They need 14-16 hours of light during lay. I prefer to use the sunset as the natural end of the day so that they have time to roost before it becomes dark. We picked up a timer and a plug-in fluorescent light and set it so that the light turns on 15 hours before sunset. We have to adjust it...
Welcome to BYC! I am also from Alberta! There are quite a few of us on here but you'll also find a lot of Albertans on Facebook- both Canadian Mother Cluckers and Alberta Chickens etc...BYC is a great place to ask questions and learn!
I agree with QueenMisha about the number of birds that can be kept warm with the ceramic bulbs. I bought one but found I had too many birds and it didn't keep them warm enough. I ended up back with a red heat bulb...
There are some great resources in the learning center on this site to help you along. Papery white is a good sign. It generally means all is on track and you just need to give it time. If that membrane starts to look brown or tan, you may have trouble on your hands.
How is the hatch going?
I agree with Eggcessive. Likely respiratory.
Mycoplasma can have all the symptoms you mention, including the soft shelled egg. Could be other respiratory diseases as well but symptomatically sounds like a possibility of Mycoplasma.
Best to talk to your vet or local poultry extentionist. They...
MsKay- how are you doing with your lavender cuckoo Orps? I just had the opportunity to purchase some lovely Lav Cuckoo Orp chicks and have similar questions to your original post. Any tips you've learned along the way that can help me?
Thanks!!
I have recently had the opportunity to purchase some lavender cuckoo Orpington chicks. This will be my first time delving into the genetic world of lavender cuckoo and could really use some help developing a breeding game plan. Lavender cuckoo Orps are not common in Canada.
I have received...
They grow slower than hatchery broilers but also grow larger. We just processed a few that were about 16 weeks that dressed out at about 6.5-7 pounds. We had them on a combination of grower ration and free access to green grass. We didn't see any of the skeletal or metabolic issues that can...
Shellz, I would love to buy some hatching eggs from you before you stop completely! Any chance of that? I am in Alberta so would need you to ship...I would love to keep your work going.
Glad to hear things are working out for you Bamadude! My Brinsea has been spot on since I gave up my LG. My brother in law tried pheasant eggs with the LG and managed to get 12/48 to hatch...not horrible for pheasants I suppose but not great either.
We hatched Malines this spring and have fallen in love with these birds. The eggs we hatched were massive, jumbo at least. The chicks were very strong and have sweet, docile personalities. We plan on keeping some of the better females to breed next spring and hatch chicks to grow for meat and...
Has anyone had a good hatch with this model? Mine was a disaster, I gave up and invested in a Brinsea. Got 100% hatch of fertilized eggs with the Brinsea, 4/26 hatched with the little giant. I also noticed that the chicks from the Brinsea hatch were more lively. I agree with the comments on...