Miracle in the Incubator: How 7 Chicks Emerged from Just 12 Eggs Against All Odds!
Well, that hatching seemed to be the starting gun for the rest of the chicks. When I got home, five more had little holes poked out of them. Another one emerged from his shell at around 9:00 p.m.
Earlier, we had placed the first baby chick in a tote we had already pre-set in our spare bedroom, complete with chick food and water, a heat lamp, and a humidifier sitting just outside of the tote. Once the newest bird was dry and fluffy in the incubator, we placed it in the brooder as well. The book I bought says that the brooder box needs to be the same temperature as the incubator for the first 24 hours or so that the chicks are in it. Have you ever tried to maintain exactly 100 degrees in a tote using a heat lamp? I spent most of that night in that bedroom waking up, checking the miniature thermometers I’d placed in the tote every half hour or so, and adjusting the height of the heat lamp. (I’d hung it from one of the microphone stands we use to record our podcast.) I lasted until about 4:00 a.m. in that room. The AC vents were closed and it was very warm in there.