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Originally Posted by
La Casa de Pollo 
Sphinx--those are Blue Orps. The ones there are awfully dark---but she said 100 Perc blue so we will see. The shades on them all vary from light almost like our lavs looked to dark like those.
I have one Marans egg pipped. That one has the last live chick. I went in the rest---all yucky. Not even fully developed, I think some bacterial stuff going on. Don't know what happened there! One was a little closer....but goop like Cynthia was talking about. Can't decide if I should up the humid. or lower. These big giant eggs are just still so full of fluid.....but I dry incubated them (stayed at 10% in the forced air with no water at all and kept the humid at 60 perc just to be safe, and still soooo wet in there. Any ideas guys? I have heard big eggs are tough. These were all so big--even the orps. I had a couple orps super wet too. Most of the chicks were a lot wetter and had a tougher time than my other two batches. So another question---I read somewhere to keep eggs from separate breeders separate when you incubate them to prevent cross infection. I have been putting them together. What do you guys think? Has anyone noticed a problem with that? So many questions
This batch did so/so---7 of ten in lockdown made it( if the Marans finishes ok). I am keeping the wheatens-I got two---and if the Marans makes it out ok I will keep it, then grow them out and hope there is a hen in there. Wishing I would have gotten more marans and Wheatens
quite a few of those did not make it to lockdown, don't know if it was shipping trauma or what, they just never developed. I had 16 eggs to start. I did not even get half
I might try one more time and drive over there to Paul, ID to pick up eggs....actually maybe just started pullets, she said she had a bunch still. That would be sooo much easier eh?
See, this is what I'm talking about. I don't use high humidity either. I am really beginning to wonder about shipping itself. Have you ever candled, and saw a lot of water at the top. I usually chuck those..I candle the next day I get my eggs. I can see the bulls-eye in a lot of them that are fertile just 24 hrs after setting the eggs, don't always see all of them. Sometimes I see a lot of fluid floating at the top, those I get rid of. Eggs going from cold to warmer during shipping. Wouldn't be surprised, if this is the biggest problem with the goopy stuff..and wet chicks. Even if it's just cooler to warmer. If they sit in bubble wrap, they can sweat. I have found, that the people that wrap their eggs in paper towels, and are sitting in a carton, then have a lot of newspaper around that, seem to do the best. I hardly ever see the floating water. When I candle and do see the water on top,.it doesn't necessarily mean I am seeing what's going on inside the whole egg..all around the inside. Folks keep saying it's because of high humidity during incubation..well, if I'm doing what is considered a dry hatch..high 30's to low 40's, how is that possible then?
Oh, and on separating the eggs from different breeders..I had this last hatch in with two different breeders. I wish all of my chicks would just pop out like popcorn like these did. I had popcorn chicks popping out as fast as they could once they pipped. Now that's how I like to see a hatch go. I didn't even candle before I put them in, because like I said earlier, they were too dark when I candled the last time, so I didn't bother. And sure enough, there were three that had quite pretty late. I actually had these in a turner. I put them in on their sides about 5 days before lock down. They did great.
Oh, I guess pictures should happen sometime today. They are cute and fluffy now. I got 9 babies.. one didn't make it last night. The one I helped out..and yes..that was one that was wet..the only one! Who knows? We are doing something other than what mother nature is used to. I think after hatching all these years, hearing all the different ways people do the hatching themselves, and hearing about this and that, and the guessing of why it probably happened, I am just going to keep doing this the same way I always have. I have more often than not..good hatches. I have come to know, when it's time to go in and check to see if the hatch needs help. Some may disagree with that..no..lol..lots of people disagree with any kind of helping. But guess who most of those folks are? The ones that are hatching 150 eggs at once. Most of the time. :p Anyway, you will see what works for you in the long run..another factor, everyone's environment is different where the incubator is..something I totally agree on when they say that matters. So you do what's best, for your incubator, and for your increment. Ok, done with the lesson for this hr..let's move on. 
Your Wheatens are darling!! I love them! I'm thinking those that are black with some blue, will be black. Just guessin. 
They are cute though!
Are you going to keep a couple of wheatens? Were the eggs quite blue? The ones I got a while back weren't, so I sold the only wheaten that hatched out of the bunch of different Ameruacanas I got.
Why is it cold again? MY heat just tuned on.
Oh my goodness. I didn't tell you what happened yesterday. I was standing out back with my pup..trying to potty train..and I was looking at my flock..of course, when all of a sudden, two of them just duck! They had their little heads cocks sideways looking up. So I look up. Just in time to see a huge hawk fly right over from my apple tree to the small coop. I think when I turned my head, it scared it, because it turned, and went up and just barley made it over the neighbors house top. That thing was after my smallest pullet. If I hadn't been out there, I would have been missing a bird. I couldn't believe it. I think they will go after little dogs too. I considered leaving them in the run all day, but they are so good at begging. They are out. Scott said he saw the hawk down the street circling. I don't know...hope they stay under the apple trees today. I would be so mad if it got one. I love the birds I have right now..that I am in waiting for...to lay. :)
Goodness...later!
