Simulated Natural Nest Incubation~Experiment #1 So it begins....

[Cowpoke]

Hello Bee,

You may have seen this already, but in case you haven't:

http://www.pasreform.com/academy/fr...al-weight-loss-profile-during-incubation.html

Seems like good information, like Pete is talking about.

I'm rooting for you...Yee-Haw! DAY-1!!!! So Laissez les bon temps rouler!!!

 

[Lacy Blues]

Having a hard time following this thread today, lots going on here....... chicks eating each other, frikkin' ACA problems.......my brain is fried.

What is ACA?

Do your chicks have lots of room and something to entertain themselves other than each other? How old are they? Do you give them a big dish of feed for the day or do you feed often with smaller feedings?

If you have mealworms or can get some, they might serve as an exciting deterrent for them. I know people have said that they are way too high in calcium for them but I feel that as long as they don't get too much of it, it won't hurt them. I mean after all, if a broody has her chicks out in the field with her and they come across a bug, she doesn't steer them away from it but rather clucks and breaks that bug up so her chicks can eat it.

 

[BCMaraniac]

What is ACA?

Do your chicks have lots of room and something to entertain themselves other than each other? How old are they? Do you give them a big dish of feed for the day or do you feed often with smaller feedings?

If you have mealworms or can get some, they might serve as an exciting deterrent for them. I know people have said that they are way too high in calcium for them but I feel that as long as they don't get too much of it, it won't hurt them. I mean after all, if a broody has her chicks out in the field with her and they come across a bug, she doesn't steer them away from it but rather clucks and breaks that bug up so her chicks can eat it.

Lacy,

The only ACA I can think of is the Affordable Care Act....Obamacare.....but it is probably something else.

 

[aart]

Quote: Thanks for catching me up Bee!

Quote: Yes, Affordable Care Act...or some call it Obamacare.

VelociChicks...amazing how vicious those little ***** can be...won't highjack this thread with all the details but they have all they need, including free feed and mealworm treats....I finally separated the 2 bullies into a separate cage. Will never do mixed ages and/or so early in the year again....can't wait until it gets warmer out!

 

[BCMaraniac]

Thanks for catching me up Bee!

Yes, Affordable Care Act...or some call it Obamacare.

VelociChicks...amazing how vicious those little ***** can be...won't highjack this thread with all the details but they have all they need, including free feed and mealworm treats....I finally separated the 2 bullies into a separate cage. Will never do mixed ages and/or so early in the year again....can't wait until it gets warmer out!

No wondered you almost cussed.....

 

[marandazmail]

You sound like you are from my neck of the woods. What part of Kentucky? I was born in New Albany, IN.

Lisa

Lisa, I'm from Central Kentucky...Washington County to be exact. This is where i was born and raised. Lived in Louisville the first two years of our marriage and then moved to Bardstown for 16 years while adding two children to the mix. moved back to Washington Co. a couple of years ago because we were able to build a house that was more accessible to our handicapped daughter. Added chickens to the family last year around Father's Day and haven't looked back since then!! what's your story?

 

[marandazmail]

I use a LG and dry incubate at about 15/20% until lockdown and then I raise to 40/50%. My hatch rate is about 90%. I don't have problems with chicks not hatching after pipping. I do have some develope and then die after lockdown.

My incubator is still air and I hand turn 2 times a day.

enola,
Thanks for the info and encouragement!! i'm hoping and praying to get a good hatch going and i don't have a clue what i'm going to do with all these sweet little chicks that i'm about to bring into the world...i guess make them egg layers and the culled boys our lunch and dinner guests. i figure we are pretty similar in humidity since you're a coastal state and I'm in the "wet valley".

 

[marandazmail]

Will do! I'll pack them in tight to the vehicle and apply their broody pillow on top of them and I think the nature of the nest itself will lend some stability. I drive sedately nowadays, so no Dukes of Hazzard rides any longer......

Thank you!!! Please keep us informed here about how your dry hatch does and how you feel it worked on the results of the hatch. I'm with you....live in the Ohio Valley where humidity is high and mold is our milieu. Last summer I left my windows open all spring and summer as per normal and my leather shoes in the closet turned green! First time in my life that ever happened and this is not a moldy type house, but the window in that room is so large and the humidity in the world has gotten so high, that mold abounds.

I think I drowned those eggs in the last nest and maybe even in the nests before, so this time I'm doing it differently. Wetting the soil a bit was my only nod to moisture for this nest and it will just have to be enough.


Thank you!

I'm praying for a much better turn out in this nest and then I can rest on experimentation with this method and can either use it in the future for serious hatching or not, depending upon the results.

Beekissed,
I will definitely keep some records and report from time to time what's going on with our batch to hatch. truthfully I'm scared to death to do a dry hatch but with several people stating that they have success with it, i feel it's worth a try. Of course, i can tweak it if i find there is something i can improve for the hatch % sake. yup, in hindsight, i think there might have been too much water in your last two attempts. it's hard not to feel like there is something you should be doing while waiting, though!! i guess that's the doers in us.

My hubby is going to be up to his ears in baby chicks and the funny thing is, he's terrified of chickens...he HATES gathering eggs for me if i'm out of town for some reason!! bahahaha!! he's afraid they are going to hurt him...

...that's what i get for marrying a city boy. But he sure does love fresh eggs fried up with some bacon and toast...go figure.

 

[lazy gardener]

Bee, I have an aquarium thermometer, a mercury thermometer, and a 12" tall weather thermometer in there. I just miss my probe... and it's hygrometer.

 

[TexasLisa]

Lisa, I'm from Central Kentucky...Washington County to be exact. This is where i was born and raised. Lived in Louisville the first two years of our marriage and then moved to Bardstown for 16 years while adding two children to the mix. moved back to Washington Co. a couple of years ago because we were able to build a house that was more accessible to our handicapped daughter. Added chickens to the family last year around Father's Day and haven't looked back since then!! what's your story?

Born in New Albany, IN. Dad was a builder. We moved quite a bit. Lived in Roanoke, Virginia; Lancaster, Ohio; Greenwood, VA; Charlottesville, VA; Galena, IN; Gahanna, OH; Floyds Knobs, IN; Jeffersonville, IN. I got married and moved to Shawnee, OK. From there we went to Skellytown, TX; Seminole, OK; Richmond, IN; and now here in Rosenberg, TX. We have been married 32 years (this April) and have 2 grown kids, 10 chickens, and one ornery cat! I have loved every minute of it and if Ken says we need to move, I will be packed in a jiffy!!

Lisa