5th Annual BYC New Year's Day 2014 Hatch-A-Long

[BoereMeisie]

Hybrids breed back to what the base breeds were. They do lose production because Hybrid crosses increase production as well as making them easily sexed by color.

I would hatch them! It is great practice and you can sell them if you have too many chickens.

Too many chickens?? No such thing!

What kind of incubator is everyone using, just for interest's sake?

I have an LG. Generally do very well with unshipped eggs (90-100%), terrible with shipped eggs (0 to 25%).

I have a homemade cooler-bator.... But I'm considering building a bigger one out of some cold room panels lying around... They are 2 inch styrofoam, with thin steel on both sides... I figure that would make a mean incubator... I have an STC1000 digital thermostat and a digital thermometer/hygrometer that I would then take out of the cooler-bator and install into the panel incubator...

 

[carriebain]

I am freaking out! I have really bad chicken fever and want to incubate now! I want blue marans and ameraucanas and frizzles and silkies and olive eggers and Easter eggers and Phoenix's and polish and Cochins and d'Uccle and Japanese bantams and lavender and chocolate orpington and any other blue chickens!!!!! Help! I have problems

 

[SilkieSensation]

Darn it. I don't have either. Can anyone else help out?

I have Silkie eggs, if you want to try shipped.  PM me if so.  I have two pens, one is a Black Catdance cock bird out of a Lavender pen covered by a Black split to Lavender cock bird, housed with a Catdance Porcelain, and Shyscreations Splash and mismarked Partridge (looks like a Buff with a darker head); the other pen is a Blue cock bird with 2 Black hens and a light and dark Partridge, purchased as a group from Silkysensation this past spring.  I have been getting 4-6 eggs per day between the two pens.  The first pen is a younger group, just hatched in February of this year, I just started hatching their eggs two weeks ago, I have two chicks in the brooder that are almost certainly out of the Splash (very silver looking, so either Splash or Lavender in all likelihood), and one in the hatcher that just hatched today that looks silver with some buff down at the back of its neck.  The other pen is older by a year, I hatch mainly Splash and Blue out of them.  I do get an occasional Black, have not seen a Partridge chick so far.  These hens are champion mothers, they have hatched and brooded chicks three times this year.  They just got back to laying two weeks ago after I moved the last group of 10 chicks out at 2 months of age.  They are wonderful.  DH, who thought "the fluffy ones" were just silly when I got the first ones, now says if he was ever going to get chickens, "which I wouldn't," he would get just Silkies.  They are easy to manage and have the funniest little personalities.  I adore them.  My original intent was to have a breed I could use to brood other eggs, and I have so fallen in love with them.

I'm so glad Blue & his girls are doing well for you. I was thinking about them the other day and was going to pm you to ask about them but forgot. Would love to see some pix of them & their babies.

 

[chicken pickin]

Thank you how much for the mixed bantam.eggs

$6 for a dozen

Here are the 3 mix breed hens
SilkiexEE X Japanese Bantam lays tiny brown eggs

SilkiexEE X Japanese Bantam lays tiny brown eggs



Silkie x EE she lays medium sized green eggs


The rooster Japanese Bantam

 

[Blarneyeggs]

 
[COLOR=800080]Sometimes ignorance is bliss. All I have is a LG and aside from 1 disastrous hatch (the only time I used a turner) I have had great hatches. Usually between 80-100%. I even hatched 8 out of 13 shipped Serama eggs in mine, which is quite a feat. They can be fickle, but I am at home all of the time and available to make necessary adjustments.[/COLOR]


[COLOR=800080]Don't get yourself overly worried about it. The shell is tougher, so a little harder for the chicks to zip, but keeping a close eye on them will help. I think they are less porous also. Definitely the dark egg is very hard to see into when candling, but with practice you will eventually train your eye to spot movement. I had luck with mine, and didn't over think it.[/COLOR]

you got 80-100 percent out of the still air model??

X2! These numbers are amazing. GardeninMama, you are a hatching Guru!

 

[Blarneyeggs]

This is so exciting! I am looking forward to seeing all the beautiful chicks! Everyone is going to post pictures, right?

So, are marans eggs really more difficult than other types? I may have given myself a harder row to hoe than I intended.

Whoops, other than the zipping, I haven't really noticed a difference in hatching Marans and hatching other breeds… I tend to keep a closer eye on the Marans when they are zipping as I have had more than one die after zipping that I should have helped but I was trying to stay 'hands off'. I have not had this happen with other breeds.

I was thinking of trying to locate some BLRW eggs to hatch. They are so pretty. So far I can't find the breeds I currently want (barnevelder, vorwerks and campines). Vorwerks are very hard to find. I'd love to try barnevelders or golden campines. So far I just have lavender orpingtons and I'd love to add some breeds this upcoming year.

Me too! I have a few girls and no Roo, I saw some on the BST area here and didn't bid… I'm already getting shipped Orpington eggs, would really like to hatch local BLRW.

I am freaking out! I have really bad chicken fever and want to incubate now! I want blue marans and ameraucanas and frizzles and silkies and olive eggers and Easter eggers and Phoenix's and polish and Cochins and d'Uccle and Japanese bantams and lavender and chocolate orpington and any other blue chickens!!!!! Help! I have problems

Oh I hear ya! except the problem part…..how is this a problem?

What a GREAT way to start my day! Big ol cup a Joe, and laughing at the various posts… now it's time to kill the serenity and start getting everyone up. Also gotta bring in and thaw my waterers as they were left out over night.

 

[Blarneyeggs]

Quote: Sorry to be a thread hog.. But this girl is GORGEOUS! I love her hairdo!

 

[chicken pickin]

Sorry to be a thread hog.. But this girl is GORGEOUS! I love her hairdo!

Thanks! She is one of the prettiest chickens I have. Her name is Ziggy.

 

[silly4buttons]

...

$6 for a dozen Here are the 3 mix breed hens SilkiexEE X Japanese Bantam lays tiny brown eggs SilkiexEE X Japanese Bantam lays tiny brown eggs Silkie x EE she lays medium sized green eggs The rooster Japanese Ii would like a dozen please

 

[chicken pickin]

Ii would like a dozen please

I will PM you