Colorado

[pichuris]

That's great cluckcluckgirl. Hmmm, sounds like another demonstration for chicken fest.

 

[Pozees]

Its me again, lol.

22 hatched
2 pipped
1 deceased hatchling. I haven't opened the bator but I feel I need to remove him. I've looked at the hatching guides and it says nothing about removing the deceased while still in lock down. Anyone?

That's a tough one. I'd probably wait until morning, then have an insulated container at the ready with room for all the dry fluffy chicks, a trash container, and warm water to add to the incubator. Assuming there are still pipped eggs. Remove the dry chicks to the container, remove the deceased to a trash container with all shells, add warm water, close incubator back up and take the chicks to the brooder. Watch them, I have had to put chicks back into the incubator because they weren't ready yet. Sorry one didn't make it, but still sounds like you are getting a very good hatch. If you can't wait, do this tonight.

 

[samsr]

I discovered (with help from friendly people on this site and Chickens Magazine) that my rooster had bumblefoot. I was able to do surgical procedure all by myself for my very first time!!!! He behaved during the surgery and it came out wonderful!!!!

I have one with bumblefoot also. I am not lookig forward to the surgery as i only have squeemish girls to help. I know i can do it though. Comgrats on the surgery.

 

[pichuris]

Thanks Pozees. I can wait till the morning. Its probably better to wait till hubby goes to work cause he doesn't like the smell. Good thing he can't smell very well.

I'm not too upset (I guess use to it?). I mean of course we don't want them to die especially after all that work they did to get out and then for naught. My kids (7 and 5) have been brought up around animals and they know about death. Don't get me wrong we aren't cold hearted people. We just make it easier for the kids by clarifying "pet" and "food".

 

[ColoBecky]

Hi Everyone,
I'm new to backyard chickens. So please excuse what may be a silly question... I have a very small flock, young, inside the Colorado Springs city limits :2 EE's, 1 Rhode Island Red, and 1 Barred Rock (who I suspect is a rooster). I've just moved them from their brooder inside to their coop outside, but they have decided that they would rather sleep on ground in a heap than sleep inside the coop. For a couple of night now, I've had to "put them to bed" by hand. Is this normal? How long will it take them to learn to use their chicken ladder to access their elevated coop (they use it to get down in the morning without a problem)?

Also, I have read that you should have a minimum of 4 chickens in your flock for winter warmth. Is this true? If my Barred Rock is really a rooster, and has to go, should I try to replace him quickly with a pullet of similar age? I know that pecking order can be an issue...

Yep, totally normal to have to put the babies in by hand for a while. My latest little ones figured it out after one night, but they have the adult hens to watch, and I also kept them confined inside the coop for a couple of days before turning them loose. My first batch took several nights before they got the hang of it, and of course they liked to huddle in the corner that was under the elevated coop, so I had to crawl under there to retrieve all 8 of them each night.

 

[P-Funk]

Plenty of room for your flock. Opinions about adequate room abound, I think ideally 4 square feet per bird, so you are fine. I like the design - will you be shading a portion of the run or is it to the East of the building next to it? Never even used a paint sprayer or trencher, so I fear I am of no use to you.

Hi Pozees, It's actually the same run that was attached to the barn as of Sunday

It took 4 of us (all over 6'2") to move it from the paddock to the north side of the carriage house. There it will be shaded and out of the wind. I'm not sure if I want to put the tarp back over it or make part of the run roof solid. I just answered my own question after writing run roof. The reason I wanted a paint sprayer is because, I hear, the only reason to paint is to fill in the little gaps where lice and mites can live. We have a compressor so it's just a matter of renting one. It will be painted to match the house, because according to the HOA, we can't have chooks here. That way if anyone asks it's a dog house with some chickens in it. My next door (and only) neighbor is a real estate lawyer who also has chooks. Between the 2 of us we have big plans for the HOA

 

[Pozees]

Hi Pozees, It's actually the same run that was attached to the barn as of Sunday

It took 4 of us (all over 6'2") to move it from the paddock to the north side of the carriage house. There it will be shaded and out of the wind. I'm not sure if I want to put the tarp back over it or make part of the run roof solid. I just answered my own question after writing run roof. The reason I wanted a paint sprayer is because, I hear, the only reason to paint is to fill in the little gaps where lice and mites can live. We have a compressor so it's just a matter of renting one. It will be painted to match the house, because according to the HOA, we can't have chooks here. That way if anyone asks it's a dog house with some chickens in it. My next door (and only) neighbor is a real estate lawyer who also has chooks. Between the 2 of us we have big plans for the HOA

LOL I can picture you rubbing your hands together and doing the Snidely Whiplash, "Yah ah ahhhh!"

Painting will certainly make it last longer, and I imagine the sprayer goes WAY faster than brushes. The only trencher I have here is Bob, bless his heart, who dug the trench from the house to the coop to run power to it. Our "soil" would probably make good adobe - took him the better part of a week to dig his trench, he would soak, dig, put down more water to soak in, come inside and make a latte, talk to the cats, get sidetracked by an episode of Wyatt Earp, go back out and dig the newly soaked part, and repeat.

 

[pichuris]

I'm so glad I waited till this morning to remove the etc from the bator. We had a rain storm that took out the power. But they all seem fine. Ok so here goes:

51 eggs in bator
39 lockdown
25 live chicks
1 deceased hatchling
2 quiters (shrink wrapped) - I honestly think they had gotten turned over by the other chicks and the fluids went to the hole and covered their airway
11 still have hope (but I was so worried to just get them in the bator again I didn't tap or candle)

I had my old bator that's the same as this one. I just used the bottom prepped it and then had the kids at the ready I opened the bator kids got the chicks in a tote and I got the eggs in the other bottom and covered right away. So obviously humidity was lost but at least the temp wasn't lost for too long. It was all over in less then 1 minute.

Ok, small hatches I'm good with the bator. But for a large hatch I am so getting the hatching pads.

I'll post a pic when all is calm. lol

 

[wsmith]

So wsmith...how's that chicken project since last winter?

I popped in today to update my thread and you guys have gone on for 6547 posts since last November...OMG!

LOL. Look in on our FB page...Windy Ridge Dominiques.....

 

[Wendi C]

Oh, yeah, very normal to have to put them to bed. The least amount of times I've had to is 3 days and another batch 6 days. Pretty soon they'll be by passing the ladder and flying direct.

Send a pic of your possible BR roo plenty of us that can determine usually from just a picture.
.

Day three: still had to put them to bed by hand after trying to lure them in with strawberries. We're supposed to get rain this afternoon, so perhaps tonight they will be more motivated.
But, I'm relieved to know that it's normal.

This is Violet/Vern at approximately 8 weeks. I noticed yesterday that he's beginning to get bumps that look like spurs. There were some accordion-like noises coming from the brooder box before they moved outside (not too loud, but I'm pretty sure he's crowing). Also, he's getting pointy feathers at the base of his tail[FONT=arial, sans-serif].[/FONT]