Colorado

[uzisuzuki]

:/[S[/S]
Nice, all this talk about bators is making me want to go dig ours out of then shed and look at them. Don't remember the kind as bought it from someone on here that was getting out of chickens. Our issue is where to brood and space. Since we have a second coop in the attached run, l am hoping we can let some broodies sit and hopefully hatch some eggs this spring. Dont want to risk any frozen chicks so have to be patient and wait until thise spring. In the meantime I will figure out the logistics of all of these things. So can you incubate eggs to hatching and then get give to a broody mom with other babies to help raise?
Late, thought about your boys this am as I went out in -2 temps to let the gang out for the day, this was at 8:30 (I slept in). I am glad your gang faired fine overnight, so did ours. Coop temp didn't dip below 18 last night and we held tight at 16% humidity so I was happy, no evidence of frost bite on any combs. Although the roo's had me concerned as they didn't rush out into the run when I opened the pop door, they stayed in the coop. My imagination got the better of me and iimagined one of them was injured or dead (my BF mom has had a couple chickens just keel over, thus my paranoia) since they didn't come out. Well I opened the coop and there they were, Bruno being the complete gentleman was sitting on a perch by one of the nest boxes and inside the nest was one of our RIR hens sitting on 4 eggs. Rocco was fine as well and went out into then run while I collected eggs. Phew! Added some more straw to run this am to give them something to scratch around.

Glad everyone faired ok overnight. Oh and did I say how excited I was for spring and hatching? I have a couple top broody girls I hope will be good flock mamas.

That's an interesting question that I'd like to know the answer to also! One of the two hens that have been laying eggs for me is kinda boarder line broody. I had been wondering if she would go full broody in warmer weather & when all the hens start laying (hopefully).

 

[Double Kindness]

The ac and white bresse have begun to crow. At 430 am. Agh.

I got the janoel 47 and the hovabator 1588, I wish I had gotten the brinsea advanced 20 octagon incubator instead with the hovabator.

I have 2 eggs from my production red that were still warm the last 2 days. Now what do I do? The janoel seems to be holding temp and humidity. We have brooders set up.. love my enabling bf for getting me stuff to create infinite chickens now. Lol.

 

[suncatcher]

We had minus ten this morning, but was a balmy 20 inside my one coop, they seem to keep it this temp on most nights. This coop is insulated but has good air flow too, I am very happy with doing it the way I did. My big coop, whole other story, not so warm, but no insulation and it is HUGE, and that is the problem, plus the fact that I have 17 less chickens in it than last winter. I did have one roo get frostbite on the tips of his points in this coop, but everyone else have had no issues. I have noticed too that some of my hens tuck their heads under their wings, and sleep this way, I wondered why everyone doesn't do this???

Hot chocolate is my all time fav!!! You will burn off the extra calories doing chores in this cold weather, not to worry!!!

Pretty sure you will love the Brinsea, I have heard lots of good things about this incubator!!! Keep us posted on your hatching journey!!!!

No hatching for me right now, no where to brood them....... I put some eggs to the side these past few weeks thinking maybe I can hatch this early, but this last cold snap has made me realize is not feasable for me right now.

I have an nine week old chick I bring in the house over night when the temps are in the minus, scared it might freeze in the coop as none of the other chickens will snuggle with it as she peeps non stop, and I mean all day and part of the night, nonstop! I have tried to add her to one group after dark, they sleep in a pile together, my Silkie and some young bantams, but she pops back out, and then stands there peeping for ?????? I have integrated many chicks and chickens, but this one is a challenge!!

 

[suncatcher]

Cool, I will be incubating vicariously along with you guys!!!!

Can you darken their coop so they crow later on?????

Glad Bruno and the boys fared well, mine were slow to move around too, they are usually right at the door when I open it, but today they were hunkered down on the floor, in the straw. My one roo was in a nest box! I have never seen him inside a nest box, sometimes in front of it, makes we wonder if she slept there all night???

C'mon spring, I knkow we just had the first day of winter, but I am ready for....... no snow, and warm weather already!! lol

 

[Double Kindness]

Lol my bf made me promise that I won't keep any chicks we hatch past spring, so I'm practicing now so when the cemani and bresse start laying I know what I'm doing especially since I'm making them their own gluten-free feed.

 

[Ashdoes]

Some broodies will take many, many chicks, and some, like my awful Wyandotte will peck the new baby till it runs screaming. We had a Silkie that went broody, we gave her chicks in the middle of the day, and she tucked them right in with zero issues. When the broody refused the new chick, we took all the chicks from her, because it was better then one chick alone in the house...it cried for hours before we finally did that. I'm not convinced chickens CAN'T count, from what I've seen of broodies and their chicks. They just know when someone is missing, or when an addition has been made.

 

[Ashdoes]

The ac and white bresse have begun to crow. At 430 am. Agh.

I got the janoel 47 and the hovabator 1588, I wish I had gotten the brinsea advanced 20 octagon incubator instead with the hovabator.

I have 2 eggs from my production red that were still warm the last 2 days. Now what do I do? The janoel seems to be holding temp and humidity. We have brooders set up.. love my enabling bf for getting me stuff to create infinite chickens now. Lol.

I have really been wanting to do Bresse. I can't decide if I should wait or not, since I possible won't have my processing partner after June...same reason I'm not doing turkeys.
I love my Hovabator. It kept perfect temp, and humidity was easy to figure out in our house. I would take the Hovabator over the Janoel..and add a Brinsea if I could. But, for a small flock like ours, one incubator is all we need. It worked great this year, hatched and sold enough chicks to pay for the initial Cream flock and the incubator. The key is to not let people haggle down the price of chicks, especially if you're the only one in the area with them...although I did have separate prices for BYC people. We also shipped to Montana(I think it was Montana...my memory is rubbish), for a BYC member that wanted to test the high altitude to high altitude theory...our eggs were her best shipped hatch ever.
Hubby would hatch tomorrow if I let him, but it's just way too cold.

 

[COChix]

Hey there @AliKat2
! and welcome to the Colorado thread!  Please feel free to join in the (any) conversations that interest you

X2

LOL That's what I'm worried about! If I save up to get a larger incubator, things will quickly get out of hand for what I can manage right now. Have to remind myself that I still have a shipment of chicks in May & hopefully a couple AC eggs/chicks from Double Kindness next year also (fingers crossed!), so I need to keep my hatching impulses under control. Or else buy a tiny house for all the bird!

Yes I can see how hatching and chicken math make for some crazy numbers if not totally planned out.

Some broodies will take many, many chicks, and some, like my awful Wyandotte will peck the new baby till it runs screaming. We had a Silkie that went broody, we gave her chicks in the middle of the day, and she tucked them right in with zero issues. When the broody refused the new chick, we took all the chicks from her, because it was better then one chick alone in the house...it cried for hours before we finally did that. I'm not convinced chickens CAN'T count, from what I've seen of broodies and their chicks. They just know when someone is missing, or when an addition has been made.

Thanks for that, was curious about that.

Went out for coop & egg check and found a Delaware with a bit if frostbite on the tip of waddle from dipping her waddles in the heated dog bowl. I have a solution, putting sand into the heated water bowl and then putting their regular steel waterer on top. Ggreat, however the sand Is frozen :/ have sand in house to defrost. Put some Blu Kote on girl and have is fine. Nobody else appears to have this issue.

 

[Double Kindness]

I am looking for a great mouser/barn cat immediately to come feast on many mice that are plaguing me and are too smart for traps now.

And I found a frozen cracked egg from my rc leghorn on the coop floor, but my ee Agnes was about to lay a pretty blue egg.. gotta fill the bator.

 

[Percheron chick]

There is a feral cat rescue in the front range that would be more than happy to supply you with a qualified mouser. They used to advertise on CL but can't say I've been looking recently. You can also call around to the shelters and see if they have any semi feral cats that they can't place in homes. I got 2 from the FC shelter for just a donation.