Hi everyone! Not to sound creepy but I've just about been stalking this site for the last 4 months. We decided to get chickens this spring and before even getting our first five buff Orpington pullets from farm and fleet; what I've since discovered is an illness known as chicken math, struck. Big time. Both myself and my future Hubby grew up with chickens briefly, but didn't know much about them. Certainly didn't know the loving intelligent creatures they can be(we do have a few stereotypically stupid bird's now in the flock- I say this with love)
I have no idea what chickens I grew up with except that they were hens and I think we only had them a year (Mom says my father got them for meat birds.) Most of the original ones were eaten but not by us, by our dog or the neighbor's dogs but they replaced them with their own birds including a gold colored rooster named Sandy who was tame and friendly. Hence our first choice of chickens.
so here's the chicken math run down:
We ordered 5 buff Orpington pullets to be delivered to farm & fleet on 5/13 and made the mistake of looking at tractor supply and craigslist. We went to tractor supply to get three pullets and try for a silkie. We didn't know they had a six bird minimum and walked out with seven(one of which was too weak to stand - thanks to the egg yolk trick I learned here, he, we later learned made it and is thriving(oegb -not 100% certain of color))
We were hoping for one white rock pullet but they were sold out so we got 4 isa browns(3 of which have pointed tail feathers, what's with that?), the little oegb, a second small chick(buff Brahma), and one little blue chick the woman said had five toes(it did not and he is now a beautiful porcelain d'uccle. I was denied my silkie. We had a freak accident the buff Brahma fell asleep(we think) in the waterer and drowned. We were worried about the tiny oegb as the d'uccle was twice his size and hadn't really bonded with him. We called tractor supply and explained asking if we could just get two more instead of 6. They went above and beyond and gave us two more. One golden Laced sebright(Lacy) and the other one I chose was the only chick left in the bin that wasn't a sebright. I'm still scratching my head about this one. He,unfortunately, was a very dark brown chick with a cinnamon colored head no other markings and the chick was almost black with a rose comb. About half his feathers are red laced the other half black. I named him Coco and he was the sweetest chick but he's becoming aggressive and I don't want to send him to freezer camp.(help!) We then got 5 straight run silver Laced wyandottes from a local guy(At least one is a cockeral. I had thought two but at twelve weeks shouldn't it be pretty obvious?)
So in case you're counting we had 13 with a definite 5 more on the way. Then my dear Hubby(h2b) discovered the wonder of incubators and that farm and fleet had theirs(with thermostat and hygrometer, fan and egg turner on sale and it came with a free candler and glass thermometer for a second temp reading almost half off) well we needed one of those lol and would you look at that ebay sells hatching eggs... Determined to get me my silkie he ordered me 12+ eggs from a mixed pen npip with three bonus bantam eggs(that could be either Cochin or self blue oegb) we received 17 eggs in great shape and after resting into the incubator they went. I was ecstatic! With dreams of chickens dancing in my head; I waited and waited and waited some more. Finally the day arrived to pick up our buff Orpingtons, but would they have extras for sale? We had each picked one additional breed that we would get two pullets of, if they had them. Including my mother who lives with us temporarily. Mom- speckled Sussex me- Ameracauna/we dh- Australia white...
They didn't have any we wanted except EE so we came home with 4 and our Orpingtons.
22 chickens so far
17 eggs in the bator
First candle and three eggs didn't do a thing gave them to the second candle and still blanks. 14 eggs in the bator all appeared to be developing. Hatch day came one pip. Then two. Next day first egg hatched. More pipped and hatched but still that second egg hadn't zipped any more. After 30 hours I did some research and decided that I had to try to help. I was sure the chick was in distress. Despite keeping the humidity high and not opening the incubator the membranes on several chicks were turning white and drying before they could full zip. With a heavy heart I tenderly took out and opened the second egg sure of what I would find(I had waited until no more chicks had pipped except one whom I guessed was also in distress). I was correct the second egg contained a dead chick that had failed to cut through the membrane in several places as it zipped. The other egg had been close to 18 hours and had failed to zip at all. However I could see the beak and she could breathe and was peeping but her peeps were getting weaker and more frantic. I knew if I didn't help her she would die, so I very very slowly(knowing all possible consequences) started to very cautiously chip away the egg and peel back the dried membrane. After stopping and starting a number of times to be sure I didn't harm the chick and to allow the chick to warm up. Finally the baby rolled out of what was left of its shell. To my horror the other chicks went after her umbilical cord that was still attached grabbing at her legs and dragging her around finally she became detached and I grabbed her from the incubator having made the horrifying discovery that her belly button was still ever-so-slightly open. I ran in and sat with her in front of a heater cranked up with her wrapped in some flannel pjs. While I wracked my brain for what to do with the baby. I finally lined a country crock dish with paper towels and put her into it in the corner of the incubator to dry and be warm as well as making sure she could see the other chicks. During this another chick pipped but we lost it too. All said and done one egg had quit very early on, we got 8 chicks(one barred Cochin, the little one I saved- a self blue oegb, three white silkies, one partridge, one gray/blue?, and one buff. I still can't sex the silkies who are ten weeks now, but the self blue is a pullet I'm almost sure and I think the barred Cochin is too.
So that's a grand total of 30 and at least four confirmed cockerals. With almost certainly another two or three silkie roos. Did I mention we weren't planning on roos this year?
Lol again sorry for the long post. But I'm glad to be here.
I have no idea what chickens I grew up with except that they were hens and I think we only had them a year (Mom says my father got them for meat birds.) Most of the original ones were eaten but not by us, by our dog or the neighbor's dogs but they replaced them with their own birds including a gold colored rooster named Sandy who was tame and friendly. Hence our first choice of chickens.
so here's the chicken math run down:
We ordered 5 buff Orpington pullets to be delivered to farm & fleet on 5/13 and made the mistake of looking at tractor supply and craigslist. We went to tractor supply to get three pullets and try for a silkie. We didn't know they had a six bird minimum and walked out with seven(one of which was too weak to stand - thanks to the egg yolk trick I learned here, he, we later learned made it and is thriving(oegb -not 100% certain of color))
We were hoping for one white rock pullet but they were sold out so we got 4 isa browns(3 of which have pointed tail feathers, what's with that?), the little oegb, a second small chick(buff Brahma), and one little blue chick the woman said had five toes(it did not and he is now a beautiful porcelain d'uccle. I was denied my silkie. We had a freak accident the buff Brahma fell asleep(we think) in the waterer and drowned. We were worried about the tiny oegb as the d'uccle was twice his size and hadn't really bonded with him. We called tractor supply and explained asking if we could just get two more instead of 6. They went above and beyond and gave us two more. One golden Laced sebright(Lacy) and the other one I chose was the only chick left in the bin that wasn't a sebright. I'm still scratching my head about this one. He,unfortunately, was a very dark brown chick with a cinnamon colored head no other markings and the chick was almost black with a rose comb. About half his feathers are red laced the other half black. I named him Coco and he was the sweetest chick but he's becoming aggressive and I don't want to send him to freezer camp.(help!) We then got 5 straight run silver Laced wyandottes from a local guy(At least one is a cockeral. I had thought two but at twelve weeks shouldn't it be pretty obvious?)
So in case you're counting we had 13 with a definite 5 more on the way. Then my dear Hubby(h2b) discovered the wonder of incubators and that farm and fleet had theirs(with thermostat and hygrometer, fan and egg turner on sale and it came with a free candler and glass thermometer for a second temp reading almost half off) well we needed one of those lol and would you look at that ebay sells hatching eggs... Determined to get me my silkie he ordered me 12+ eggs from a mixed pen npip with three bonus bantam eggs(that could be either Cochin or self blue oegb) we received 17 eggs in great shape and after resting into the incubator they went. I was ecstatic! With dreams of chickens dancing in my head; I waited and waited and waited some more. Finally the day arrived to pick up our buff Orpingtons, but would they have extras for sale? We had each picked one additional breed that we would get two pullets of, if they had them. Including my mother who lives with us temporarily. Mom- speckled Sussex me- Ameracauna/we dh- Australia white...
They didn't have any we wanted except EE so we came home with 4 and our Orpingtons.
22 chickens so far
17 eggs in the bator
First candle and three eggs didn't do a thing gave them to the second candle and still blanks. 14 eggs in the bator all appeared to be developing. Hatch day came one pip. Then two. Next day first egg hatched. More pipped and hatched but still that second egg hadn't zipped any more. After 30 hours I did some research and decided that I had to try to help. I was sure the chick was in distress. Despite keeping the humidity high and not opening the incubator the membranes on several chicks were turning white and drying before they could full zip. With a heavy heart I tenderly took out and opened the second egg sure of what I would find(I had waited until no more chicks had pipped except one whom I guessed was also in distress). I was correct the second egg contained a dead chick that had failed to cut through the membrane in several places as it zipped. The other egg had been close to 18 hours and had failed to zip at all. However I could see the beak and she could breathe and was peeping but her peeps were getting weaker and more frantic. I knew if I didn't help her she would die, so I very very slowly(knowing all possible consequences) started to very cautiously chip away the egg and peel back the dried membrane. After stopping and starting a number of times to be sure I didn't harm the chick and to allow the chick to warm up. Finally the baby rolled out of what was left of its shell. To my horror the other chicks went after her umbilical cord that was still attached grabbing at her legs and dragging her around finally she became detached and I grabbed her from the incubator having made the horrifying discovery that her belly button was still ever-so-slightly open. I ran in and sat with her in front of a heater cranked up with her wrapped in some flannel pjs. While I wracked my brain for what to do with the baby. I finally lined a country crock dish with paper towels and put her into it in the corner of the incubator to dry and be warm as well as making sure she could see the other chicks. During this another chick pipped but we lost it too. All said and done one egg had quit very early on, we got 8 chicks(one barred Cochin, the little one I saved- a self blue oegb, three white silkies, one partridge, one gray/blue?, and one buff. I still can't sex the silkies who are ten weeks now, but the self blue is a pullet I'm almost sure and I think the barred Cochin is too.
So that's a grand total of 30 and at least four confirmed cockerals. With almost certainly another two or three silkie roos. Did I mention we weren't planning on roos this year?
Lol again sorry for the long post. But I'm glad to be here.
Lol
