Colorado

[Mtn Margie]

Ha! At least my NOSE isn't getting pecked!

Can't wait to deal with Blu Kote. I'm already covered with straw from having to bellycrawl under the coop for the one hen's eggs who INSISTS on laying under there. Peck No More in my nose. Chicken poop ground into my Bogs. Dirt of unknown origin under my fingernails. Mealworms in my coat pockets. What's a little Smurf tint?

I feel like I could walk into a party and a stranger could say "Oh, I see you have chickens."

But I'm having a blast, for sure!

Yep!

 

[montain_dweller]

Hello, everyone in Colorado! I live in Idaho Springs, west of Denver. I live within city limits, and was surprised at the number of people with chickens, and geese! That's a testament to how easy it is to keep poultry cleanly and happily with close neighbors. And I mean REALLY close. Most houses in this small mining community are just a few feet from each other.
By the way, my sister lives in Colorado Springs. I'll have to tell her that chickens are legal. She would probably be appalled. She thinks I'm nuts!

welcome aboard. I am just up the hill in plume. lots of birds around this area, despite its cold harsh winters. glad to see a few mountain dwellers around

 

[trsturself]

X2, Been there and done that too....... so sorry you did not have even one hatch, I was so hoping at least three or four would make it!

Just keep plugging away, setting eggs from local source will help. What are you keeping humidity at? Glad your Kiowa crew is doing well! They really have some healthy birds, even if they are hatchery stock, they are laying fools!

Humidity averaged 36% last time but it fluctuated a lot. Right now it's high (52%) because it's still coming down from the lockdown. I hope my tweeks will help it stabilize better this time around. I wrapped the turner arm that comes out of the bator with paper towels to plug the hole it goes through a little better. I also lined the bottom of the bator with large rocks from outside (that I boiled first) to use as a heat sink. I also recalibrated my thermometer. I put the bator on carpet too instead of flooring.
Fingers crossed all those changes help.

What % humidity do you all attempt to keep it?

Check out this thread....https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/96729/incubation-experience-in-colorados-foothills

BTW, it was nice to meet you!!!

Thanks! Looks like people found putting a humidifier in the room helped. That's good because the room I moved it to we run a humidifier in 24/7.

Nice meeting you too. Wish I hadn't been in such a rush. We didn't get home that day until after 6!

 

[samsr]

My little silkie decided to go broody today. She has one of her eggs an austrolorp egg and i put three quail eggs under her also as my quail laid three eggs today also. Time will tell what will hatch. I hope she is a better hatcher than my cochin. The cochin is a great mom but terrible at hatching the eggs. 24 in the bator at the moment also. Its going to be a busy hatching season.

 

[suncatcher]

Read about the dry hatch method, it is what I used, not saying it will be what works for you, but gives you some ideas on what others have tried with success. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/546026/anyone-ever-try-the-dry-hatch-method-before/50 Your humidity being high now could be due to the fact that the eggs have a lot of moisture inside them, is ok, just check and mark those air cells to make sure they are getting bigger as the days go by.

Wish I would have kept notes on my hatching, but didn't, I do know that I kept my humidity in the bator around 45, but would drop down to the 30's sometimes, also, we had a ton of rain during my most successful hatch, so may have been more humid inside the house during that time. It is very difficult to get that humidity up for the last three days here in our high desert, I used (2) bowls of water, all the trays were filled with water, and at least three sponges soaking wet. It is a science, so you have to be somewhat precise.

Hope you get a decent hatch with the local eggs, much easier than dealing with shipped eggs. Read all you can, you will find what works best for your area, your house, etc, and stay with it, don't give up, if it was easy everyone would be doing it! lol

I know never enough hours in the day, and you were covering a lot of miles that day!!!

 

[Pozees]

I agree with suncatcher, the ideal hatching conditions are going to be slightly different at every home. I do not add any water to the incubator. I boost the humidity in the room with the humidifier, and that keeps the humidity in the incubator in the 20s. I use a Genesis 1588 for a hatcher, filling both 1 and 2 with warmed water, and adding a pyrex dish with warmed water and a clean white towel so the humidity goes up without adding a drowning risk - occasionally the chicks have gotten up into the bowl. I will be the first to say I don't think I have perfected things for here yet, but I'm getting there. Some eggs seem to lose too much moisture, others not enough. I have started moving eggs to the hatcher on Day 18 again - I was moving them on Day 19, but too many bantams hatch on Day 20 and sometimes they were already pipped on Day 19 (Silkies are the only bantams I've hatched so far, although I have a bunch of Bantam Surprise in there right now).

 

[Mtn Margie]

My little silkie decided to go broody today. She has one of her eggs an austrolorp egg and i put three quail eggs under her also as my quail laid three eggs today also. Time will tell what will hatch. I hope she is a better hatcher than my cochin. The cochin is a great mom but terrible at hatching the eggs. 24 in the bator at the moment also. Its going to be a busy hatching season.

Really? What have others experienced? I was thinking of adding about 5 standard blue cochins to the herd this year. I honestly do not want to deal with too fuzzy around the head birds so silkies are out. Just too many critters that would love to eat chicken if they could and so far, they haven't, but I want clean eyed birds just to be safer.

 

[samsr]

Really?  What have others experienced?  I was thinking of adding about 5  standard blue cochins to the herd this year.  I honestly do not want to deal with too fuzzy around the head birds so silkies are out.  Just too many critters that would love to eat chicken if they could and so far, they haven't, but I want clean eyed birds just to be safer.  

I wasnt sayi all cochin are bad hatchers. But i know my cochin was terrible at it her first time. She couldnt figure out that she needed to get off the eggs befor going poo. She had some really nasty rotten eggs by the time she was done. We did end up giving her a couple chicks when it was all said and done. She is a great mom. But a bad hatcher.

 

[suncatcher]

I agree with suncatcher, the ideal hatching conditions are going to be slightly different at every home.  I do not add any water to the incubator.  I boost the humidity in the room with the humidifier, and that keeps the humidity in the incubator in the 20s.  I use a Genesis 1588 for a hatcher, filling both 1 and 2 with warmed water, and adding a pyrex dish with warmed water and a clean white towel so the humidity goes up without adding a drowning risk - occasionally the chicks have gotten up into the bowl.  I will be the first to say I don't think I have perfected things for here yet, but I'm getting there.  Some eggs seem to lose too much moisture, others not enough.  I have started moving eggs to the hatcher on Day 18 again - I was moving them on Day 19, but too many bantams hatch on Day 20 and sometimes they were already pipped on Day 19 (Silkies are the only bantams I've hatched so far, although I have a bunch of Bantam Surprise in there right now).

Agreed, you can screen off the water bowls with hardware cloth, or make baskets out of hardware cloth so the chicks can't get into the bowls of water. Some folks make these wire baskets to keep the different breeds separate, or differnt breeding pens separate. I used some very small plastic bins I found at Family Dollar, but once they get to moving around they can hop out of them. I then put two together one on the bottom, and turned the second over and placed it on the top, I used zip ties on one side, so it was like a little cage.

I also noticed once they were well on their way to being dry, they almost seemed to get to hot in the bator, so I moved them to the brooder, they seemed to like it better, and were more quiet. If you have an extra bator, you can use it for a hatcher like Pozee does.

There are no hard set rules as to what will work for you and not another person. It is a learning experience, and trust me you will learn what works, and what doesn't!

Here are pictures of the bins I use, you could also put the water bowls in them if you wanted.

 

[Pozees]

Quote:
The Blue Cochin hen we lost last year defending her chick did a good job both hatching and raising. I have also heard Game and Phoenix hens are very good at brooding.