BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[Fire Ant Farm]

Quote:
That's usually been my experience with normal groups of NNs - sometimes it's the earliest sign of gender. But because this group of chicks had a rough start, the weights of the genders are all over the place. I am HOPING that there are a couple big girls in here...

(I have a chart like this for each of my group of chicks - it also helps as early warning if something's wrong with one or all.)

- Ant Farm

 

[Gorman Farm]

My first one pipped last night and hatched today, a full day early. It's been flopping around yelling at the other 18 eggs. One more pipped correctly, one pipped at the wrong end, and one is just wiggling like crazy. C'mon babies!!!!

how is your hatching going? I have one pipped and partially zipped and one pipped, I am getting concerned I don't have more pips on day 21...

 

[DesertChic]

Some of my hens wait until I come out. It is like they hold on until they see me. Then they make a mad dash for the box and pop out eggs. It's fun because for those hens, I know who laid what egg.

LOL! Clara Belle, the hen I got from you, she'll lay in the nesting box for hours, jump out, sing her song, leave the pen....and lay an egg right outside my sliding glass door. It cracks me up! The only time she laid an egg even inside the pen was when I closed the pop door to keep her and another bird inside. She was positively indignant about it!

 

[DesertChic]

how is your hatching going? I have one pipped and partially zipped and one pipped, I am getting concerned I don't have more pips on day 21...

Five more hatched during the night, five more have hatched so far today, one is slowly unzipping....and seven eggs haven't even pipped. It's day 20 for me.

 

[Gorman Farm]

Five more hatched during the night, five more have hatched so far today, one is slowly unzipping....and seven eggs haven't even pipped. It's day 20 for me.

Yay for you...

This is so unusual it is day 21 for me, one hatched, and one partially zipped and nothing happening in the other 15 eggs. I am worried now this has never happened to me before they are usually pipping closer together, and always by day 21. Ugh...

 

[Kassaundra]

Yay for you...

This is so unusual it is day 21 for me, one hatched, and one partially zipped and nothing happening in the other 15 eggs. I am worried now this has never happened to me before they are usually pipping closer together, and always by day 21. Ugh...

How long have you been hearing peeping and knocking? I KNOW w/ my bator everyone would be shrink wrapped. Is the zipper making progress or stalled? Can you clearly see the other eggs and know they haven't pipped or are there blind spots where they could have pipped out of your sight?

 

[Gorman Farm]

How long have you been hearing peeping and knocking? I KNOW w/ my bator everyone would be shrink wrapped. Is the zipper making progress or stalled? Can you clearly see the other eggs and know they haven't pipped or are there blind spots where they could have pipped out of your sight?

No I have a pretty clear view.
This is my incubator.
Zipper is making some slow progress.
Humidity is ranging between 66-74% had a spike when the first one hatched. I am in Florida and it is fairly humid here so this is normal conditions per my last hatches.
I hear little peeps but not sure if it is just the two or others, cannot hear eggs knocking because of fan motor.
Once the zipper hatches I will consider re-candling some eggs to try and see what is happening. Don't wanna open bator right now.

 

[Gorman Farm]

Well obviously something has gone wonky. I don't know what.
Second chick was shrink wrapped and had to open bator, got him out but not sure if he will make it or not.
No other pips or zips. I went ahead and candled several eggs and found 5 late quitters, then I just had to stop close the bator and will check things out tomorrow. My heart is a little broken I had such high expectations for these eggs, if only the one lives I will have to go to TSC and buy some friends for him.

 

[Turk Raphael]

LOL! Clara Belle, the hen I got from you, she'll lay in the nesting box for hours, jump out, sing her song, leave the pen....and lay an egg right outside my sliding glass door. It cracks me up! The only time she laid an egg even inside the pen was when I closed the pop door to keep her and another bird inside. She was positively indignant about it!

Which cock covered Clara Belle? I'm assuming one of you fine NN's and if so, I'll be especially excited to see how the offspring turn out.

I'm a little late to the show, having just made final selections and seeded my pens, each with one cock and between 4 and 7 hens. That should produce enough fertile eggs for all my maniacally chronic brood hens to have their jets cooled.

EDIT: I have 12 hens that will lay from 10 to 15 eggs and begin to their pugnacious sit-ins over their favorite nest boxes. It was never a surprise when the Cornish hens became intensely broody but the White Chanteclers can match them but thankfully they will lay a lot more eggs between 'heats'. It's no wonder the Cornish isn't rated better for egg production. If they weren't as they are, they could match or perhaps eclipse several of the other dual purpose hens.

 

[NanaKat]

Going to put my two Naked Necks with a New Hamshire Red rooster to get a few more nn.
Thank you @Fire Ant Farm