Keeping track of eggs

[Hooligan Farm]

So now that I'm not distracted I realize that for the past week I just grab the eggs out the pens and didn't keep track of which pen they came from

Which forced me to think deeper into how I'm running things. I only have the one incubator and I have collected roughly 50 eggs or so in the past week (which I find amazing in itself since the Rookie started with 4 hens and 11 roos a few months ago). Since I only have 1 incubator, to keep better track of family trees per say should I just pick pen to pull from for hatching or should I just go for broke and hatch them all and see what I end up with?

 

[shelleyd2008]

I just mix them all together and hatch them all, but you could get different colored markers and hang those on the pens so when you pull eggs you can mark them right away

 

[Hooligan Farm]

Quote:
True but if I put them all in at the same time how do I keep track of who came from who? Or am I just making this to difficult for myself?

 

[SandraMort]

THIS is why I want all one kind of bird. I can't take the time to keep track.

 

[shelleyd2008]

You can make a divider for your hatcher or just let them mix. Most of us keep them in colonies so the chances of them being closely related is pretty small anyway.

ETA: Or you could just set different pens on different days...like 2-3 days apart? If you have 2 incubators this would be very doable. Setting 3 days apart would ensure that all of batch A would be hatched before batch B would be ready to go.

 

[Hooligan Farm]

Quote:
All are the same type of bird but just want ti minimize the amount of "kissing cousins" per say.

ETA: Or you could just set different pens on different days...like 2-3 days apart? If you have 2 incubators this would be very doable. Setting 3 days apart would ensure that all of batch A would be hatched before batch B would be ready to go.

I do need to get a second incubator.

 

[SandraMort]

Is this really necessary? I was under the impression that the only reason to track lines was if you were breeding for specific traits, such as color or size.

Sandra

Quote:
All are the same type of bird but just want ti minimize the amount of "kissing cousins" per say.

 

[shelleyd2008]

It's not really necessary. Like I said, the chances of them being so closely related as to cause problems is very small. I just add new blood to my pens once a year or so to mix things up...but I rarely keep any hatched from my own eggs anyway.

 

[RiverOtter]

Ok, go to Wally World. Go to housewares and next to the drainboards will be little plastic baskets in stacks of 2 and 3. Technically they are for organizing cutlery and little kitchen doodads but they are just right for separating eggs in an incubator.

Less then a dollar fifty and problem solved

 

[JJMR794]

Hooligan They Sell Sharpie Markers Up There? If So Go Get A Few... Now Take The Sharpie And Mark A Letter/ Number/ Or Symbol Above Every Pen's Door... Once Thats Done Throw The Sharpie Marker In Your Egg Basket And Leave It There... When You Collect Eggs They Get Marked With A Corresponding Letter/ Number/ Symbol As To Which Pen They Came From As You Are Collecting Them... Then However You Seperate In Incubation Is Up To You... Shelleys Idea Of Staggered Hatching For Different Pens Will Be Easiest For You With That Brinsea... Cause The Basket Thing? Um Yeah Aint Gonna Help You With An Octagon 20.... (good Idea Tho, Just Not In This Case

) Once Hatched They Are Easily Tagged With Zip Ties