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  1. saraem

    ~~ WELSUMMER HATCHING EGGS 12+ ~~

    I ordered 5 eggs, 3 made it to lockdown (1 clear, 1 quitter), 2 hatched - both are girls(!) and some of the healthiest, perkiest chicks I've seen. Thanks again!
  2. saraem

    Candling pics...help me understand what I'm looking at

    I cannot see veins on any of the darker eggs but the rest are 100% developing. The dark shells make it super tough to see much. I agree, though, that the embryo looks potentially too small.
  3. saraem

    Candling pics...help me understand what I'm looking at

    This is my second time incubating but first time with a darker eggs (Welsummer) and shipped eggs. 4/5 shipped eggs I can tell are developing well and we saw movement today. Some have slight saddle air cells but nothing too crazy. It is Day 13. The 5th one I just can't tell what's going on...
  4. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    I like the card table idea. It would work well as the littles go on top of their brooder area already, and because of how close it is to the bottom of the henhouse, the big girls can't/won't follow. That would be a nice next step as I could still feed them up there, but I would gain back all the...
  5. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Just wanted to check in and thank you all for your advice on integration. Within a week of my last post we were able to permanently open the panic doors to the brooder space. The hens still will chase the littles if they get too close, but they're perfectly capable of dashing into their safe...
  6. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    We've actually talked about trading! She's up for it if it comes to that. The 2 hens we have are only about 8 months, so luckily we're still getting plenty of eggs! My setup is actually IDENTICAL to this! And I'm using the same concept for "panic doors" - lifting the whole box up on bricks at...
  7. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    This makes complete sense.
  8. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    I thought the rule of thumb was 4sqft inside per bird, 10 in run? The henhouse part is 16.5 and the run is 52sqft. I know we will be maxed out with 4 full-grown hens but they free range A LOT too. The entire top of the henhouse is open, with the roof (which lets light through) 3-10" above the...
  9. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Thanks Blooie. She is fine with the other hen she was raised with, but certainly is giving me a run for my money with these chicks. I could probably easily rehome her with a friend of mine who has a much larger flock and roosters and thus, she'd have to get in line. I really would prefer not...
  10. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    That's the coop. It's 9.5x5.5. The 2 chicks are in the box on the lower left, it's just a wooden frame with chicken wire stretched over it. It's 2.5' square. We have 2 adult birds, the BR that's a bully and a BO that goes after them, but halfheartedly. Haven't seen her peck anyone in a week or...
  11. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    I need help. Still having a hard time with integration. Chicks are 6 weeks on Tuesday. They are fine free ranging with the big girls, I don't worry or even pay much attention to them anymore when they're all out. The littles are quick and the bigs don't pay them any mind unless they come...
  12. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Thank you for the kind words about the photo! They're pretty sweet if I do say so myself, and make great subjects. I swapped out MHP for a huddle box yesterday but they couldn't figure it out, so today I put it back in with just fabric over top. When I spied on them tonight they were still on...
  13. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Progress! Mouse was out with the littles today and although we watched very closely, we never had to seriously intervene. I think they finally get that they need to give her a WIDE berth. Some dues, because I never paid them. Had a photo shoot with the chicks a few weeks ago because my son's...
  14. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    One more question: I've had MHP off for the last several days as Summer's had a last gasp and temps have been 65/85. Day after tomorrow they'll be down to 45 at night. Turn it back on low? Chicks are 4 weeks today.
  15. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Thanks all. Very helpful. I was kind of joking about Mouse being mean. We all call her the "big jerk", but I get that she's dominant and territorial - and those are good qualities to have in a flock that free-ranges. The adults are generally out 3-8 hours a day, most days falling in the middle...
  16. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Mouse, our barred rock, is MEAN. Always has been. As a chick she was 2 weeks younger than everyone else and bullied THEM! I've thought about letting them out with just our BO, who is less aggressive, and seeing how that went. Good idea or bad?
  17. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    Just a week with the littles in the coop so far...they're 4 weeks now. They do have their own food/water but we haven't let them interact at all in the coop because I feel like when they're out in the yard it's lower stress: no fighting over food, lots of space to run, and easy for us to get...
  18. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    This integration stuff is stressful. I've already had a couple bleeding wounds (nothing serious, but enough to draw blood). We are only letting them interact when free ranging so there's lots of space, and with supervision. Every time the big girls get near the chicks, though, they go after...
  19. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    One more question about brooding in the coop: do you just feed everyone an all-flock feed? Right now I'm fermenting New Country Organics Starter for the babes and Layer for the bigs. Guessing when I open the panic doors the best bet is just to put everyone on the same thing...they only make...
  20. saraem

    Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

    The henhouse part is 3x5 (3' tall). We'll have 4 chickens total when these chicks mature (2 big girls and 2 chicks currently).
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