Delawares from kathyinmo

[Beekissed]

I didnt know she also bred White Rocks?! I knew she had Barred Rocks, Delawares, and the New Hampshires. What else dont I know?! Or would that take too long to answer

Beautiful birds, all of them!

I didn't know she did either!

Apparently she is very multi-talented and we are all the grateful recipients of her gifts.

 

[Zanna]

Day 22, 5 of the 9 Dels are out, 1 of the last 4 is pipped, the other 3 are from the nicest pullet and are showing nothing (Again). They were fully developed at day 18 as in last weeks hatch. All other eggs in hatcher have hatched, 3 Ameraucanas and 18 Marans. Hmmm..............

Hatched another black striped butt chick from the same pairing.

Three more sets in the incubator a week apart then I am going to give it a rest for a while and let the chicks and Kathys pullets grow up some more and have a break. Chicks everywhere at the moment and going to let the hens/pullets back out on free range for the time being. May not do partner switches till Fall, shall see...........

GOOD LUCK TOM! Keep us posted on the progress!!!

 

[gjensen]

What is the under color of the mature birds looking like? Wing color?

 

[Zanna]

What is the under color of the mature birds looking like? Wing color?

Some have a little greyish underfluff, some are white as should be. Wing colour is white, some with some black feathers/correct as far as I know.

Hatched two chicks from the same pair this time with the blackish stripes over the butt area. Someone on another forum told me that her light brahma chicks all have a dark patch at hatch. I am guessing that these chicks (have 3 now) will have the grey underfluff.

Here are the parents from these chicks, pics taken several months ago:





Hatch #3 is finished, five of nine hatched, one pipped on the wrong end again, two never pipped and one cracked the shell but never broke through the membrane. I did not break them open this time.

The two chicks I hatched that are now two weeks old have wing feathers half the length of the Marans and NH I hatched at the same time and are smaller. I am not seeing any increase in development time in this generation as of yet............

 

[finnfur]

Day 22, 5 of the 9 Dels are out, 1 of the last 4 is pipped, the other 3 are from the nicest pullet and are showing nothing (Again). They were fully developed at day 18 as in last weeks hatch. All other eggs in hatcher have hatched, 3 Ameraucanas and 18 Marans. Hmmm..............

Hatched another black striped butt chick from the same pairing.

Three more sets in the incubator a week apart then I am going to give it a rest for a while and let the chicks and Kathys pullets grow up some more and have a break. Chicks everywhere at the moment and going to let the hens/pullets back out on free range for the time being. May not do partner switches till Fall, shall see...........

GOOD LUCK TOM! Keep us posted on the progress!!!

I going to need luck - temperature and humidity are a bear to control in this foam-a-bator- We have been up to 102 degrees and down 10% humidity at times.

Now on the one hen that chicks are not surviving pip - do you notice anything different about her eggs - shape , shell thickness etc- was there good air sack at 18 day candle. Got to be a reason they make it that far and can't get out.

 

[Zanna]

I going to need luck - temperature and humidity are a bear to control in this foam-a-bator- We have been up to 102 degrees and down 10% humidity at times.

Now on the one hen that chicks are not surviving pip - do you notice anything different about her eggs - shape , shell thickness etc- was there good air sack at 18 day candle. Got to be a reason they make it that far and can't get out.

Just very round eggs and they don't even pip. Look as should day 18, fully developed. I read on another forum in a conversation talking about how the desireable shape for the Marans egg is the rounder shape. Someone said that if it was kept up breeding for that at some point that they would become unhatchable as hapened with the cornish breeders. They did not say why or expand on that but maybe I should look that person up, it was a knowledgeable person.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

My Delaware eggs are "pointed" enough at one end that I can tell which end is up. But this winter, when the rest of my flock (hatchery birds and mutts) was coming out of a terrible molt, all their eggs were round ... they've started laying pointed eggs again just recently. So maybe the round Delawares will eventually start producing pointier eggs?

I'm not candling the clutch of Delaware eggs at all. They are under a hen, and I'm letting her handle it. We had an obsessive egg candler here before, so I'm in recovery from that.

Fingers crossed for that clutch, and I could use another broody about now, so fingers crossed for that, too.

 

[Zanna]

My Delaware eggs are "pointed" enough at one end that I can tell which end is up. But this winter, when the rest of my flock (hatchery birds and mutts) was coming out of a terrible molt, all their eggs were round ... they've started laying pointed eggs again just recently. So maybe the round Delawares will eventually start producing pointier eggs?

I'm not candling the clutch of Delaware eggs at all. They are under a hen, and I'm letting her handle it. We had an obsessive egg candler here before, so I'm in recovery from that.

Fingers crossed for that clutch, and I could use another broody about now, so fingers crossed for that, too.

Was wondering if you were trying a hatch yet Unfortunately I don't think this pullets eggs will change shape but I can still hope!

I have two new broodies, Leghorn/NH cross from last year. I made sure they were serious then gave them each 8 New Hampshire chicks that I hatched. They are doing great raising them in the main coop with the large flock! Lots of chick swapping....... The Moms look identical so when one gets separated from Mom, it just runs to the other one. Super cute!!!!! I have a four year old Leghorn Cock who loves babies and between checking on his free-range hens he checks back in the coop several times per day and helps feed/checks up on the chicks. He's the best old man!

These are some of the reasons I keep doing this

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Was wondering if you were trying a hatch yet Unfortunately I don't think this pullets eggs will change shape but I can still hope!

I have two new broodies, Leghorn/NH cross from last year. I made sure they were serious then gave them each 8 New Hampshire chicks that I hatched. They are doing great raising them in the main coop with the large flock! Lots of chick swapping....... The Moms look identical so when one gets separated from Mom, it just runs to the other one. Super cute!!!!! I have a four year old Leghorn Cock who loves babies and between checking on his free-range hens he checks back in the coop several times per day and helps feed/checks up on the chicks. He's the best old man!

These are some of the reasons I keep doing this

Awwww. I don't have a baby-loving rooster. That would be truly adorable. And useful.

I love the Dual Broody thing. Our nest box trays each have two nests ... with a divider down the middle. Our broody boxes hold one tray ... so we can set two broods in each box ... and then the hens co-parent. Soooooooo Cute! It means one momma can go take a dust bath while the other bosses the babies around. And the chicks are so active!

The only "issue" come when it is time to transition the chicks from nesting together to roosting ... it seems to take some careful timing and a bit of persistence to persuade the babies that it's really okay to squeeze in between the big birds on the roosts. The younger birds go hide in the nesting boxes instead, which is cute but gross and a habit that's hard to break. We don't have ladder roosts like you do, so you might have more luck with this.

 

[gjensen]

Anybody have a shot of the wings opened?