Re: blotchy shells

rumblings wrote:
Jill wrote:
rumblings wrote:
Do you not believe that poor shells allow infection in and that
this kills of the chicks??
Poor shells would certainly not give a great hatch but should not
give all non-starters.
Poor shells may not be the only factor then??

You have said that the set was ALL non-starters at candling,


No I think I did have some fertile ones. They didn't reach 11 days
though.

I would expect shells that are simply weak to develop chicks that go mostly
to term, embryos stopped at 11 days is hardly started.

If you were so unhappy about the egg size, shape, condition, and shell
thickness when they arrived, then you should have returned them.
Having rested them, candled them before setting, and set them you made the
choice to accept them as fit to set and as eggs you would want to perpetuate
in your breeding stock.
The candling before would have shown the areas of shell weakness whether it
was caused by the hen or by the post office.


put alongside
with Eggbox having hatched from the same breeder on collection,
suggests summat happened between collecting eggs from nestbox and
them arriving at you.


Chirpy claims to hatch them with good results. If true this would
support what you suggest.

Weak shells + heavy eggs = invisible cracks = death of chick before
chipping ?

Before chipping possibly, but not before candling at 11 days.
And the areas of weakness were visible before setting with a candler.
The other damage that is common in posted eggs is the membrane being damaged
from the shell. Especially those parcels that go great distances, as they
can go by plane. In some circumstances they can get decompressed which
creates a bubble between membrane and shell.
The other damage is the twisting of the yolk in the egg, damaging the
structure.
All of which can create the probelms you are experiencing however good the
eggs were to start with.



They are packed in polystyrene boxes and then a single layer of bubble
wrap and then cardboard outer (ie quite a small compact package. I'd
be happier to see a very thick layer of bubble wrap to give more shock
protection. I had some duck eggs through Ebay - they were a similar
weight but had good thick shells and were wrapped in inches of cling
film - and results were 3 out of 7 (not great I know but I was happy
with that)

As I have said -- there are many routes that post takes from different
locations, this can have a serious impact on the outcome of posted eggs. A
small light box is ripe for abuse.



and Eggbox has been luckier than
you

(and most or all of the Ebay buyers)

and the postal service is the common link between them.



What about these ones??
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=46292

You have to make your own decisions, weigh up the risks, communicate with
the breeder, describe your requirements, assess the eggs on arrival,
Rest the eggs on arrival for several days, turning 3 times a day, candle
them very carefully before setting,
You are knowledgeable enough to be able to be critical.
Once you set them you have accepted them.


--

regards
Jill Bowis

Pure bred utility chickens and ducks
Housing; Equipment, Books, Videos, Gifts
Herbaceous; Herb and Alpine nursery
Working Holidays in Scotland
http://www.kintaline.co.uk


.

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