Chicken Breed Focus - Appenzeller Spitzhauben

[PhoredaBurds]

Speaking of broody hens, we're playing mind games with ours. [COLOR=333333] She went broody about a week before the hatch date. I slipped 2 eggs under her on day 18. I didn't want to risk all of them just in case it was too sort of a window. (A clumsy roo trampled one egg on day 20.) Cookie hatched the remaining egg, but WHAT AN EGG! Thankfully chickens can't count! I kept slipping more incubator chicks under her as they hatched. She must think she's Superhen by hatching 21 chicks from a single egg in less than a week! [/COLOR] [COLOR=333333] [/COLOR] [COLOR=333333]Don't know how she does it, but Cookie has 21 LF English Orpington chicks under her in the pic below! She's only a bantam..... but what a spread! [/COLOR] [COLOR=333333]Often I'm not seeing any chicks under the back up Mama Heating Pad. They're all squeezing under Cookie. It reminds me of the Nutcracker's Lady with the big skirt. The chicks are under, on top of, or running around her.[/COLOR] [COLOR=333333] [/COLOR]

Great story!! Thank for making me smile!

 

[Alaskan]

I had a Marans one year that I did that with... I think she took in 45 chicks.

She did an excellent job.

 

[Faraday40]

I had a Marans one year that I did that with... I think she took in 45 chicks.

She did an excellent job.

45

Wow!

If I ever have one of my giant English Orps go broody, I may try that!

 

[brrabey]

Wonderful info on the shipped eggs! I've been reading here and there but you pretty much summed up everything I needed to know.
Eggs are coming tomorrow and I'll candle and let them rest. Thanks!
Have you had good results with shipped eggs? Mine are coming all the way from Vermont and I'm in Oregon. Nervous!
And it's funny how she doesn't leave the nest box but twice a day and only for 5 minutes max but how eggs keep getting added. She started on 8 and in the last couple of days, she's up to 13! Only 3 are hers. And she loves it! The more the merrier!
I would love to sneak some chicks in under her once hers hatch. Too funny!
I love this mama bird lifestyle... she'll take'em all!
When there's a will there's a way.

We've hatched a lot of shipped eggs. A few things that help are to unwrap the packaging & candle right away to check the air cells.  They will likely be detached in places but hopefully not rolling all over or scrambled.  You're also checking for small cracks or any other thing that might need fixing. (bit of candle wax mends a small crack.)  Then set your eggs air cell up in a safe place for 12-24 hrs if the air cells were a little jiggly.  This helps them repair & firm up.  I mark the broody's hatching eggs with a Sharpie marker because the other hens will continue to lay & often those new eggs will find their way into the broody's collection.  I have no idea how, but I've seen eggs laid in one box move boxes & end up under a broody hen. ????  Does the broody hen roll them or carry them?  I have no idea, but I knew for sure it was the hens moving them when a golf ball changed nests.

If some of the air cells are still very jiggly, I'd put those in the incubator & skip turning them for the 1st day or two.  After that, treat them like normal.  Slip them under the broody with the rest of the eggs - if there's room.

 

[Faraday40]

Wonderful info on the shipped eggs! I've been reading here and there but you pretty much summed up everything I needed to know.
Eggs are coming tomorrow and I'll candle and let them rest. Thanks!
Have you had good results with shipped eggs? Mine are coming all the way from Vermont and I'm in Oregon. Nervous!
And it's funny how she doesn't leave the nest box but twice a day and only for 5 minutes max but how eggs keep getting added. She started on 8 and in the last couple of days, she's up to 13! Only 3 are hers. And she loves it! The more the merrier!
I would love to sneak some chicks in under her once hers hatch. Too funny!
I love this mama bird lifestyle... she'll take'em all!
When there's a will there's a way.

Our DD has done several incubation experiments over the past few years. One of her 1st was hatching shipped eggs vs local eggs. Basically once she discovered that hatching eggs could be purchased via eBay, she came up with a reason - aka 4-H poultry science project - to try it out. Of course her local eggs hatched much better - as expected. The experiment was well planned & carried out for a 3rd grader. What I found interesting was that the eggs which traveled the farthest (NC to IL) had a 70% hatch while the eggs from KY had only 10% hatch. I think it may have to do with method of shipping, & the longer distances were flown vs. driven in a bumpy truck. I'm hoping DD will to continue to test this idea in the future, but she got into broody hens, genetics, egg shape vs. gender, & even trained chickens to assist in card tricks.

 

[brrabey]

Love it all!
I can't wait to get my eggs and candle. Excitement all around!

Our DD has done several incubation experiments over the past few years.  One of her 1st was hatching shipped eggs vs local eggs. Basically once she discovered that hatching eggs could be purchased via eBay, she came up with a reason - aka 4-H poultry science project - to try it out.  Of course her local eggs hatched much better - as expected.  The experiment was well planned & carried out for a 3rd grader.  What I found interesting was that the eggs which traveled the farthest (NC to IL) had a 70% hatch while the eggs from KY had only 10% hatch.  I think it may have to do with method of shipping, & the longer distances were flown vs. driven in a bumpy truck.  I'm hoping DD will to continue to test this idea in the future, but she got into broody hens, genetics, egg shape vs. gender, & even trained chickens to assist in card tricks.  

 

[Faraday40]

at 4.5 weeks




today at 6wks


Chick A = Male
Always had the thickest legs
2 things I noticed when looking back at pics:
* This one always had a center bump in the middle of its top beak (You may have to click to enlarge pics to see them)
* when the "spitz" began to feather around 4 weeks, this one had tall stalk-like feather shafts

This one was my fav, so I'm sad that it's a male



CHICK B
at 2 wks



at 4.5 wks


today at 6wks


Chick B = Female
It never had a beak bump. Still has no color in face/wattles

CHICK C

at 2 wks



at 4.5 wks




Today at 6 wks



Chick C = Male
This one has the nicest (but slowest growing) spitz & I was on the fence about it for a while. At 2 weeks, it developed a slight beak bump like A, but always had thinner legs like B. Had the long feather shafts when crest grew in. Face color went back & forth.

Color: Although my chick with white wings turned out to be male, my darkest one was also a male, so I didn't see an indicators in feather color patterns. Last year I also had one that grew mostly white wing feathers (from a different breeder) & she turned out to be female.

I'll be getting more baby spitzes on Wed. Can't wait to see if I can guess genders of those sooner than 6wks.

 

[Alaskan]

Two of mine at a minth old.

The light one is Chamois, the other is Golden Spangled.

 

[Faraday40]

Two of mine at a minth old.

The light one is Chamois, the other is Golden Spangled.

I think the chamois is a very pretty color.

 

[Faraday40]

BTW- Do you free range your birds or are there too many predators where you live?