December Hatch-A-Long 2014

[ochochicas]

When does everyone usually start to put bedding in their chicks cage? Mine are four days old, and are getting disgusting.

Mine get bedding from day 1. I use small shredded paper mixed with pine shavings. They get dirty pretty quickly. Depending on the number of chicks you have, you might have to change the bedding every day or two. When I had 8 chicks I was cleaning twice a week. With 20 chicks they needed to be changed daily.

At around 1 week of age I started to put fine grass hay in their brooder. It works for bedding and also teaches them to forage. I can buy a bale from a local hay guy for around $4 and it lasts for over a month.

My broody hen with chicks hatched hers in the hay. They have been sleeping it in all along and are just starting to peck and it and eat some of the seeds. Some of my hatchery chicks were allergic to the hay and it made them sneeze. They outgrew it eventually. They hay and paper and shavings I can dump in the compost pile so it is very convenient.

 

[Debs55]

so one of my sets of eggs has been in the mail since monday and it says they wont be here till friday. any chance they are still good?

 

[Peep-Chicken]

I found with the bedding the little guys were walking so uneven... So, I have my pen lined with puppy pad, then newspaper with paper towel on top. I change the newspaper and paper towel daily because they are feather footed, inside my home, and I don't want to smell them either. If the paper towel gets too soiled during the day I just put another on top. That's the best way I found to keep us all happy! Uses paper towels but it's easy! Everything in chicken rearing is a preference!

I use wire floors on most of my brooders for the normal size chicks. Works good!

Thanks you both

 

[ftpagain]

I must be really bad at math.... Have 35 eggs on lock down since yesterday afternoon. Half of them are peeping and one is out.

When should I put my other eggs on lockdown if they went in evening of 12/01 and 12/02?

 

[Renee572]

I must be really bad at math.... Have 35 eggs on lock down since yesterday afternoon. Half of them are peeping and one is out.

When should I put my other eggs on lockdown if they went in evening of 12/01 and 12/02?

day 18 would be 12/19 and 12/20. If they hatch that early again next time then maybe you had your temp a bit too high? I'm still a newbie though, don't take my word for it.

 

[Peep-Chicken]

I must be really bad at math.... Have 35 eggs on lock down since yesterday afternoon. Half of them are peeping and one is out.

When should I put my other eggs on lockdown if they went in evening of 12/01 and 12/02?

Should be the 19th and 20th.

 

[ftpagain]

day 18 would be 12/19 and 12/20. If they hatch that early again next time then maybe you had your temp a bit too high? I'm still a newbie though, don't take my word for it.

Should be the 19th and 20th.

ok. Tnx. I have still air with temp around 99.5.
What about if they went in 11/27 evening? I bet I over counted that one.

 

[Renee572]

peppermint (black) hatched 12/13/14, only one out of 10 eggs in lockdown. And chickadee (brown) bought so Peppermint would have a friend. She's a week older than Peppermint. Does peppermint look like a Barred Rock?

I located some local eggs, woot woot. So I may be getting Sicilian buttercups, California whites, polish, cochins, rir, barred rock and ameraucana. So excited. Set date will be Jan 17th and hatch date will be Feb 7th.

 

[Renee572]

ok. Tnx. I have still air with temp around 99.5.
What about if they went in 11/27 evening? I bet I over counted that one.

day 18 would have been the 15th. Hmm I think still air you are supposed to keep between 100 and 101, I kept mine at 100 and First pip was on day 19, first hatch was day 20 (only hatch, I had humidity too low during lockdown so the others didn't make it).

 

[PD-Riverman]

I must be really bad at math.... Have 35 eggs on lock down since yesterday afternoon. Half of them are peeping and one is out.

When should I put my other eggs on lockdown if they went in evening of 12/01 and 12/02?

Are you using several incubators?

Day 1 is 24 hours after you put them in the heated incubator so get you a calender---if you put them in on Sunday at 3pm---day 1 would be Monday at 3pm, tuesday would be day 2 and wednesday day 3 etc. Stop turning them and increase moisture, lock-down on day 18.

But I sure hope you got these in 3 incubators from your set-time above.