Hi critters,
Your darker keet looks like a Slate to me... (seems a little too dark to be a Pewter), and the mostly White keet with the broken up stripe down it's back is a Pinto. Usually most Pintos from hatcheries are Pinto Pearl Greys, but some private breeders have been breeding/hatching them...
I feed a little differently than most do, but... at around that age my chicks are in wire floored grow out pens and they get fed fermented feed, AM and PM (they get a bigger portion in the AM than they do in the PM so there's less wasted food, and also so rodents are not attracted to my pens)...
Growing fast and looking good Pretty babies!
I am SO envious of your lush green grassy pen. All vegetation here is dead, dry and crispy this time of year
I guessed male just to be different, lol
Actually I have a reason (and it may be a stretch)... but I don't want to type it out and sway anyone else's guess.
Predators will return as long as they have free access to a food choice, so pretty soon there won't be any eggs left... and you may end up losing the Hen as well.
IMO, it's way less stress to have to worry about the remaining 3 eggs in the incubator than losing a Hen that has the potential to...
Since you want these Peachicks to hatch, I'd pull the eggs after the incubator is warmed up, humid and ready for eggs. And I'd destroy the nest so the PeaHen will hopefully forget about ever using it and return to her regular "Pea routine". You may need to pen her up for a while tho, if she's...
In a forced air incubator (one with a fan) the heat is constantly being circulated and maintains the recommended incubation temp of 99.5° around the entire egg, but in a still air incubator the hot air rises, the cooler air settles to the bottom. So there's usually a difference of around 2°...
Besides being initially painful when applied and very stressful for the birds to get used to, the peepers are constantly irritating to the nostrils and can also interfere with the birds' ability to effectively clear their nostrils... creating a buildup of gunk and bacteria. That could just be...
I've cleaned many ripped off toenails (usually on my lunatic Guineas) and then used a small piece of TP or tissue and a few drops of superglue to help cover up the raw nerves and keep germs out until the nail grows out some.
Gotta make sure the glue has dried before you put the bird down...