Colorado

[trsturself]

Post some pics of them and lets see what they look like. Maybe we can help determine sex.

 

[BlueJaye]

I am putting Silkie eggs into the hatcher tomorrow evening that, if they survived the temp issue I had with my incubator, are due to hatch this weekend. Hopefully I resolved in time to save at least some of them. If not, maybe the following weekend - I set every Saturday, and I also set eggs to hatch on New Year's Day, so if I have my temp problem fixed in my incubators I should have chicks every weekend. The ones due New Year's Day and the following Saturday were set in a new Brinsea which I bought because of its reputation for being a more reliable incubator. Had I known a year ago what I know now, I would have just saved a few more months and bought a Sportsman cabinet incubator to begin with. Saving for it now. I have hatched many chicks in the styrofoam incubators I have, but should have hatched many more.

I'm looking for one or two for a Christmas present to my mom. Her flock got wiped out by a hawk, so for Christmas I am predatorproofing it (which she really needs to love me a lot for during the middle of the winter haha) and getting her a new silkie baby (she has two other mutt-chicken chicks).

 

[suncatcher]

We got 3 Cream Legbar eggs yesterday! Must have helped with the warm weather, and now of course it's going to get cold again.
The eggs are pretty small so far, especially compared to sex-link eggs.

Congrats! First eggs are always special!!

 

[suncatcher]

Looking forward to hearing if you like your Brinsea when you get it. I am hoping to be able to invest in either a Brinsea or Genesis this coming spring.

 

[ScottLovelandCO]

When are you planning on ordering them? We would be interested in more runners as well, but are evacuated due to flooding for the time being so our farmette is scattered all around CO. You can PM me if you'd like.

I'm not sure when I'll place the order. The website I was looking at will have them available as early as February 10th. Just in time for a Valentine's present. But I was also researching when to raise them. I read an article that if you hatch and raise them outside of their natural time of year then they can start laying too early. Something about 14 hours of daylight signaling time to start laying. If I got them at a day old on February 10th they would be exposed to 14 hours of sunlight starting May 4th. So they would only be about 12 weeks old. I'm not saying that they will start laying that early but it will push their bodies to mature too quickly. Does this make sense to anyone? I should really find that article again.

 

[Pozees]

Ashdoes - Congratulations on the Cream Legbar eggs!!! That is so exciting! As far as sexing SIlkies, they are so blasted tricky. I have seen a range of advice, one was that the crest will start showing "streamers" when they are males, you probably saw that one too, and it works sometimes but not always, I thought the little blue male you have was a pullet for the longest time. Combs in males should start developing about now, too. Best indicator I've ever had is, chicks that peck at my fingers are almost always males.

Suncatcher, I set eggs in the Brinsea (Eco 40 with turner, bought from the scratch and dent list, my Christmas gift to myself) on the 11th, they'll move to the hatcher (Genesis 1588) on the 30th, due to hatch the 1st. I also put more eggs in on Saturday the 14th that will be due the 4th. I will say, once it reached temp and stabilized, it has not budged anytime I've checked the temp, so my fingers are crossed I get better hatch rates with it. I also added a humidifier to the room the incubators and hatcher are in, hoping it helps.

I've read a lot about hatching at elevation recently, and even when you do everything right it has its challenges, but theoretically, eggs laid at this elevation should have a better hatch rate. So far that hasn't been the case, but like I said, I had temp problems in the incubators and hatcher, and bought a Brinsea Spot Check to try and get temps closer to 99.5. I overheated the eggs, last week's hatch was zero, they were set two weeks before the temp problem was discovered so it was really too late for them. Time will tell if the problem is fixed, or can be fixed, in the two styrofoam incubators.

I also had one of my black Silkie hens go broody on the 14th so she has six eggs, and she's a pro, if the eggs are good, she will hatch them.

 

[Ashdoes]

I'm looking for streamers, and that did work with my first silkies, but it's hard with these super fluffy ones.
I'd do the pictures, but I need to mark them first, so I know who is who.
Pozees...where is this "scratch and dent list"? I'm still trying to pick an incubator, but only want one.

Anyone hear about the cuts to the Air Force? Huge cuts, with no real rhyme or reason given yet, we're basically at their mercy and just waiting. 15 deployments totaling five years, and this is the thanks my husband gets. I'm so upset about all of it, and just can't believe they think this is ok.

 

[Pozees]

If you go to www.brinsea.com and click on web specials, I think it is, if not I'll look when I get home and send you the link.

I had not heard about the AF cuts, wow, I'll be keeping you both in my thoughts as you wait to hear what is on the horizon. Was this part of the budget deal they just signed? If so, how odd it never got any press.

 

[suncatcher]

Don't think I have ever seen one bad review on Brinsea, they make a really nice incubator! Thanks for the link.

Hope your husbands job is not part of these Air Force cuts. People don't realize this will have an impact on every city that has Air Force bases as part of their economy.

 

[my57facets]

Hello all. I don't have anything to add here, just joined and looking into learning what I can. I live in Fort Collins and an hoping to meet people in this area to talk about everything. Anyone willing just send me a message.

Thanks, Cheryl ~