Incubators Anonymous

[Jessimom]

@Jessimom they look like boys to me but I don't have a while lot of experience with polish.

My incubators are officially empty and shut down. No more hatches for a while now.

WOW, officially empty and shut down.....I said that for ALMOST a year, then I got sucked in to hatch after hatch. I have 2 surviving babies from the last hatch (heat was brutal), and these Polish. I hatched 21 polish, I've sold 6, so I have a bunch left. WAY too many have spiky feathers, but on the frizzled, it's hard to tell.

 

[WVduckchick]

I haven’t incubated anything for months! I’ve been letting my girls handle it. But I think I’m going to set a few silver duckwing OEGB eggs in the morning. I was surprised that the girls only went broody once, and a few raised the chicks together and were done. They are laying decently now, and I have the eggs, so....

 

[Faraday40]

I have a very, very early broody. She's been in the pre-broody stage (laying but taking 1/2 the day & grumbling at me) for 2 days. I think she went all out broody yesterday after laying her egg - slept in the nest last night & her grumbling turned into screams.

Anyway, I have chicks hatching now. Has anyone ever grafted chicks to a broody so early? I'd prefer to use a broody hen instead of a brooder. The hen was a great mom her 1st time back in May, so it's more a question of getting her hormones to make the switch from sitting to mothering. I slipped 2 eggs under her last night & one is hatched now. She seems OK so far with it. If she mothers those chicks, I know I won't have a problem slipping the others under her.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

I have a very, very early broody. She's been in the pre-broody stage (laying but taking 1/2 the day & grumbling at me) for 2 days. I think she went all out broody yesterday after laying her egg - slept in the nest last night & her grumbling turned into screams.

Anyway, I have chicks hatching now. Has anyone ever grafted chicks to a broody so early? I'd prefer to use a broody hen instead of a brooder. The hen was a great mom her 1st time back in May, so it's more a question of getting her hormones to make the switch from sitting to mothering. I slipped 2 eggs under her last night & one is hatched now. She seems OK so far with it. If she mothers those chicks, I know I won't have a problem slipping the others under her.

It depends on the hen. Most need a certain amount of time on the nest first but some are ready to jump in to action. All you can do is try and see how it goes.

 

[Flowerbh]

Question. Has anybody got a good idea on how to separate eggs in the incubator so that I can hatch eggs from two separate friends at the same time?

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Question. Has anybody got a good idea on how to separate eggs in the incubator so that I can hatch eggs from two separate friends at the same time?

Will they be hatching at the same time or will it be a staggered hatch? If they're hatching at the same time, cheap little mesh laundry bags work well for hatching in. You just separate them into separate bags to hatch and it will keep them from getting mixed up.

 

[WVduckchick]

Question. Has anybody got a good idea on how to separate eggs in the incubator so that I can hatch eggs from two separate friends at the same time?

What kind of incubator?
You can lock down in small plastic baskets from the dollar store, or make some dividers out of the plastic craft canvas, or I’ve seen folks use the mesh bags like for laundry, but never tried it. You incubator may dictate what you will have to come up with.

 

[Flowerbh]

What kind of incubator?
You can lock down in small plastic baskets from the dollar store, or make some dividers out of the plastic craft canvas, or I’ve seen folks use the mesh bags like for laundry, but never tried it. You incubator may dictate what you will have to come up with.

I think I will try that! I do have two incubators. Could just run the one and then separate the eggs at lockdown. Hummm, that sounds like a plan! OHhh, I'm so excited now that thats all worked out! So, filling up the incubator with eggs tomorrow!

Oh, and thanks!

 

[WVduckchick]

So I set 12 (or 14?) silver duckwing OEGB eggs on Monday in my little Brinsea Mini. Every single one is fertile and growing.

 

[Flowerbh]

Will they be hatching at the same time or will it be a staggered hatch? If they're hatching at the same time, cheap little mesh laundry bags work well for hatching in. You just separate them into separate bags to hatch and it will keep them from getting mixed up.

Don't they get tangled in the mesh?