chicken behavior

[franny]

So if a chicken lays 1 egg a day do they wait to sit on them untill they have enough, like 8? so does the egg stay dormant untill the hen sits on them? I want to incubate but do I wait to put them in the incubator till there is several? I do have a very active rooster.
Thanks!

 

[trilyn]

First, welcome to byc!! I believe you need to wait until a hen goes broody. If that's the case, then hang on-someone with more knowledge than me will be here in a sec! lol

 

[Babe77]

Have the same question

I'll give you a Bump...

 

[evonne]

you don't have to wait till they go broody... you can pop them in the incubator when you have as many as you want to hatch... i started mine with 13, then about 2 hours later i was bringinng in a new egg from that day and my 6 yr old wanted to put it in the bator too.. so we did since it'd only been a few hours since we started... you can store the on the counter until you're ready to start the bator .... i'm pretty sure you still want to turn them 3 or 5 times a day.....

 

[franny]

Thank You!
Ok so now can you recommend a small incubator? I only want to put up to 10 or so eggs in it. I had one as a kid that was about the size of a frisbee,and it worked great.
thanks again!

 

[evonne]

my son's kindergarden teacher had a round one that held 12 eggs.. but when i looked it up online it was like $400.... my hubby just bought me a Little Giant (LG) still air.. i'm trying it.. a lot of people don't really like these.. but it was $50... i'm turning by hand... trying to... i WILL do this.. at least 3 times a day.. i swear... lol.. blah... i'm on my first run in it right now.. and remembering to turn is a doozy... i think i need to get an auto turner.. lol... but that will probly be my christmas present...

 

[franny]

Evonne,
An LG? humm Ill look it up. McMurrey hatchery has a three egg incubator and it does all the work (turning) but its 100 bucks! They have another one for $18 but that was a little scary...have to regulate it and turn the eggs. maybe its worth the money to save us the time...not to mention my brain would need an alarm clock to remember to turn!lol
I just have to share this cause its so cool....me and my 3 yr old watched our hen lay an egg...watched it drop out! she lays her eggs on my bed (I know that's a whole 'nother story) and we sat there and watched.
Thanks!

 

[FortWorthChicks]

The egg on the bed story is funny

thanks for sharing that one

 

[AngieChick]

I have a hova bator that I have hatched out several batches with. Once set, they don't seem as prone to temp fluctuations as the Little Giants. Also check out this page on homemade bators https://www.backyardchickens.com/chicken-coop-incubator.html Also check out the forum section on incubating here at BYC.

You should be able to keep eggs on the counter for up to a week while gathering enough without any significant drop in viability. Perhaps even longer.

 

[Longhaven Hen]

Quote:
Okay...now I want to hear the rest of the story!