Cream Legbars

[Thespoiledchicken]

Same here, I'm aiming to handle the eggs less - but I'm not sure it will have an effect -- except for things like when I hit one on the side of the incubator and cracked it -- or saw a star-crack in the egg and tried to patch with wax - which once long ago got me a hatch.

This time I had an early hatch and when I opened the little incubator to remove her, she knocked an egg out -- which went rolling and I caught before it smashed on the floor. the shell kind of shattered (it had already pipped)--- and there was a spot of blood on the membrane. I left it until the membrane started to shrink wrap and over a couple of hours with moist hot paper towels, opening the membrane etc. it eventually hatched to be a successful chick.

I do have a 'no helping out' rule-- but the chick would have been fine if the egg hadn't rolled out of the incubator and off the counter to be caught in mid air.... -- and I couldn't just watch her shrink-wrap to death due to that unlucky circumstance. Seems like there is always something.

Whenever I have a cracked shell or an oops that needs covering I take a half a shell from a chick that has already hatched and soak it in warm water for a few minutes- then its pliable and I can exactly cover over my cracked spot. It acts just like the original shell and doesn't allow the membrane to shrink wrap. I used to use wet paper towels but they dry out pretty quick and you need to keep opening the incubator to check and re-wet. The eggshell on top of eggshell works really well.


Trish

 

[ChicKat]

Thank you for the info. So they should look the same at maturity then? Kind of creepy looking at those dead chicks, but it shows the variation well.


These are my first CL to hatch so wasn't sure. I also had Olive eggers in the hatcher, but marked each chick as it hatched so I would be able to tell them apart. I thought I might have messed p in that one, but was pretty sure the head spot was CL
These two look like a couple of mine!

It is funny how some of them do look almost interchangeable.

Once they are fully feathered and the down has gone -- they all look like barred babies. Then the next stage as the males mature they will get some chestnut showing up. This is the stage a lot of folks who favor the very light look - cut those males from their flock. They keep changing however to my eye. Those little hooligans. There are some photo essays on how they grow on the CL club's web page -- done at 1-week intervals if memory serves.

I also have a no helping out rule. I have tried it in the past to help and it just doesn't pan out well. I hate to see a chick pip and not hatch but I much prefer natural selection, it means stronger chicks and a stronger flock.

Fully agree -- this case the chick most likely would have hatched fine if the shell hadn't shattered in my hand.... there wasn't even any shell to push the legs against to pop out -- it was just a bunch of shards. From what the new owners say she is doing fine....so I'm happy with that result. :O)

They do look so different and they are super cute. I think you are correct in just a few weeks you will barely be able to tell them apart.

It would be so nice if down color would give us a small glimpse as to how they will feather out as adults. But no they like to keep everyone guessing lol.

Steen in NM had once remarked on these threads that his darker downed chicks grew into the lighter adults, and others -- I think from the East had noted the opposite (therefore it must be regional LOL )

From most of what I know a proven correlation has yet to be found. Adding to the confusion, some of the males as dreted has a publication by Michael Pease that has chicks on the cover -- do not resemble the wild types to my eye -- but are just a diffused non-chipmunk striped chick-- I would wonder if that chick down pattern was NOT based on e+ on the E-Locus. I haven't had any of those that I recall.

 

[ChicKat]

Whenever I have a cracked shell or an oops that needs covering I take a half a shell from a chick that has already hatched and soak it in warm water for a few minutes- then its pliable and I can exactly cover over my cracked spot. It acts just like the original shell and doesn't allow the membrane to shrink wrap. I used to use wet paper towels but they dry out pretty quick and you need to keep opening the incubator to check and re-wet. The eggshell on top of eggshell works really well.


Trish

Thanks Trish!
wow - I learn SO much from you. Brilliant solution.

 

[Thespoiledchicken]

Thanks Trish!
wow - I learn SO much from you. Brilliant solution.

Ahh thanks

I learn so much from everyone here as well! Such a great community

 

[tdhenson86]

Quote:
x2! I would love to see how their color turns out as they mature!

 

[tdhenson86]

I got the dreaded green egg today. Sorry about the color (blues are hard to photograph on a phone). The 8 are the colors I've been getting, but today, that last one showed up. Won't be keeping those genetics around!

 

[XxMingirlxX]

I got the dreaded green egg today. Sorry about the color (blues are hard to photograph on a phone). The 8 are the colors I've been getting, but today, that last one showed up. Won't be keeping those genetics around!

I think (please correct me if I am wrong) that green eggs are also in the American SOP along with blue eggs, so they should be fine. Only Olive isn't allowed - it is in the English SOP but since none of the hens imported by GFF laid olive eggs then it can't be in the American as that would mean it has been bred with something other than a cream legbar.

That is the end of my ramble, lol you should be fine to use the bird if she is a good specimen.

 

[tdhenson86]

Quote:
She is a Jill Rees bird (I only have a few hens that aren't and they've been laying for 6 months now. So, I know it's not them). It's a little green for my taste. I'd prefer to breed toward the blue that I've been getting. I had been getting such consistent blues that it was disappointing to see all of the sudden. I now need to figure out which hen is laying it. That's always a challenge.

 

[XxMingirlxX]

She is a Jill Rees bird (I only have a few hens that aren't and they've been laying for 6 months now. So, I know it's not them). It's a little green for my taste. I'd prefer to breed toward the blue that I've been getting. I had been getting such consistent blues that it was disappointing to see all of the sudden. I now need to figure out which hen is laying it. That's always a challenge.

I would try putting a few blobs of different colours of food colouring on suspect hens vents, you can then colour code who is laying what as you will get a smear of a colour on the eggs.

 

[chicken pickin]

So my cocks frostbitten comb finally fell off today. He looks a bit odd. Thankfully I took boat loads of pics of him as he matured over this past year so I have lots of good shots of his comb to look back on if need be.

Here he is today looking like he got a buzz cut the poor boy