➡I accidentally bought Balut eggs: 2 live ducks! Now a Chat Thread!

[CrazyCrttr75]

I'm a bit of a sucker for breeder-quality NHs. They're so beautiful and stately in shape.

I know my Amber is not to standard, being from a hatchery, but I sure have grown to love her. To see her stand, with those long legs.... She is as big as my other girls that are 5 months older than her. Just not quite as fluffy yet, but she's working on it. I agree that they are beautiful birds. And she started laying at 18 weeks and hasn't missed a day so far. I expected her to have kinks to work out like my others did but she hasn't had any issues at all. I'm so glad that I picked her out. She has been a pleasant surprise.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I let one of my Cochins hatch last year and it was soooo fun! I want to do it again! Lol

I really want to try it!! My Australorp has gone broody once or twice and my Orpington has too but the Orpington that died fall 2017 was my best broody she went broody all the time. The year she died, she literally went broody like 5 times since April lol I think she went broody like 5 or 6 times total that year. I told myself if she went broody again in the spring I was going to let her hatch chicks but then I was careless and let them out too late in the day as it was starting to get dark then had to run out quick and forgot to tell anyone they were out so no one was watching them so she got taken by a hawk. I wish I hadn’t been such an idiot and just left with them still out or that I hadn’t let them out at all, it was way too late to let them out, and she paid the price for my stupidity/selfishness for myself.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I know my Amber is not to standard, being from a hatchery, but I sure have grown to love her. To see her stand, with those long legs.... She is as big as my other girls that are 5 months older than her. Just not quite as fluffy yet, but she's working on it. I agree that they are beautiful birds. And she started laying at 18 weeks and hasn't missed a day so far. I expected her to have kinks to work out like my others did but she hasn't had any issues at all. I'm so glad that I picked her out. She has been a pleasant surprise.
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Awww she sounds awesome!!

 

[CSAchook]

I really want to try it!! My Australorp has gone broody once or twice and my Orpington has too but the Orpington that died fall 2017 was my best broody she went broody all the time. The year she died, she literally went broody like 5 times since April lol I think she went broody like 5 or 6 times total that year. I told myself if she went broody again in the spring I was going to let her hatch chicks but then I was careless and let them out too late in the day as it was starting to get dark then had to run out quick and forgot to tell anyone they were out so no one was watching them so she got taken by a hawk. I wish I hadn’t been such an idiot and just left with them still out or that I hadn’t let them out at all, it was way too late to let them out, and she paid the price for my stupidity/selfishness for myself.

Oh I am so sorry you lost her! We all makes mistakes though and I am sure she had a great life with you

 

[littleprairieheartsfarm]

The boys seem to be getting along today. I saw Elvis preening Amber's feathers today. I think he is wanting to claim the 2 littles and that is what sparked the fight. Bowie often follows and tidbits for Amber. I've even seem him mate with her once. But just a little bit ago I saw Bowie being Bowie and mating with a few of the big girls. Elvis wasn't paying him any attention. Idk. Boys are a pain!
I have the space. It's just getting the extra girls and waiting for them to grow to maturity. I was checking out Ideal and did a mock checkout list. It would be cheaper to go with them than going through Meyer. The only issue is that I won't have the breed and egg color diversity that I was wanting. So I need to decide whether or not to go with Ideal and only get a few of the breeds/kinds I want but it is cheaper or to go with Meyer and get more breeds that I want but it is more expensive. Decisions, decisions. I also have to figure out when to order them. I'm thinking maybe around the middle of Feb. That way by the time they would feather out it would be around the end of March/beginning of April and should be ok to have outside full time. Also, I looked on Hoover's website since you talked about that Maran breed that you were looking at. They added quite a few new birds. A couple dif green egg layers and a couple of blue egg layers. I wish they didn't have a 15 bird minimum or I'd order from them. But now I am wondering if they'll be offering those breeds in the TSC stores during chick days? So many options!

I feel you! Can you see if any local feed stores run through Hoover’s too? Then you might be able to get what you want, and not have to wait for chick days.

 

[littleprairieheartsfarm]

I really want to try it!! My Australorp has gone broody once or twice and my Orpington has too but the Orpington that died fall 2017 was my best broody she went broody all the time. The year she died, she literally went broody like 5 times since April lol I think she went broody like 5 or 6 times total that year. I told myself if she went broody again in the spring I was going to let her hatch chicks but then I was careless and let them out too late in the day as it was starting to get dark then had to run out quick and forgot to tell anyone they were out so no one was watching them so she got taken by a hawk. I wish I hadn’t been such an idiot and just left with them still out or that I hadn’t let them out at all, it was way too late to let them out, and she paid the price for my stupidity/selfishness for myself.

I’m so sorry She sounded like an awesome bird

 

[CrazyCrttr75]

I really want to try it!! My Australorp has gone broody once or twice and my Orpington has too but the Orpington that died fall 2017 was my best broody she went broody all the time. The year she died, she literally went broody like 5 times since April lol I think she went broody like 5 or 6 times total that year. I told myself if she went broody again in the spring I was going to let her hatch chicks but then I was careless and let them out too late in the day as it was starting to get dark then had to run out quick and forgot to tell anyone they were out so no one was watching them so she got taken by a hawk. I wish I hadn’t been such an idiot and just left with them still out or that I hadn’t let them out at all, it was way too late to let them out, and she paid the price for my stupidity/selfishness for myself.

Awww! I'm so sry.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Oh I am so sorry you lost her! We all makes mistakes though and I am sure she had a great life with you

I’m so sorry She sounded like an awesome bird

Awww! I'm so sry.

Thank you all! She really was an awesome bird. So gentle and sweet and one of the only ones that actually liked to be held. One time I brought her on the deck and sat down with her and she just sat in my lap, I wasn’t even holding her so she could have left at any time, but she didn’t want to. She eventually did but wanted to be held and petted first for a bit. And every time I broke her from being broody, she didn’t fight being in the crate and just went in quietly and every time I visited her, she just made soft noises at me to greet me and talk to me. She was always so sweet and kind. Also my smallest hen and got picked on by some of the other hens but she didn’t let that stop her. She was still just as sweet and loving. I think she would have made a great mother. But instead, I failed her. I also feel really bad she never got to finish the new coop and bigger space either cause we didn’t finish it and move them until April last year (2018)

 

[CrazyCrttr75]

I feel you! Can you see if any local feed stores run through Hoover’s too? Then you might be able to get what you want, and not have to wait for chick days.

Maybe. There is one other feed store that is local and is where I ordered my black australorps from. But he ordered like 25 of them at once and had a difficult time selling them all. So I think whomever he goes through, he has a minimum that he has to buy. I'm really leaning towards just going through Meyer. I have 2 white egg layers (austra white and blue andalusian), 2 dark brown egg layers (golden cuckoo maran and welsummer), and 4 colorful egg layers (2 easter egger and 2 lakeshore egger) all picked out in the mock checkout cart. Those will go with my light brown/nude colored layers that I already have. I think that will give me a nice colorful assortment. I really wish I could get a darker green/olive layer but they are sold out of those. That'll put me at 16 females and 2 males. I think that is plenty of chickens for me and for the housings (one I still have to prep, place and put together) and space that we have. My hubby was teasing me the other day. Back when I first got my big girls, a friend of ours asked how many we got. So I said 6 for right now because we are just starting out and trying this whole raising chickens thing. She said, "Oh. We just got 50". I was like, . Months go by and when we were talking about processing the extra male ducks, I ended up reaching out to her to ask her who she uses to process? I figured having that many chickens, surely they were dual purpose for meat and eggs. Nope. They are only for eggs. That's a LOT of eggs! My hubby thinks chicken math is taking me over and I am well on my way. That's too many birds! LOL!

 

[ShrekDawg]

Maybe. There is one other feed store that is local and is where I ordered my black australorps from. But he ordered like 25 of them at once and had a difficult time selling them all. So I think whomever he goes through, he has a minimum that he has to buy. I'm really leaning towards just going through Meyer. I have 2 white egg layers (austra white and blue andalusian), 2 dark brown egg layers (golden cuckoo maran and welsummer), and 4 colorful egg layers (2 easter egger and 2 lakeshore egger) all picked out in the mock checkout cart. Those will go with my light brown/nude colored layers that I already have. I think that will give me a nice colorful assortment. I really wish I could get a darker green/olive layer but they are sold out of those. That'll put me at 16 females and 2 males. I think that is plenty of chickens for me and for the housings (one I still have to prep, place and put together) and space that we have. My hubby was teasing me the other day. Back when I first got my big girls, a friend of ours asked how many we got. So I said 6 for right now because we are just starting out and trying this whole raising chickens thing. She said, "Oh. We just got 50". I was like, . Months go by and when we were talking about processing the extra male ducks, I ended up reaching out to her to ask her who she uses to process? I figured having that many chickens, surely they were dual purpose for meat and eggs. Nope. They are only for eggs. That's a LOT of eggs! My hubby thinks chicken math is taking me over and I am well on my way. That's too many birds! LOL!

You will love the Easter Eggers!! Mine are so pretty and if I didn’t still live with my parents, I probably would have already had a million chickens by now