ejcrist
Songster
Great info - thanks. Yeah you're climate is slightly cooler and wetter than here in the frying pan but I'd bet I'd have the exact same results. I really want to avoid those hot months since they ain't fit for man nor beast and certainly not chicks. I think what I might do is put my boy Hoss in with a couple of the best gals as soon as I finish the breeding setup in October, wait two weeks and then start collecting eggs to hatch probably around about the second week of November. If nothing else I'll at least get some trigger time learning how to hatch eggs. And then I'll probably do it again in March and compare the results. Worst case scenario I won't end up with anything we want to keep, we'll have a BBQ six weeks later, and then give it another go the following October.@bnjrob gave great advice and most definitely knows a lot more than I do about selecting birds for breeding and culling. Thank you, @bnjrob ! I'm copying/pasting your comments in my 'great big book of everything chicken'.
Since I live only a little south from you, I would just like to emphasize that you really want to avoid hatching in the hottest months around here. I've encountered a number of issues with egg fertility in the summer months that I never experience during other times of the year, and I have a theory that their summer molt has something to do with it. Also, maintaining proper temperature and humidity in even the best incubators seems more challenging during monsoon season. I keep my incubator in the house in a climate controlled environment, but still have had repeated issues with summer hatches. And broody hens really struggle with their clutch in the summer. I know of a few people who's broody hens and chicks died from the heat.
I've now hatched every season here in AZ and two of my best hatches were in October, which ironically also resulted in some of my best growth rates. I did one hatch in January that resulted in a good hatch rate, but really slow growth rates. My March hatch results were dramatically improved by comparison.
Since "green" is so hard to come by around here most of the year, you may want to consider getting a small sprouting setup for supplemental feeding for your breeders. They're really inexpensive and easy to use and don't take up much space. I typically sprout sunflower, alfalfa, radish, wheat grass and broccoli sprouts during the cooler months along with growing kale in my garden for the chickens. They very much appreciate the nutrient rich "treats" and I've gotten better egg production from them as a result.
