"Springing in the Chicks" 2016 April Hatch-a-Long Hosted by Mike & Sally

[Chicken girl 15]

As if being cute isn't a purpose...

not one I can use for a purchase reason. Hubby said unless it grows big enough to be a meal we don't need it. Grrr. They are cute though.

 

[slordaz]

hmm 8 hours since first chick hatched in the LG w/ fan and not seeing the eggs doing anything, hoping to wake up in the morning to they finished up.

 

[SpinningJenny]

Our hatch is officially over. After five healthy lovely chicks, two early quitters, and two non-fertile duds, the last two developed eggs that didn't hatch with the rest have died in the shell. One was malformed, with some insides on the outside (very strange, fascinating and sad), and one (a little bantam I was really hopeful for) died today at some point. He was in the wrong position with his head down toward the other end, and judging from the little pool of dark blood, he may have tried to pip the wrong end and nicked his blood vessel. I am bummed, but I learned a lot and think since we ended up with only 5 from this hatch, that we might put another dozen on and join the hatch along for May!

And one note: has anyone ever candled an over due or suspicious egg and seen signs of distress from inside? in both the last overdue eggs the last time I candled with a flash light I saw what looked like the chick "panting" while it's body was mostly still. It may have been the beak trying to pip, but it didn't look like a peck movement, it looked like fast laboured gasps. Maybe next time i might intervene if I see the same thing going on.

Upside, we've got five little fluffy poofs in a warm bin eating and cheeping and being ADORABLE. I had so much fun with these guys and I can't wait to do it again!!!

 

[Bantambird]

So after looking over the babies, I got 8 pullets and 3 cockerels in the Cream Legbars and 11 Birchen Marans! The one little pullet with the vaulted skull is drinking sav-a-chick and she is holding her head up and asking for more. I just feel like there might be something else wrong with her, she keeps her feet tucked like she were still in the egg and she does not tuck up her wings, they sort of droop. But she has started making happy baby noises when I pick her up, and she drinks the electrolyte solution in the syringe. She still sleeps a lot. The rest look super awesome, and if it weren't raining all this week I'd have a photo shoot out on the grass.

 

[Scovy Momma]

not one I can use for a purchase reason. Hubby said unless it grows big enough to be a meal we don't need it. Grrr. They are cute though.

Well, if he lets you have a few hundred you can always use the excuse of "Popcorn chicken" That's a meal! I've seen it on a menu!
Then, you can have many, many cutie patootie Serama!

 

[flocktastic]

Ok...just locked down...& FORGOT to put my no slip pad in there...it's just the metal grate that's over the water troughs right now...will they be ok???! Should I take them out and add the pad now?! Dang it...this day was nuts enough - I KNEW I'd forget something!!!

Also, can someone remind me the ideal temp for lockdown on a forced air styrofoam incubator??

 

[slordaz]

temp shouldn't change you up humidity though

 

[junebuggena]

Ok...just locked down...& FORGOT to put my no slip pad in there...it's just the metal grate that's over the water troughs right now...will they be ok???! Should I take them out and add the pad now?! Dang it...this day was nuts enough - I KNEW I'd forget something!!!

Also, can someone remind me the ideal temp for lockdown on a forced air styrofoam incubator??

Go ahead and put the pad in. As long as none of the eggs are pipped, opening after 'lockdown' will not hurt them. Remember that a broody hen gets off the nest everyday, even when chicks are hatching.
And temp is the same as during incubation.

 

[ShrekDawg]

You know, now that I asked Mom they were all from dark to lighter red. My pop got them from a feed store so I'm sure they were hatchery. That may be why they were so different & not consistent in niceness. I had favorites, of coarse (most all the darker ones were my favorite ma says), but if heritage are nice as a general rule then I may have been under the wrong idea that RIR are all sorts of unpredictable because I was basing it on hatchery birds. Thank you! I will look around on here & see if I find who has the heritage RIR or if someone knows. I am definitely interested now! I seem to remember when I went to a show that there were banty RIR & they were adorable & so dark colored like my favy girls that I made a note to someday get some...to Google! Maybe I'll find what I saw that day... Yep! they looked like this.

I bet that's probably exactly why! Hatchery birds tend to be bred more for production rather than to the standard or for personality, especially feed store ones. Though some hatcheries are obviously better than others. It makes sense that the darker ones were your favorites since you probably had somw heritahe ones mixed in, especially if it was years ago. Now I think it tends to be more the light colored production ones. That picture's definitely a heritage one I hope you can find a good breeder near you or someone on here and can get some good, heritage RIR cause they really are really nice or so I hear My dad wanted some Rhode Island Red when we got ours but I vetoed it because I knew that some of the production ones can be mean or variable personality between birds plus I had other breeds I wanted but I'd love to eventually get some real RIR, the heritage kind

 

[flocktastic]

temp shouldn't change you up humidity though

I increased humidity but last time someone mentioned dropping the temp just a tad too and I couldn't remember the range...

Go ahead and put the pad in. As long as none of the eggs are pipped, opening after 'lockdown' will not hurt them. Remember that a broody hen gets off the nest everyday, even when chicks are hatching.
And temp is the same as during incubation.

Thanks...I'll run and stick it in there...