Colorado

[corancher]

I have donated eggs a few times for schools of which some were shipped and some local. I was asked on the local schools if I wanted the chicks after hatch or if they could sell them to make money for the class.

I haven't done any donation in a couple of years as I had a teacher contact me to donate eggs three years ago. She only wanted purebreed eggs from my costly English Orpingtons because she was going to take the chicks home after hatch and that was the type of birds she wanted.

 

[Ashdoes]

I have donated eggs a few times for schools of which some were shipped and some local.  I was asked on the local schools if I wanted the chicks after hatch or if they could sell them to make money for the class.

I haven't done any donation in a couple of years as I had a teacher contact me to donate eggs three years ago.  She only wanted purebreed eggs from my costly English Orpingtons because she was going to take the chicks home after hatch and that was the type of birds she wanted.  

Lol. That's actually a great attempt at costly chickens, use your soft spot for kids. The funny thing, I always feel the cost of eggs isn't the expensive part of hatching, but the electricity to run the bator...which she wouldn't have had to pay, hatching at the school would have been free. People never surprise me.

 

[trsturself]

If anyone has or knows anyone who has Welsh Harlequin ducks I'd love to know My family and I have been searching for some for a while and have had no luck. Any help is greatly appreciated!

That's the kind of ducks I want too. I'm trying to figure out a way to give them space in my garden that doesn't give them full-time access to the garden but gives them and my garden enough room. DH has a great idea for the house and water, now I just need to figure out a way to fence that part off without totally screwing up my garden design, lol

 

[barberfamducks]

They're beautiful birds! Only downside to them is they're difficult to find

I would order some online but most place's minimums are a lot more than we can take in at the moment so I'm forced to find them locally. We ordered some about two years ago from a feed supply store and it turned out they were not Welsh Harlequins but Buff Orpingtons

 

[Double Kindness]

Well my first hatch was a fail

I put 2 more easter eggers eggs from the janoel 47 into the hovabator. We culled 14 eggs today, most were from the white bresse shipped hatching eggs that had been in the incubator 10 days today.

I'm so sad. Well, here's to hoping these 2 eggs hatch. I filled up the 4 channels in the incubator, plus have a bowl with paper towels/water in the incubator. I am looking for the humidifier to put in the room with them.

Is it too early in the day to begin drinking?

 

[suncatcher]

What was your humidity during hatch? It looks like they were really close to pipping. Were the yolks absorbed? Hard to say what went wrong????? At least you know your fertility is good!

eta Are you doing a staggered hatch all in on incubator? I have never had much success doing that.

 

[Double Kindness]

I have staggered hatching going on, but between 2 incubators. It doesn't look like it pipped, it looks like they quit.

 

[Ashdoes]

I have staggered hatching going on, but between 2 incubators. It doesn't look like it pipped, it looks like they quit.

We had the exact problem, over and over, with our Cream Legbar eggs. They would make it all the way to hatch day, and just quit, never even tried to pip. It was upsetting, and endlessly frustrating. I honestly don't know the cause of that. Try try again...you'll have better luck.

 

[COChix]

]

I had a teacher contact me on some hatching eggs last year, but she never followed through with picking them up.  They usually keep what the class hatch;s, at least that is my understanding.

Dark in the eggs at candling is good, they may just be late bloomers!!!  I would listen tonight for peeping after everyone as gone to bed so you can hear the chicks.......  Some also run a humidifier in the room where the incubator is, this will help with humidity too.  It takes several hatch's to get it right, and yes, is a learning experince, not everyone knows how to hatch their first time!!!!  Humidity is different in every state, and even in every home it will not be the same.  I have found that wood stoves for heat make the house VERY dry!!

Great, thanks for the feedback. I have asked what happens to the chiks after hatch. Also what their success rate was last year. One thing from another thread someone said the school was. Or prepared and didn't reqlize they would need to take the incubators home on nights and weekends as most don't the building.

I have donated eggs a few times for schools of which some were shipped and some local.  I was asked on the local schools if I wanted the chicks after hatch or if they could sell them to make money for the class.

I haven't done any donation in a couple of years as I had a teacher contact me to donate eggs three years ago.  She only wanted purebreed eggs from my costly English Orpingtons because she was going to take the chicks home after hatch and that was the type of birds she wanted.  

Ok thanks, sounds a little sketchy to me.

Well my first hatch was a fail

I put 2 more easter eggers eggs from the janoel 47 into the hovabator. We culled 14 eggs today, most were from the white bresse shipped hatching eggs that had been in the incubator 10 days today.

I'm so sad. Well, here's to hoping these 2 eggs hatch. I filled up the 4 channels in the incubator, plus have a bowl with paper towels/water in the incubator. I am looking for the humidifier to put in the room with them.

Is it too early in the day to begin drinking?

Oh DK, so sorry about the chicks. Hoping others hatch for you.

 

[Euarto Gullible]

DoubleKindness, I'm sorry to hear about your hatch. Hatching shipped eggs is a crapshoot here in Colorado, especially in the winter and the summer when temperature extremes have the possibility of ruining viability. If you're wanting more Bresse, I'd be happy to sell you some, or exchange hatching eggs for improved genetic diversity. My hatches from my own birds are good, though I do think my chicks are slightly inbred. Maybe 20% chicks have either deformities (I cull them) or are small and never start eating, but my hatch rate is very good, and the remaining chicks are vigorous though they're dumber than dirt. I lost 2 during the cold snap when the heater in my garage went out, but so far I've hatched and raised 15 that are outside with my adult 5. Only 6 of them are pullets, and one of the pullets was attacked by some predator. Her neck was bare of feathers and bloody, but I sprayed her with Blue Kote and she's seems to be recovering fine. I will be butchering the Bresse cockerels when they are big enough. I'm probably not going to caponize the fall hatched cockerels, as I've put wayyyyy too much work into keeping them alive through the winter. Bresse are not particularly cold hardy compared to the other breeds I have. I don't know when my hens are going to start back up. I get a stray egg from them here and there, and put them all in the incubator. Here's some of my Bresse chicks that I hatched.