Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[sjturner79]

Thanks everyone. The first 4 chicks are all the same age ot of the same hatch from the same person. The light one is about two weeks older hatched under my broody. Ill try and get a photo but roger has a wierd comb. Like two combs instead of one. If all but pingu end up as roos ill have to get new chicks. Darn

Love to see a pic of that comb. It sounds like it might be a standard rose comb. They are getting rare but they handle heat better apparently.

 

[Teila]

I would like to share what I think is a funny story ……

We have a compost bin … one of those ones that looks a bit like a square Dalek with four small access doors on the bottom of each side.

Anyways, every few months or so, when the bin is getting a bit full and I know I am not going to need the good earth for anything, I take off the small doors and drag out the soil and grubs for the girls to dig through … they love their bug dispenser

For the past few years, when I do this, there have been beetle larvae, not much bigger than a large meal worm but much fatter .. chicken yum yum!

Along with these snack sized larvae have been larvae easily the size of a human finger but fatter and there is no way my little bantams are going to take on these whoppers, so they get popped back into the compost.

So, this afternoon, after probably 6 months or so since I last did, I take off the little doors and start scraping out the soil etc for the gals … unbeknown to me, the 3-4 year old whopper sized larvae have finally turned into rhinoceros beetles!

The gals come running over all excited and a rhino beetle which I had not seen raises on his back legs and hisses at them .. never seen chickens scatter so fast! Lol

So, trying to not to roll around laughing, I gather up all the rhino beetles, which were now obvious and pop them back in the compost. The girls come back and start scratching through the dirt, filling up on bugs.

However, every time one of them goes behind the compost bin she runs back, buk buking up a storm .. ooops, I missed one of the beetles lol. Got him and popped him back in the bin also.

A few minutes later, I am sitting there, watching them have a wonderful time with some bickering over bugs thrown in for good measure and Crystal starts ‘appealing’ so I turn around to tell off whoever is picking on her and she is all alone??? Next thing she runs past me, still upset, stops and looks down at her leg .. guess who has a rhinoceros beetle hanging off her leg? So funny! Poor Crystal! She reached down, grabbed him with her beak and tossed him across the yard. I saved him and put him back in the compost.

Surely that is all of them? Nope! Lol Next thing KiKi is buk buking up a storm also .. I got there just in time to see her leap a good 3 foot, straight up when a rhino beetle hind legged and hissed at her … when I had composed myself and regained my strength from laughing, I saved that one also.

Mental note to self: Check that beetle larvae have not transformed into hissing chicken predator prior to letting the gals dig in the compost dirt

 

[Fancychooklady]

So...reading about how I should prepare my incubator before setting the eggs for hatching, several tutes seem to suggest that I should dip my eggs in hydrogen peroxide to sanitize them.  My instinct is that this is not a great idea. :| Am I misinterpreting this?  I'm hesitant to do it. :/

Until I'm more sure, I'm going out to clean the incubator with soap and water, then hydrogen peroxide (excepting the electric-y bits, of course, which I'll wipe down with methylated spirits.) and will then leave it in the sun as most guides suggested.  

Any household bleach will do the trick. I use domestos.
Unless your eggs are dirty ( personally I don't set eggs if they have poop on them ) , there is no reason to clean or dip them. The ' bloom ' that covers the egg prevents the porous shell from absorbing bacteria. If you wash this away you may be inviting all kinds of problems in.
It is very important to wash the bator between hatches but if it is new , it really isn't necessary. I pop mine into muffin trays on at lockdown to prevent the gibley bits from falling into the bottom.

 

[satay]

I would like to share what I think is a funny story ……

We have a compost bin … one of those ones that looks a bit like a square Dalek with four small access doors on the bottom of each side.

Anyways, every few months or so, when the bin is getting a bit full and I know I am not going to need the good earth for anything, I take off the small doors and drag out the soil and grubs for the girls to dig through … they love their bug dispenser 

For the past few years, when I do this, there have been beetle larvae, not much bigger than a large meal worm but much fatter .. chicken yum yum!

Along with these snack sized larvae have been larvae easily the size of a human finger but fatter and there is no way my little bantams are going to take on these whoppers, so they get popped back into the compost. 

So, this afternoon, after probably 6 months or so since I last did, I take off the little doors and start scraping out the soil etc for the gals … unbeknown to me, the 3-4 year old whopper sized larvae have finally turned into rhinoceros beetles!

The gals come running over all excited and a rhino beetle which I had not seen raises on his back legs and hisses at them .. never seen chickens scatter so fast! Lol

So, trying to not to roll around laughing, I gather up all the rhino beetles, which were now obvious and pop them back in the compost.  The girls come back and start scratching through the dirt, filling up on bugs. 

However, every time one of them goes behind the compost bin she runs back, buk buking up a storm .. ooops, I missed one of the beetles lol.  Got him and popped him back in the bin also.

A few minutes later, I am sitting there, watching them have a wonderful time with some bickering over bugs thrown in for good measure and Crystal starts ‘appealing’ so I turn around to tell off whoever is picking on her and she is all alone??? Next thing she runs past me, still upset, stops and looks down at her leg .. guess who has a rhinoceros beetle hanging off her leg?  So funny!  Poor Crystal!  She reached down, grabbed him with her beak and tossed him across the yard.  I saved him and put him back in the compost.

Surely that is all of them?  Nope! Lol  Next thing KiKi is buk buking up a storm also .. I got there just in time to see her leap a good 3 foot, straight up when a rhino beetle hind legged and hissed at her … when I had composed myself and regained my strength from laughing, I saved that one also.

Mental note to self:  Check that beetle larvae have not transformed into hissing chicken predator prior to letting the gals dig in the compost dirt   

Omg too funny

 

[tandykins]

Any household bleach will do the trick. I use domestos.
Unless your eggs are dirty ( personally I don't set eggs if they have poop on them ) , there is no reason to clean or dip them. The ' bloom ' that covers the egg prevents the porous shell from absorbing bacteria. If you wash this away you may be inviting all kinds of problems in.
It is very important to wash the bator between hatches but if it is new , it really isn't necessary. I pop mine into muffin trays on at lockdown to prevent the gibley bits from falling into the bottom.

Okay - that's really good to know. I do sometimes set eggs with a smidge off dried poop on them. This is because I sell all of my better hatching eggs and keep only the ones unable to be sold for myself (body checked eggs, cracked eggs, misshapen eggs, etc). My hatching rates aren't fantastic, but I hardly expect them to be given what I'm starting with.

The incubator was new - but I think it was great practice to give it a good clean (and honestly this was the first time it had ever been suggested to me that I -should- clean my incubator between hatches - which now seems obvious to me).

 

[satay]

So...reading about how I should prepare my incubator before setting the eggs for hatching, several tutes seem to suggest that I should dip my eggs in hydrogen peroxide to sanitize them.  My instinct is that this is not a great idea. :| Am I misinterpreting this?  I'm hesitant to do it. :/

Until I'm more sure, I'm going out to clean the incubator with soap and water, then hydrogen peroxide (excepting the electric-y bits, of course, which I'll wipe down with methylated spirits.) and will then leave it in the sun as most guides suggested.  

i don't clean eggs at all. I just don't set dirty eggs. I wash my incubator with warm soapy water and then wipe it with disinfectant then dry in the sun.

 

[satay]

Okay - that's really good to know.  I do sometimes set eggs with a smidge off dried poop on them.  This is because I sell all of my better hatching eggs and keep only the ones unable to be sold for myself (body checked eggs, cracked eggs, misshapen eggs, etc). My hatching rates aren't fantastic, but I hardly expect them to be given what I'm starting with.

The incubator was new - but I think it was great practice to give it a good clean (and honestly this was the first time it had ever been suggested to me that I -should- clean my incubator between hatches - which now seems obvious to me).

yes always wash your incubator after every hatch.

 

[tandykins]

yes always wash your incubator after every hatch.

I definitely will from now on.

 

[chooks01]

Uuuugh.  My dog Bruno has started egg stealing again.  I'm finding my plastic dummy eggs all over the yard from when he realizes he's not getting a tasty treat and drops them.  I think it may be time for me to fill more shells with hot sauce and give doggy a treat. >

Coco did the same thing she tore my plastic eggs as well hmmm the doggy treat seems like a good idea must try it

 

[chooks01]

My broody silkie Pearl with Fred the roo