Any one want to join me in waiting for eggs, posting and comparing notes?

[Melabella]

Angelicisi, your girl is gorgeous. And your yard looks stunning.
Happy to see people here again. I hope all is well. I really did miss hearing everyone's stories. When ever I would hear of weather reports of major storms in any of your areas I wished for your safety. Very relieved that spring is on the way for the rest of you.
My girls are doing very good but I am worried due to them not really taking a break. Our weather has been so warm this winter it seems that they started to molt, but never stopped laying. They don't seem to be able to grow back their feathers. I ordered some aprons for the worst of the girls.... not sure that was a molt or the fault of the Roo's. I have 2 Roos.... a Blue Andalusian and a EE/Americana. The Andalusian is to pretty... We may keep him and cull the EE.... I just don't need 2 Roos for 11 girls. And with all of them is a beautiful male pheasant we may call Phrank I adopted him from one of our local animal shelters. I will try to get pics soon.
So happy to see everyone.

Cat!

So good to hear an update from you. I am so glad you are well. My girls looked absolutely horrid before their molt, and then the molt made them look as if they were on deaths door. My first roo who was downright vicious, to them and to me, tore their backs to smithereans. I was so happy to see him go. The replacement roo I brought here is a true gentleman, polite, respectful of my dominance and never does anything wrong. The girls feathers have grown in beautiful with all the new growth.. Other than some messy messy bottoms, they all look amazing. My roo though needs to have his spurs cut, they are so long and look so sharp. It can't feel good for the girls when he mounts them. I was thinking of asking my blacksmith to help me clip them, maybe I can catch him and he can snip snip, or use a pumice stone to grind them down. Not sure he would sit still for that. WHen my girls did molt, I bumped their feed up to game bird feed, for a bit more protein, and also I know some feed companies make a feed call feather grow, or something to the like. Maybe that would help?

How's Mom doing? I hope she is well. Please post some pictures of that pheasant. we have so many wild ones around here, I almost drive off the road when I see one.
Lets keep posting our updates. So happy to be back.

MB

 

[j8app]

We have just purchased 3 chickens and all at point of lay. 1 light sussex, 1 Plymouth Rock and 1 rhode rock. The light sussex on her second day of being with us she laid her first egg. She is certainly the leader!! Now day 5 the rhode rock as we speak is trying to lay an egg but the light sussex is going in and out and calling very loud! Is this normal? Will the calling ease? Will this upset the rhode rock and do you think the light sussex May damage the egg? Sorry for all the questions but we are new to this!!! :/:/

 

[Melabella]

We have just purchased 3 chickens and all at point of lay. 1 light sussex, 1 Plymouth Rock and 1 rhode rock. The light sussex on her second day of being with us she laid her first egg. She is certainly the leader!! Now day 5 the rhode rock as we speak is trying to lay an egg but the light sussex is going in and out and calling very loud! Is this normal? Will the calling ease? Will this upset the rhode rock and do you think the light sussex May damage the egg? Sorry for all the questions but we are new to this!!!

No, she won't upset her at all.. Look at it like it is her baby sister anxiously waiting outside the delivery room! These girls are so funny. I have had eggs for over a year now, and I still get such a kick when I see all the shenanigans that go on at egg laying time. The calling very loud is called the "egg song", every girl has her own certain song, some more than others. Out of my 9 girls,.. some are very quiet, some sing before and after, I even have one girl who sings while she is laying! My rooster is the one who makes the biggest fuss, declaring to the world what good ladies he has in his little harem, and mimics their different songs, which I find astounding. I have even heard that when there is no rooster, one of the hens will assume the roll and announce the laying to the world. Maybe what she is doing. Don't worry about her damaging the egg, sometimes there is a curious poke here or there but they are learning from each other, and finding their way with this new thing.

Good Luck and keep us posted! One thing you have to do here on our thread is POST THOSE EGG PICTURES! We love egg pictures. lol.. jk, but we'd love to see. Did you eat the first two eggs yet, or are they still on your kitchen counter getting stared at all day? They taste awesome!!!

Welcome to the thread!
MB

 

[jtbass2756]

No, she won't upset her at all.. Look at it like it is her baby sister anxiously waiting outside the delivery room! These girls are so funny. I have had eggs for over a year now, and I still get such a kick when I see all the shenanigans that go on at egg laying time. The calling very loud is called the "egg song", every girl has her own certain song, some more than others. Out of my 9 girls,.. some are very quiet, some sing before and after, I even have one girl who sings while she is laying! My rooster is the one who makes the biggest fuss, declaring to the world what good ladies he has in his little harem, and mimics their different songs, which I find astounding. I have even heard that when there is no rooster, one of the hens will assume the roll and announce the laying to the world. Maybe what she is doing. Don't worry about her damaging the egg, sometimes there is a curious poke here or there but they are learning from each other, and finding their way with this new thing.

Good Luck and keep us posted! One thing you have to do here on our thread is POST THOSE EGG PICTURES! We love egg pictures. lol.. jk, but we'd love to see. Did you eat the first two eggs yet, or are they still on your kitchen counter getting stared at all day? They taste awesome!!!

Welcome to the thread!
MB

You know, after I got my first/last 4 chickens an got them finally laying...which I was as excited as everyone on here......said I wouldn't have any more than 4.... I'm handicapped and sometimes in a wheelchair. Now I have 6 who are EE and are almost 5 weeks.. (some are roos which will have to go), AND i have 9 BCM, 6 silkies and 4 Black sexed babies who are roos. They also will have to go....I have a Sizzle roo that I"m looking for a good home for. I just don't want to deal with hatchlings, broody moms....These have been been enough for me and my son and daughter are going to be picking up some of them.. I want enough hens out of them to have some good layers. I enjoy giving eggs to my neighbors and to the church custodians... SO....it won't be many weeks that I will be joining you all, all over again with the "sit and wait and watch for my next NEW eggs... LOLOL don't think it ever becomes old does it?

But I love my chickens!!!

 

[Melabella]

You know, after I got my first/last 4 chickens an got them finally laying...which I was as excited as everyone on here......said I wouldn't have any more than 4.... I'm handicapped and sometimes in a wheelchair. Now I have 6 who are EE and are almost 5 weeks.. (some are roos which will have to go), AND i have 9 BCM, 6 silkies and 4 Black sexed babies who are roos. They also will have to go....I have a Sizzle roo that I"m looking for a good home for. I just don't want to deal with hatchlings, broody moms....These have been been enough for me and my son and daughter are going to be picking up some of them.. I want enough hens out of them to have some good layers. I enjoy giving eggs to my neighbors and to the church custodians... SO....it won't be many weeks that I will be joining you all, all over again with the "sit and wait and watch for my next NEW eggs... LOLOL don't think it ever becomes old does it?

But I love my chickens!!!

jt,

so good to see you her! I agree, and there is nothing better than handing out those eggs, it never gets old. I have friends clammering for them! Hope you get the right home for all your roo;s Come back soon and help us all pass the time waitin! I have 7 eggs in an incubator, and three coming from the hatchery, so I too will be starting round 2 of the great wait!

Have a great weekend!

MB

 

[CatSol]

Hi all it is so good to see old names and new ones as well. The new people remind me of our first anxious days with our girls. I never get tired of our girls antics.
Melabella... it is so good to see you again here. I did miss you and everyone else. My mom is doing very well and she is even more protective of her girls. I just loves this.... when my mom was a child her family had chickens. She hated the job of feeding them and would not want to eat their eggs. She wanted store eggs. Now the girls help keep my mom active. She makes several trips a day to check on them and make sure they have treats.
I have been spoiling my friends with lots of eggs. And last weekend I had made a batch of egg salad. One lady had to lick the spoon clean and squeeze the bag for the last drop... I guess she liked it. It has been requested for this weekend as well. So... off I go to finish packing. I have been a working at our Renaissance Pleasure Faire for over 20 yrs. I love it out there...
So, Sorry I do not have pics yet of how my girls look now. I promise I will do so next week as well as of our lovely pheasant Phrank
Thanks all and I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

 

[jtbass2756]

Hi all it is so good to see old names and new ones as well. The new people remind me of our first anxious days with our girls. I never get tired of our girls antics.
Melabella... it is so good to see you again here. I did miss you and everyone else. My mom is doing very well and she is even more protective of her girls. I just loves this.... when my mom was a child her family had chickens. She hated the job of feeding them and would not want to eat their eggs. She wanted store eggs. Now the girls help keep my mom active. She makes several trips a day to check on them and make sure they have treats.
I have been spoiling my friends with lots of eggs. And last weekend I had made a batch of egg salad. One lady had to lick the spoon clean and squeeze the bag for the last drop... I guess she liked it. It has been requested for this weekend as well. So... off I go to finish packing. I have been a working at our Renaissance Pleasure Faire for over 20 yrs. I love it out there...
So, Sorry I do not have pics yet of how my girls look now. I promise I will do so next week as well as of our lovely pheasant Phrank
Thanks all and I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

I would love to see some pictures of you mom and her ladies too!!

 

[Melabella]

Hi everyone,

Just checking in to say hello. SO enjoying the final arrival of spring, and even though I have so much spring cleaning to do around my little farm, I have been enjoying not freezing, and taking on the projects slowly but surely. My new endeavor with chickens is that I bought a Brinsea Mini Advance incubator that holds 7 eggs. I figured I couldn't get into too much trouble that way. I put 6 Ameraucana eggs and one of my Barred Rock's eggs. Brooster explained to me that if the barred rock egg hatches, that little chick will be autosexed.. and I will be able to tell right away if it's a boy or girl, which will be very cool. If it's a hen, she'll be an Easter Egger and hopefully give me some shade of green or blue egg..Super neat. I finally was able to get a light strong enough, and candled and saw that two of the eggs have not been developing. I opened them both up and one must have been non fertilized with no development at all. The second one was an early death, as I could see some development, with an eye, and some other blobby stuff, but for the most part, it had stopped growing. So, I am down to 5 eggs, and hopefully they are all doing well. I will keep you posted if I have any success. I am very nervous, and hoping that I at least get one or two to hatch. I hope I programmed everything correctly, and hoping the little incubator is good enough to do the rest. Learning as I go...

Hope you are all well, and had a good holiday week.

MB

 

[CatSol]

Brooster is amazing to get all those wonderful colors. Since I have two Roos I have considered setting eggs. But I think if I do I should wait till after I get rid of one of them. I really like how my Blue Andalusian looks but he has that attitude. Not sure yet.... I may consider it if a hen goes broodie.....
I so got to up-load some pics. I will soon... I promise. I have one of my Mom holding a chicken after we had put the apron on her. They look so silly but there feathers are growing back.
I am so excited you are trying to hatch Melabella.. We can live viscerally throw you.... I would be afraid to try...

 

[Melabella]

Brooster is amazing to get all those wonderful colors. Since I have two Roos I have considered setting eggs. But I think if I do I should wait till after I get rid of one of them. I really like how my Blue Andalusian looks but he has that attitude. Not sure yet.... I may consider it if a hen goes broodie.....
I so got to up-load some pics. I will soon... I promise. I have one of my Mom holding a chicken after we had put the apron on her. They look so silly but there feathers are growing back.
I am so excited you are trying to hatch Melabella.. We can live viscerally throw you.... I would be afraid to try...

I am afraid too, I think I have all ready done something wrong, or my crazy girl Ameraucana hens eggs are not the greatest. I am down from 7 eggs to 4 in the incubator. I don't have a proper candler, and went off of my instincts and what I have read on here, and what Brooster has told me, I used my IPhone as a rudimentary candling light. I could straight off the bat see that 2 were no good, almost clear all the way through, so I knew they were a bust and not fertilized. When I cracked them open, nothing looked like an egg you were getting ready to eat. Then the next few days, I saw one egg with a blob on one side, and clear on the other, we were well past day 14, so I got brave and cracked those open, and it was obviously early death, I could see a spine, and the eye, and that was about it. So, here I sit, with three Ameraucana eggs and one Barred Rock/Ameraucana egg. I am suspect about the BR and one of the Ameraucana. I ordered a Brinsea egg candler. Not sure if it will help me with this hatch, and even if it comes today, I have 6 days left and not sure what I would be seeing at this late stage. Would I see the chicks moving? Not sure. If I were to get two chicks out of this hatch I would be over the moon. I feel as if this was all my fault, and somehow I didn't program the incubator correctly. I have read several threads that said the humidity runs high on the Brinsea Mini Advance. Not even sure if I have all the settings correct. You should see me handle the eggs for inspection. I feel like I am holding nitro glycerine and they will explode at any minute! I will be quite defeated if I get no eggs to hatch, but this is all part of learning isn't it? I will keep everyone posted.. Thanks for the well wishes Cat, fingers crossed!

MB