Consolidated Kansas

[HEChicken]

Thanks Danz - I've just been so busy lately! Hopefully things will slow down later in the year….

I've found I have too many laying birds now, and finding an outlet for the eggs is something of a stress factor. I got several new customers this week and did sell a bunch of eggs and now I just hope I hear from them again when they need more. But with that kind of stress, the last thing I need is to add more laying hens, and I don't enjoy selling that much so I don't want to hatch a bunch and then have to deal with people to sell them. And, they can suck down quite a bit of feed from the time they hatch until they are picked up, plus its a lot of work to maintain brooders. So - I've lost interest in hatching very much.

I do like keeping the BR and NH heritage birds and later in the year I'll probably hatch a few of their pure eggs (though I might just save those eggs to put under broody hens and let them do the work for me). The nice thing is that I can eat the excess birds of those breeds. The only bad part there is that I have a hard time eating pullets, especially once they start laying, and over the past 3 years I've hatched, on average, 75% pullets! I know most people would kill to have that problem. Isn't it ironic - the person who WANTS to hatch cockerels ends up with mostly pullets?

 

[michelleml]

Going to try and get some potatoes and onions planted today. Our chickens are doing good. We had one with wry neck and one that hatched late with crooked foot. Both are doing good. The wry neck one is eating and looks almost normal. Here's a picture of her

 

[chicken danz]

The most bazaar thing just happened. I had one fertile peacock egg out of the first group. It didn't hatch so I just checked it out. I couldn't believe my eyes. Here is what I found:

Yep obviously a double yolker. I've always been told a double yolker would never develop. The smaller one on the left had absorbed all it's yolk but the bigger one that was on top still had a tiny bit of unabsorbed yolk. It was a pretty small eggshell for peafowl and they just didn't have any room to do an internal pip. I think if the smaller one had been on top it might have been able to pip and live. Heartbreaking but amazing.

 

[Trish44]

Thanks Danz - I've just been so busy lately! Hopefully things will slow down later in the year….

I've found I have too many laying birds now, and finding an outlet for the eggs is something of a stress factor. I got several new customers this week and did sell a bunch of eggs and now I just hope I hear from them again when they need more. But with that kind of stress, the last thing I need is to add more laying hens, and I don't enjoy selling that much so I don't want to hatch a bunch and then have to deal with people to sell them. And, they can suck down quite a bit of feed from the time they hatch until they are picked up, plus its a lot of work to maintain brooders. So - I've lost interest in hatching very much.

I do like keeping the BR and NH heritage birds and later in the year I'll probably hatch a few of their pure eggs (though I might just save those eggs to put under broody hens and let them do the work for me). The nice thing is that I can eat the excess birds of those breeds. The only bad part there is that I have a hard time eating pullets, especially once they start laying, and over the past 3 years I've hatched, on average, 75% pullets! I know most people would kill to have that problem. Isn't it ironic - the person who WANTS to hatch cockerels ends up with mostly pullets?

I'll trade places with you HEChicken any time, I get way more cockerels than I would like & have no outlet for them.

The most bazaar thing just happened. I had one fertile peacock egg out of the first group. It didn't hatch so I just checked it out. I couldn't believe my eyes. Here is what I found:

Yep obviously a double yolker. I've always been told a double yolker would never develop. The smaller one on the left had absorbed all it's yolk but the bigger one that was on top still had a tiny bit of unabsorbed yolk. It was a pretty small eggshell for peafowl and they just didn't have any room to do an internal pip. I think if the smaller one had been on top it might have been able to pip and live. Heartbreaking but amazing.

Wow Danz, that is something unusual!

Michelleml, I'm glad your little chick is doing so much better. Sometimes you can save the ones like that & other times you can't.

My granddaughter is coming this afternoon, so I doubt I get much done today, it's always nice to see her though, she's growing up way too fast.

 

[HEChicken]

The most bazaar thing just happened. I had one fertile peacock egg out of the first group. It didn't hatch so I just checked it out. I couldn't believe my eyes. Here is what I found:

Yep obviously a double yolker. I've always been told a double yolker would never develop. The smaller one on the left had absorbed all it's yolk but the bigger one that was on top still had a tiny bit of unabsorbed yolk. It was a pretty small eggshell for peafowl and they just didn't have any room to do an internal pip. I think if the smaller one had been on top it might have been able to pip and live. Heartbreaking but amazing.

Its not that they won't develop - its that they won't hatch. Two things happen even if they make it to full term. First, only one of them will be on the end with the air cell, so it will pip internally but the one at the other end will suffocate due to inability to get oxygen. However even the one with the air, won't be able to hatch because in order to hatch it has to be able to turn in the egg to zip. They need to be able to push/brace against a solid surface (the egg shell) in order to turn to zip. In the case of twins, when they try to push, they push against the spongy body of their most-likely-dead-by-now twin, and are unable to turn to hatch.

There have been successful twin hatches but to my knowledge that have all been "hatched" by a person - they have never been able to do it naturally. There is a great YouTube video - over an hour long - of a woman successfully hatching two live chicks from a double yoke egg.

I currently have a double yoke turkey egg. I've taken pics but haven't downloaded them to my computer yet - this thing is ridiculously enormous. I took a pic of it next to a large chicken egg, and a regular turkey egg and it dwarfs them both.

 

[chicken danz]

HEChicken I am aware of the other birds .....chickens turkeys etc that are double yolked and can't hatch. I've also seen a couple videos where the chicks pipped at both ends and managed to be helped out. I had never however, seen anyone who had a double yolk peafowl egg or pheasant egg where both Embryos developed. Had I been able to see in the egg better I might have managed to hatch one of them with help. It's sad but curious all the same. I've checked with my game bird breeder acquaintances and this seems to be unheard of... at least so far no one who has commented has seen this in peafowl. I guess at any rate I'll be waiting for my first peafowl of the year to hatch. They are just beginning to lay again now.
Michelleml you should be very proud that you were able to save that chick. Thats awesome.

 

[tazcat70]

Life has gotten so crazy over the past 3 weeks! I even forgot to get eggs for the Easter hatch-a-long. Then I was going to set some of my own and forgot that!!!! Ugh!

I still needs to till the garden, and I haven't even started seeds!

I started a new job and between it and the commute I am gone 11 hrs a day. I hope I get the time management figured out soon, because it is driving me nuts!

 

[Trish44]

Life has gotten so crazy over the past 3 weeks! I even forgot to get eggs for the Easter hatch-a-long. Then I was going to set some of my own and forgot that!!!! Ugh!

I still needs to till the garden, and I haven't even started seeds!

I started a new job and between it and the commute I am gone 11 hrs a day. I hope I get the time management figured out soon, because it is driving me nuts!

Wow taz it sounds like you've been super busy!

Today went pretty well with the granddaughter here. I was hatching chicks & she got to see some hatch, she was pretty fascinated about that. It's the first time she has really gotten to see some come out of the shell. She even went out with me to gather eggs today & helped feed the goats. Maybe we'll make her into a little country girl yet.

 

[okjenyp]

Hi, I'm jen. I live in Wichita. I just recently started raising chicks. I have a group of 4 week olds that just went out in their coop a few days ago. And a group of 1 week chicks in the brooder. I am wondering where everyone buys feed?? I have been getting feed at Atwoods. I have checked out Valley feed and seed and Hillside feed and seed.

 

[sharol]

Hi, I'm jen. I live in Wichita. I just recently started raising chicks. I have a group of 4 week olds that just went out in their coop a few days ago. And a group of 1 week chicks in the brooder. I am wondering where everyone buys feed?? I have been getting feed at Atwoods. I have checked out Valley feed and seed and Hillside feed and seed.

Welcome to Consolidated Kansas. I can't answer your question (I'm from the Emporia area), but I just wanted to welcome you to our little Kansas family. There are lots of people from the Wichita area here.