Dyeing the chicks

[Horsefly]

Please nobody yell at me for posting this. I want to dye some of my chicks due to hatch next Friday. I have read that you can inject some vegetable based dye into the egg at 11-14 days incubation and the chicks will be colored. It doesn't harm the chicks in any way. I just want to do this for fun and have some cute colored chicks I don't plan on selling them or anything. They are a cross between a red sexlink rooster and a turkin hen, I'm hoping for colorful little naked neck babies

.
Has anyone done this before? I found a couple websites about it and my biggest concern is poking the hole in the shell, I don't want to hurt the chick so how should I make sure the point doesn't go to far? Also I have been having trouble finding a vegetable dye. Would purple cabbage water work? (boil the cabbage water turns purple). Please only nice coments and any advice is welcome.

 

[StormyMoon]

i have no clue but curious what others will say

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

You can drill the hole with a drill bit or needle being twisted between your fingers. no need to push hard. Regular food coloring from the grocery store is what you need, usually by the cake decorating stuff I believe.

 

[CCourson05]

I've heard of kool-aid after the first week but never egg injections. I figure this would allow bacteria on the surface of the egg to enter, but I am quite possibly wrong... Maybe someone who knows will come along.

 

[Horsefly]

I have normal food coloring but it has artificial stuff in it (sucros,red 5, and yellow 6, etc.) from what I read it said to use a vegetable based food dye.

 

[Horsefly]

Quote:
You put alcohol or iodine on the egg where you are going to puncture and only put a really tiny needle in just under the membrane. Then you close the hole with wax or a bit of bandaid sticky.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

I haven't read the label on food coloring lately.

 

[Momto3]

Question, do they stay that color into adult hood? Or only when they are fuzzy butts?

 

[minihorse927]

When the feathers start coming in the color goes away. It is just dying the chick fuzz. I have read online somewhere how to do it. Never had the desire (or guts) to try it.

 

[StormyMoon]

I found this article for 4 - H groups

http://lancaster.unl.edu/4h/embryology/colorchickens.shtml

It says
Harmless vegetable dyes, such as food coloring dyes sold in grocery stores, work very satisfactorily.

http://chickscope.beckman.uiuc.edu/resources/egg_to_chick/coloring.html