About Ready to Pip - I've Got a Couple Questions :)

Hey Everyone,

My first clutch ever is due to pip anytime in the next few days. Since this is my first time I want to double-check everything and make sure I'm all set. I've got all the eggs in a 6 qt tub and had maintained 88.8-89.5 temps (in the tub) and 99% humidity throughout the process. I had used press and seal to keep the humidity as high as possible, and burped once a week. Now that they're due to pip I've been a little more concerned about making sure there is enough air so I've removed the press and seal. My temps are still good but my humidity is around 94% now. Is this high enough for them to stay healthy throughout the rest of the process. I plan to start burping every 1-2 days now until they pip and then switching the lid to one with holes in it to allow for a little more air flow. Since I removed the press and seal I decided to put an open water source to bring the ambient humidity in the incubator up as well. The ambient is now around 88%.

Any suggestions, thoughts, tips?

Thanks!

everything you described is fine the way you are doing it. good luck and hope the odd gods treat you well on your 1st clutch

Jim

Everything sounds fine. When mine are ready to pip and or I am going to cut, I change the substrate to damp paper towels.

That's awesome I wish you the best of luck! So is burping a common practice?

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Originally Posted by Knowell

That's awesome I wish you the best of luck! So is burping a common practice?

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Yes - the eggs need more oxygen when they get close to pipping. Plus it gives you an excuse to look at the every day. ;)

I'm using press and seal this year, this is my first year breeding and a big year at that, I've had almost 100 eggs laid this year. So far I've had 32 hatchlings come out, I'll have a bunch more hatchlings this month (July). I use the press and seal the whole time, I don't burp and leave it on even when I have hatchlings in there, no problems at all. They seem to have plenty of oxygen, I've had zero issues as far as I can tell. I've been leaving them in the incubator for 60 days then cutting open the eggs to see what I have. Then I put the cut eggs back in the container with fresh press and seal until they all come out of the egg, usually 2-3 more days.

When I put the cut eggs back in the box I add plastic grating on my vermiculite to keep the hatchlings from getting full of vermiculite, prior to that I put the eggs right on the vermiculate slightly down in the substrate, just enough to keep the eggs from rolling around. I also put some damp sphagnum moss in there when I add the grating to keep them even more humid so their first shed stays moist on their body, otherwise it seems that they dry out too much. I've been using 200 mg vermiculite and 200 mg water mixed together in a plastic 'shoe box'. I put on the press and seal and put the lid back on. I thought they would run out of air too but I've seen other breeders keep it on the whole time with no issues as well, seems to be working just fine.