Diary & Notes ~ Air Cell Detatched SHIPPED Chicken Eggs for incubation and hatching

[bellah1]

I bet that is cute.. i love baby ducks .... hoping i get at least one out of my set even if it would be nothing short of a miracle with the male being gone so long .....  for your babies and you !!

It is really adorable! When did u set ur duck eggs? And how long has the drake been gone?

 

[silver1313]

Quote: set them about 2-3 days ago and prob 6-8 weeks best i can remember but when we cracked two open out of the nest on a whim .. there were bullseyes... so i figured why not set a few just in case ...

 

[ozexpat]

I agree with both of u Cochins & Oz I am just leaving her but I just freaked a tiny bit when she said I hope she makes it. Cause in my fairy world I didn't think of the possibility that she might not since I caught the shrink wrapping in time. I'm am completely sitting on my hands and only putting more bacatracin on when needed (about every 4-5 hours) at the same time making sure the paper towels at still wet. Oh my god is she ****** though, peeping at me whenever she hears my voice so I'm leaving her alone so she will rest. Hopefully my patience will pay off!

if you are using bacitracin ointment you probably dont need to add it more than every 8 hrs - its basically oil so it should not dry out

 

[NestingHillsSC]

She sent them back....

Kelly are you ok? (she has been extremely upset about this whole ordeal, and well justified too. poor momma)

Yea, went you buy chickens at a swap meet or flee market, at least here, they get all there chickens from auctions then resell them. So you don't know who had them, where they're from how they were raised etc etc. They can spend up to a week being moved and kept in those small metal crates barely feed and watered. Chickens don't get sick like we do. A lot of time those chickens you get like that after 2-3 days at home will start sneezing, coughing, eyes swelling closed etc. Most of the time it's just stress from be moved around to much. Some say after you heal them they will always get sick if stressed. Just not true. I have 2 girls from my very first flock. And they never been sick since. Again just stress from all the moving.

 

[NestingHillsSC]

I put my recently hatched chicks out in the grow pen last night. It was so cute. When it was getting dark I was waiting for the 2 young leghorns to go in and the little chicks ran over to me as if to say, "please take us back in. We miss you."

They were jumping all over me. They would fly on top my head arms etc etc. I just told them there big chickens now. LOL

You can most certainly tell the difference when hatching your own compared to hatchery or any other chicks you buy some place else. They seem to bond with you more when you hatch them. I guess your the first thing they see when hatched.

 

[blzzrdqueen]

I put sand in there, just a cup

HAHA, where do I get just a cup of sand?!?!?!

 

[Knittycat]

Oh no too much bread can be bad for them and lead to malnutrition! Don't give them too many bread treats ok?

I think a single slice divided up between 9 chickens isn't going to dilute their nutrition too much. I think it's adorable, and all anybody can worry about is the extremely remote possibility of malnutrition from a slice of bread once a day? Forrest for the trees folks. Let's not get so caught up in minutite that we forget to take joy in our hobby.

 

[sumi]

OMG I'm not even going to try to catch up with you all!

News from this side: I set 15 duck eggs this morning. Supposedly Pekin, but possible X bred. Can't wait to see what's going to come out of those eggs!

 

[sumi]

Quote: When did she pip? My assisted duckling took 3 days before she was ready to hatch. I just kept wetting the membrane and left her. She was fine. If you candle you should be able to see where the yolk is/was, there will be a "void" in that area once it's been absorbed. I went with the blood in the membrane as I do with a chick assists. If you need help, yell. I'll be in and out of here today.

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Quote: I hate to say it, but as usual OZ is correct.

HOWEVER.... (oz you knew I would have the however right?) I just discussed this with MommaB in PM, I think if you want to incubate you have to be prepared to do this stuff... There is NO good way to explain it either, it is what it is, either you can do it or call a friend or neighbor. At some point EVERYONE will have a major deformed chick and will have to take care of it. What is worse is putting it in a bag and just throwing it out or trying to suffocate it. Get it done and over with!

You can do it in a plastic bag laid out on the table or something. Gently roll the chick in the paper towel long wise, yes its head too, find its neck and snip as fast as you can with a scissors or I use a (of all things) deboning scissors. No lifting looking at it or anything its a done deal roll up the bag and go bury it. It IS THE FASTEST safest way to cull a chick.
Hi everyone!! I've been reading this thread from the beginning and am now at page 415. I also read the new posts but am behind here too

...Love, love, love this thread!
I do it the same way as Sally except I place the open bag in the sink and when it's done tie the bag up and rinse out the sink.
I've only done it for quail but would also do it for chicks if needed, oh, and I use a good quality deboning scissors as well.
Okay back to the beginning....