.me.uk/

Source here

I have been diligently turning the eggs several times per day, just like a mother hen would while sitting on her nest. In 4 days the eggs will go into what is called 'lockdown'.  I will stop turning them and raise the humidity levels by filling both of the water wells in the incubator. And then we will wait to see them emerge from their shells. I cant wait to see them! With our previous hatch of the Black Copper Marans, I already knew what the chicks would look like as far as their coloring. But these babies, being a mixed breed, could be a number of different colors and have differing features. 

Here are some photos of the parent stock over at Eight Acres Farm:

When will they hatch? Who will hatch first? What will they look like? Only time will tell. I hope that you will follow along to find out. I will be posting hatch updates on my Colored Egg Homestead Facebook Page once the eggs start rockin' and rollin'.  

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