April 2023 Hatch-A-Long

[Honora]

How are everybody’s April chicks doing? Mine are 4 weeks old now and I am starting to get some idea of which are male and which are female. With Swedish Flowers I can usually tell by 6 weeks.

I sold 4 that seemed like they are probably female, leaving me with 3 that look female, 1 unknown and 7 that look male. 1 chick somehow vanished out of the shed since last week, not sure what happened.

 

[Canadian Wind]

How are everybody’s April chicks doing? Mine are 4 weeks old now and I am starting to get some idea of which are male and which are female. With Swedish Flowers I can usually tell by 6 weeks.

I sold 4 that seemed like they are probably female, leaving me with 3 that look female, 1 unknown and 7 that look male. 1 chick somehow vanished out of the shed since last week, not sure what happened.

Well, the four I managed to hatch are doing good. Three are outside during the day, the other is babysitting the chicks since it's kind of on the runty side.

 

[Waterfaery]

How are everybody’s April chicks doing? Mine are 4 weeks old now and I am starting to get some idea of which are male and which are female. With Swedish Flowers I can usually tell by 6 weeks.

I sold 4 that seemed like they are probably female, leaving me with 3 that look female, 1 unknown and 7 that look male. 1 chick somehow vanished out of the shed since last week, not sure what happened.

Sorry to hear about your chick. What a mystery! Maybe a rat or stoat?

Mine are the same age as yours, I think. I took their heater away yesterday and they did fine overnight without it. They're all well except one isn't quite growing as it should. I noticed it last week because it had sort of separated itself and was a bit quiet. I checked it over and it had a squishy crop and a bloated abdomen. I wonder if it either swallowed something it shouldn't or has some sort of internal issue. I gave it a molasses and coconut oil flush and treated it for coccidiosis as well just to be safe. It's acting fine and has started putting on weight again at a good rate but it's still half the size of the others.

I haven't had any luck integrating them with the March group. No matter what I try, they get badly bullied. I don't think I'll do two hatches back to back again. I thought brooding them together would be a great idea but I've just had to brood two separate groups at the same time instead, which is a pain. The March group are now out and integrated fully with the adults. The April group have the door on their run wedged open enough for them to come out but the bigger ones can't fit in. They practically never come out and if they do, they're chased back in immediately.

I'm so happy that my May chicks are with a broody. It is so much less work!

 

[junior67]

Sorry to hear about your chick. What a mystery! Maybe a rat or stoat?

Mine are the same age as yours, I think. I took their heater away yesterday and they did fine overnight without it. They're all well except one isn't quite growing as it should. I noticed it last week because it had sort of separated itself and was a bit quiet. I checked it over and it had a squishy crop and a bloated abdomen. I wonder if it either swallowed something it shouldn't or has some sort of internal issue. I gave it a molasses and coconut oil flush and treated it for coccidiosis as well just to be safe. It's acting fine and has started putting on weight again at a good rate but it's still half the size of the others.

I haven't had any luck integrating them with the March group. No matter what I try, they get badly bullied. I don't think I'll do two hatches back to back again. I thought brooding them together would be a great idea but I've just had to brood two separate groups at the same time instead, which is a pain. The March group are now out and integrated fully with the adults. The April group have the door on their run wedged open enough for them to come out but the bigger ones can't fit in. They practically never come out and if they do, they're chased back in immediately.

I'm so happy that my May chicks are with a broody. It is so much less work!

Sorry yours didn't integrate. I have Match and April chicks 3 weeks apart and put them together when the younger ones were a few days old and they did well. My chick doors on the brooder has been open for about 3 weeks I think so they spend basically all day in the coop, a couple have ventured into the run a couple times but that is it. Think some are getting too big for the chick door, or they have just moved out of the brooder but they stayed out last night.

I also have 1 runt. It gets along with the rest but isn't as active. It is one of the 6 weeks old. I have debated on bringing her in with the 2 weeks old since I don't think she is much bigger. Not sure where she would thrive best....

 

[gimmie birdies]

I had chicks from April, and I moved them to a different pen. I had sold all my chicks from one group, but one and put her in with those babies. (she is a few weeks older.) She has taken a shine to the younger April chicks, and they also like her.

 

[Honora]

Well my April hatch has ended up being 9 cockerels and 2 pullets Hope I have more females in the May hatch!

 

[LTAY1946]

Well my April hatch has ended up being 9 cockerels and 2 pullets Hope I have more females in the May hatch!

My April and May hatchlings are running together now and my eyes are telling me I have about a 60/40 hatch favoring pullets. I could have used more roos for freezer camp. I've already bought the charcoal.

 

[Honora]

My April and May hatchlings are running together now and my eyes are telling me I have about a 60/40 hatch favoring pullets. I could have used more roos for freezer camp. I've already bought the charcoal.

You can have mine if you come over and pick them up

 

[LTAY1946]

You can have mine if you come over and pick them up

I'd love an Irish vacation but my girls would disown me if I left them for a couple of weeks.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

How are everybody’s April chicks doing?

I let the April pullets (14) out of their integration area this morning, and they're finding their place within the big flock (55+ birds) right now. Or trying to, anyway. 10-1/2 weeks old. They've been fenced inside the front half of the Big Coop (a converted camper) for the past week.

I've been checking on them every hour or so, and so far all is well. One ventured out early and couldn't find her way back into the coop, so she's been chased a bit and is rather frightened, but she's okay. It's a huge run and there are lots of hiding places and obstructions. I noticed a young cockerel harassing her, but several of the older hens ganged up on him instead and sent him running! LOL. The rest of the bunch is hovering just inside the door peeking out, and the other hens and roosters are stopping by in ones and twos to check them out. I saw two of my oldest hens (3-4 yrs) greeting one little girl with only mild interest. I had a talk with them to watch out for their great-granddaughters and teach them the ropes.

There are a couple of them I'm probably going to have to snatch off the roost soon and put them back in with the boys (17) where they belong. It's still just so hard to tell for sure, but I've got 5 weeks to go until slaughter date for the boys, so there's time to figure them out. Or maybe I'll keep one, I dunno yet. The confirmed boys are living in the Schoolhouse (another converted camper coop) for another week, until Camp Cockerel's current group of boys (March hatch) are dispatched. Then they'll graduate to the Camp until their turn with the broomstick.

My freezer is filling up this spring, and so is the Big Coop. It's been a prolific season!