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

[Beekissed]

I swear, they do that "Let's change the appearance of our eggs" thing on purpose, just to get their DNA into the future. Just about the time you think you've memorized the eggs by shape and start collecting the ones you want, they hold a late night hen house meeting and trick you up. "OK, now YOU lay the light colored one and I'll lay the pointed end one"

Yup, separate quarters or a trap nest for the breeders is about the only way. I've made a few of the world's very finest, most pedigreed mutts you'll ever meet. LOL But, the cockerel's taste like chicken and our friends love the heritage bred mutts for their layer pen. It's all good, if not efficient.

Whew!!! Glad even you experienced breeders can make a mistake as silly as this one...I was feeling really stupid. You could have knocked me over with a feather to see those black chicks! Every single darn egg had a black chick, so at least I was consistently wrong!

I'll tell ya one thing, Fred....I'm glad those weren't her eggs because they were a lot smaller than I would like. I'm hoping that huge egg I've been getting is hers, though it resembles eggs from my oldest WR from the hatchery. Got her ridge along the middle....

 

[bluebirdnanny]

Even the little silver chick is fun. It was first hatched and such a sweetie. The RIR cockerel is the dad and one of my white rocks the mum. I have yet to see if it was RIR/rock mutt or the old white rock.

The little reds I though a bit light but maybe that is just the down. Will wait for feather color to come in. but I think I see a nice keel on one for sure.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

I swear, they do that "Let's change the appearance of our eggs" thing on purpose, just to get their DNA into the future.  Just about the time you think you've memorized the eggs by shape and start collecting the ones you want, they hold a late night hen house meeting and trick you up.  "OK, now YOU lay the light colored one and I'll lay the pointed end one"

Yup, separate quarters or a trap nest for the breeders is about the only way.  I've made a few of the world's very finest, most pedigreed mutts you'll ever meet.  LOL    But, the cockerel's taste like chicken and our friends love the heritage bred mutts for their layer pen.  It's all good, if not efficient. 

Learned my lesson Fred. Haven't caught the Nelson pullet laying but a few might be hers in the new batch (every dog gone egg for several days plus some EE in there). So will have several mutts and hopefully some of hers to perfect my skills. I know for sure one is the older Kittle RIR... caught her go in and just waited in the coop until she got off. So I am hoping for at least 5-6 RIR from this upcoming brood.

 

[Fred's Hens]

I would share this and then, go back to my myriad of chores waiting on me.

What we hatch from our pullets and cockerels, our P's and K's when they aren't even a year old, are NOT your champions and not going to be your future. They're practice eggs mostly, so if we screw up a bit, that's OK. The pullets eggs are often not of high quality to be used in breeding. I think you'll find that when your C and your P are both a bit older, say 16 months old right on through their 3rd birthday, you're gonna produce better chicks. Those are the key breeding seasons, in my mind. The K's turn into better males as they become C's. (cockbirds). They're just flat out better birds to have around. The P's turn into Hens and lay a better egg and this maturity brings better chicks.

Be encouraged. Seriously give thought to preparing for a quality breeding season in September/October when the temps cool and before production wanes for winter and the birds take their rest and perhaps their moult. If you hatch before October 10, those chicks will be plenty big enough and hardy enough for winter.

 

[Beekissed]

I would share this and then, go back to my myriad of chores waiting on me.

What we hatch from our pullets and cockerels, our P's and K's when they aren't even a year old, are NOT your champions and not going to be your future. They're practice eggs mostly, so if we screw up a bit, that's OK. The pullets eggs are often not of high quality to be used in breeding. I think you'll find that when your C and your P are both a bit older, say 16 months old right on through their 3rd birthday, you're gonna produce better chicks. Those are the key breeding seasons, in my mind. The K's turn into better males as they become C's. (cockbirds). They're just flat out better birds to have around. The P's turn into Hens and lay a better egg and this maturity brings better chicks.

Be encouraged. Seriously give thought to preparing for a quality breeding season in September/October when the temps cool and before production wanes for winter and the birds take their rest and perhaps their moult. If you hatch before October 10, those chicks will be plenty big enough and hardy enough for winter.

So, you think fertility is higher, or at least on par, with the spring breeding season?

Should I wait to put these two into the breeding pen until then? It sure would be better for them if we did it at the end of September, as these next 3 mo. are our highest forage quality months and they glean a tremendous amount of food, lay on good fat, etc. during these months, particularly in September.

 

[Fred's Hens]

I do. Do this. Put that K away from the birds on Aug 1st. Let him see those females through his fence. Let him rest for two weeks and oogle those females. When you mate him up with that pullet (although she's a year now, isn't she?) in a separate place. He'll be very, very loaded for bear. Collect her eggs for 4 days. Pull him back out. Her eggs will still be fertile another 8-10 days. There's your batch to hatch. Maybe 8-10 good, fresh, fertile eggs.

Then, rinse and repeat. Leaving him on her alone for 14 straight days is too rough for her. No need. If he's penned with her alone for 3 or 4 days, That's more than plenty to fertilize her for the following 8-10 days. Since I only like to set eggs that are 10-12 days old, max, Perfect. This is single pen breeding or single mating as it's called.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Oh, forgot to say. She can have contact with no other males either before and during this process, of course. I know you know that, but just to say it.

 

[Beekissed]

That's good to know and I will most definitely do that! He's the only male we have right now, so no worries on any other bird in the henhouse....he's the big cheese and head honcho until we start getting his male offspring.

When I pen him up to give the girl's backs a rest, they camp out by the pen and want to get in there with him. Shameless hussies.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Yup. It's what they do. But, that's their job. Fire him up. Do a little dance, a little shake and fluff. Gets all riled up.

 

[tntchix]

That's good to know and I will most definitely do that! He's the only male we have right now, so no worries on any other bird in the henhouse....he's the big cheese and head honcho until we start getting his male offspring.

When I pen him up to give the girl's backs a rest, they camp out by the pen and want to get in there with him. Shameless hussies.

Shameless hussies. I just spit out my drink.