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Second that. My cousin raises LOTS of birds here in Mississippi, grey peacock pheasants being one breed. He tells me that the babies are REALLY hard to raise--has to teach them to eat meal worms, etc. He also keeps them in an enclosed pen with a light on them...but he LOVES them!
Chanda
I can send you some pictures of mine, if you like. My rooster, Pierre, is my avatar. I'll be hatching some (I hope!) this spring. Not sure of show quality--you can judge for yourself and ask me any questions you like.
Chanda
I have a dozen BR's--3 roos and 9 hens--and they've been pretty durned lazy lately! (Getting to be time to fill up the incubator, and the moon is almost right!)
I'm giving it a try! I just made up a pan of fresh, hot cornbread with cayenne and red pepper flakes...they LOVED it!
And...
I had a quail chick that had its top beak pecked off by other chicks (brutal, huh?), and she did GREAT! You could see her tongue completely, but she ate and drank normally. Turned out she was a good mama, too! (My father-in-law saw her and HAD to have her! Last I heard, she was still doing...
Really?? A few days?? He hatched out last night and, since I've now gotten some fluids in him, he's acting more "normal". I've never waited that long to get fluids into a chick before. I know that they absorb the nutrients from the yolk sac, but it was obvious that he needed SOMEthing...I...
I've been having problems with my Mille Fleurs dying JUST before pipping. Danny suggested that I up my temp in the incubator to 101.5--worked like a charm. (For those who don't know, I have a Little Giant still air incubator.) Thank you, Danny, for your wise advice.
At first, 2 of the 3...
The 3 only recently hatched out...2 died within hours of hatching. The 3rd is barely hanging on--whenever I try to give it water (with vitamins and electrolytes), it ends up acting as if it's choking. After MUCH effort on both our parts, it stops "gasping" and begins to breathe normally. It...
*I* usually look for an enlarging air sac with the middle of the egg filled with a dark, solid mass. (Don't recall actually seeing the chick "in the air sac" unless you're just talking about movement--maybe someone else has.) I also look at the pointed end to see the yolk sac (it'll look kinda...
Hey, Janine. You know, many times, Mamas know things that others don't. If you have any doubts, you can always put it in someone's incubator, but I think I would trust her judgment. It's up to you!
Chanda
Any chance it's your thermometer?? I have a Little Giant, and once it's set, it usually stays. Could it be that you have it in a drafty location (or one that's in the sun part of the day or possibly exposed to a ceiling fan that's only on part of the time)?
My next thought was that it could...
SURE you can--just consider that you'll probably need to brood them separately as older chicks will sometimes pick on the younger ones...literally! Make sure you have enough waterers!
Have fun!
Chanda
They SHOULD be okay for 12-24 hours, receiving nutrients from their yolk sac. However, once they're dry and fluffy, I'd move them to an already-warm brooder with food and water at the ready. (A trick I use on quail and chickens is to add boiled egg yolk crumbled on their food. The theory is...
Okay, I JUST found this information. Maybe I can try this...
" I use an incubator for hatching, but with certain strains the hen is best. The majority of people seem to have some problems with incubators, the most common being "dead in shell", where the chick dies at the point of hatching. I...
I've never had ANY problems with cedar in a bird pen, and I cut limbs for mine to "play" in and around. PLUS, the rabbits LOVE the nutrients they get from the bark.
You KNOW, I wonder if your friend would be okay with, say, 2 rabbits as penmates?? They could help keep the cedar leaves...
Just wanted to add that I'm starting to doubt myself, even though I've hatched out HUNDREDS of chicks...as if I'm missing something STUPID. If anyone has any suggestions, please, share them with me!
Thanks again!
Chanda
Update (kinda late)--I ended up with one MF hatching out, and it died shortly afterward. None of the others hatched or even pipped. When I candled them after allowing them to stay in the bator for about 5 more days, there was no movement. They seem to have died in the shell.
Chanda