And just because we can never see too many babies,,,Another picture. Which I really needed to fix so we could see them,,,
September Hatch-A-Long
- Thread starter ChickyChickens
- Start date
CONGRATULATIONS!
I so love a happy ending!
I guess at the end of the day we have to give Ethel credit. She obviously knew what she was doing, and as it turned out she had the intention to bring them all back home to you. Poor little things, that sounds like an awfully long walk for such little legs!
I am so glad things worked out for you. I have only had chickens for five or so months, and my first batch of chicks only resulted in one live hatch - "Peepers." This whole Broody Hen business, no matter how natural it is, seems to be filled with stress - for US! I am hoping for a better result from Broody #2, and will think of Ethel when things get hard - she gives me hope.
Congratulations once again - I am so pleased for you and Ethel. Funny, the first thing I thought of when I woke up today was "How is Ethel?" Lol, it must have been a sign.....!
- Krista
I so love a happy ending!
I guess at the end of the day we have to give Ethel credit. She obviously knew what she was doing, and as it turned out she had the intention to bring them all back home to you. Poor little things, that sounds like an awfully long walk for such little legs!
I am so glad things worked out for you. I have only had chickens for five or so months, and my first batch of chicks only resulted in one live hatch - "Peepers." This whole Broody Hen business, no matter how natural it is, seems to be filled with stress - for US! I am hoping for a better result from Broody #2, and will think of Ethel when things get hard - she gives me hope.
Congratulations once again - I am so pleased for you and Ethel. Funny, the first thing I thought of when I woke up today was "How is Ethel?" Lol, it must have been a sign.....!
- Krista
Yay Ethel!
Yara,
Do not freak out about stationary eggs. When I get shipped eggs I let them rest for at least 24 hours in an egg carton without moving to help repair detached air cells and then another 24 hours in the incubator in the auto turner WITH THE TURNER TURNED OFF. Your one day was not a catastrophe and not even close to a calamity....in fact, it was probably therapeutic.
- - - -
Hot incubators = early hatches.
Here's a tip for those with still-air incubators: Rotate the eggs around during the incubation and especially right before lock down. (Note: Opening the incubator for a short period of time daily will not hurt the eggs...Mama Chicken leaves the nest to eat and drink leaving her eggs with a slight daily cool down period) I usually put my smallest eggs closest of the eggs to the heating coil for lockdown/hatching. The theory is that the chick before lockdown doesn't occupy the whole shell and get its head up in position until close to the end of incubation. Bigger chicks in large eggs if under the coil get a blast of heat on their heads due to a shorter distance to the heating element which tends to bake their little brains...they die of overheating. If I place them so that the smaller eggs are closer to the element, there's more space between the top of the shell and the heating element, which means a longer radiance distance which equals a tad cooler for those eggs than the larger eggs in the same position. I find if you rotate the eggs around during incubation they all get an even-ish distribution of heat and will hatch closer together.
Ideally you won't have any eggs right under the element during lockdown, but if space is at a premium paying attention to egg size may help your hatches.
(At lockdown I have my eggs in cartons and try to center them in the incubator.)
Just a tip from personal experience....especially after losing some really big eggs at about Day 19.
Yara,
Do not freak out about stationary eggs. When I get shipped eggs I let them rest for at least 24 hours in an egg carton without moving to help repair detached air cells and then another 24 hours in the incubator in the auto turner WITH THE TURNER TURNED OFF. Your one day was not a catastrophe and not even close to a calamity....in fact, it was probably therapeutic.
- - - -
Hot incubators = early hatches.
Here's a tip for those with still-air incubators: Rotate the eggs around during the incubation and especially right before lock down. (Note: Opening the incubator for a short period of time daily will not hurt the eggs...Mama Chicken leaves the nest to eat and drink leaving her eggs with a slight daily cool down period) I usually put my smallest eggs closest of the eggs to the heating coil for lockdown/hatching. The theory is that the chick before lockdown doesn't occupy the whole shell and get its head up in position until close to the end of incubation. Bigger chicks in large eggs if under the coil get a blast of heat on their heads due to a shorter distance to the heating element which tends to bake their little brains...they die of overheating. If I place them so that the smaller eggs are closer to the element, there's more space between the top of the shell and the heating element, which means a longer radiance distance which equals a tad cooler for those eggs than the larger eggs in the same position. I find if you rotate the eggs around during incubation they all get an even-ish distribution of heat and will hatch closer together.
Ideally you won't have any eggs right under the element during lockdown, but if space is at a premium paying attention to egg size may help your hatches.
(At lockdown I have my eggs in cartons and try to center them in the incubator.)
Just a tip from personal experience....especially after losing some really big eggs at about Day 19.
- Jul 20, 2014
- 197
- 26
- 156
YAY Ethel!! CONGRATS!!
How many babies did Ethel hatch?
This made me so happy to hear!!! What a good Mama!! Congratulations!!Krista74 thank you!
I decided after reading your post to make one more attempt to find Ethel. I walked the direction I thought she was. I walked over 1/8th of a mile looking under trees and brush for her....
Then I decided to go into the holy land (Federal Wildlife Area the feds protect like Fort Knox, even if they did steal it (eminent domain) from my family) (another story for later)......
I was across the fire break and entering the swamp when I heard peeping, Behind me!
There they were 5 babies!! So cute, and Ethel!!!
ETHEL IS A MOTHER!! JJ IS A DADDY!!
She was bringing them to the yard. It is just too far for them to walk in this weather, my idea, not hers.
I put them in my shirt and started walking to the shed. They would peep and she would get agitated and follow me.. When I got to the shed she was confused and Ticked off. I put the babies in the stock tank brooder, picked her up and put her in. I turned on the heat light and gave her food and water...THEN I TOOK PICTURES!! and more pictures...and more pictures....
My wife got off her sick bed ( she had surgery yesterday) and went to see Ethel and the babies. I told her she had to stay in bed. That was not gonna happen!
They are beautiful. It surprises me, they are reddish, blue, grey and yellow... Ethel and JJ are slate blues??? Was Ethel fooling around on JJ???
No matter we love them!... And JJ was proud when I told him he was a daddy...
I now have proven breeders!!!
And I got the day right!!
I apologize for the brightness I had to play with the pictures a tad so you could see them..Also my birds do not look as rugged as Ethel does in these, she is kind of tough looking after 28 days in the woods!
Yay!!! Congrats!!!!!
I just went out to the coop and #1 broody (set to hatch this weekend) was off the nest so I ran back in and got my light, 5/6 of the eggs look normal, cant see much but good air cells and definent movement detected, but the 6th....air cell further along (more sloped) and can see a shadow pushing up against the back of the air cells... I will be surprised if that one doesn't hatch by Friday late afternoon / early evening
Broody was supposed to be 2 days behind incubator chicks but they look like they are exactly the same
So cool...Good luck
Ethel is not taking my emotions into consideration here, and I thought she liked me!
[/quote]
Best line I've heard (read) today!
Congrats on finding her and the babies!
This is getting so exciting with all he hatches. :yiipchick
[/quote]
Best line I've heard (read) today!
Congrats on finding her and the babies!
This is getting so exciting with all he hatches. :yiipchick
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