A Tiny Heart Beat
I have candled eggs before, but never have managed to have the right timing or angle to see what I did today. Maybe its because previously I had mainly candled brown chicken eggs and today it was a batch of bluish white Indian Runner ducks. Whatever the reason, I saw a living, beating heart no larger than the head of a pen. Although it did not promote the emotions of seeing my child’s 3D ultrasound, it promoted a sense of amazement much greater than I had before experienced. Within the womb, a human child seems so very much a part of the mother that witnessing movement is not nearly as amazing. But an egg without the mother wrapped around it is something kin to what one might expect to see in a science fiction movie. The other difference being that a 3D ultrasound is something you watch on a screen. A heart beating within an egg is right there before your eyes.
If you didn’t know what you were looking at, you would never think it had a chance at developing into a chicken. Basically, it is a series of arteries moving out from a center point (the heart). Four of these arteries are more pronounced than the others and there seems to be a spider web of much smaller conduits. Only the heart and arteries are red, the white of the egg has not yet become cloudy or thick so the egg is between transparent and translucent under a strong light. There it was, right in the center of the red web which was floating in the translucent white; a beating heart beat visible only a week or so after conception.
The only other thing I can think to say about this expense is that the Creator is evidenced by creation. I simply can not believe that something of this intricacy was just happenstance.
Are you hatching the naturally or in the incubator? I had a broody hen and stuck a few eggs under her to keep her busy, so far….6 guinea chicks and one misc. chick. 5 more eggs to go.
Too funny!
Chicken coop addition in progress…. wanted to do it in the spring, but the Hubby was too busy to help, ( bigger project than I could handle alone) and so I improvised. I was trying to add a few more feet to my current run, when he came out and said, why don’t we just add onto the barn…nowthat it is his IDEA and we are a work in progress.
Hi Berni:
Thank you for visiting. We don’t have any broody hens right now. We tried to have what we thought was a broody hen sit some, but she wasn’t really a brooder she just plays one on TV or some such thing. I think she is too moody. So for now, we are using those low cost incubators from Tractor Supply with egg turners. Have plans for something better, but time will tell.
Yep, we are also a work in progress. Only with us, it’s the husband who keeps needing the wife’s help. Still, I am muddling along and, except when hitting thumb with hammer or stepping on screw, am having the time of my life.
@Papa Attitude
I use the inexpensive incubators from TSC with the egg turners AND a digital thermometer. I need a better hydrometer! but I had great success in hatching in the smaller incubators. I could watch them more closely and loved the egg turners!
Yep, the egg turners are great. No matter how much a person thinks they will remember to turn their eggs, they will always forget a time or two. At least I do.
When we started this, my wife and neighbors thought I was crazy because I talk about things like insulating the hen house. Our first farm critters were goats. After I got done converting the garage, they called it the Goat Motel.
So anyway, now I want to build an incubator with built in video cameras. I figure it has to be a cabinet incubator so they can call it the chicken high rise.
Yep, the egg turners are great. No matter how much a person thinks they will remember to turn their eggs, they will always forget a time or two. At least I do.
When we started this, my wife and neighbors thought I was crazy because I talk about things like insulating the hen house. Our first farm critters were goats. After I got done converting the garage, they called it the Goat Motel.
So anyway, now I want to build an incubator with built in video cameras. I figure it has to be a cabinet incubator so they can call it the chicken high rise.
Are you hatching the naturally or in the incubator? I had a broody hen and stuck a few eggs under her to keep her busy, so far….6 guinea chicks and one misc. chick. 5 more eggs to go.
Too funny!
Chicken coop addition in progress…. wanted to do it in the spring, but the Hubby was too busy to help, ( bigger project than I could handle alone) and so I improvised. I was trying to add a few more feet to my current run, when he came out and said, why don’t we just add onto the barn…nowthat it is his IDEA and we are a work in progress.
I have one broody hen. A RIR who doesnt seem to eat or drink. Must be because she has hatched about three batches. I have many broody Muscovy Duck. Everyone else seems to hate sitting on eggs so they go to the incubators. I have noticed that natural hatched peeps are much, much, much healthier no matter what I do with the incubator temperature and humidity. I guess Mama’s butt knows best.