Fertilizing Eggs

[Ted Brown]

How many are in there?
Are you managing a staggered hatch?

I have two batches. The first has 15 eggs that are possibles depending how early Wilfred started fertilizing the three hens. Second batch went into the incubator today from eggs accumulated over the last week.

 

[aart]

I have two batches. The first has 15 eggs that are possibles depending how early Wilfred started fertilizing the three hens. Second batch went into the incubator today from eggs accumulated over the last week.

In separate incubators....or marked with dates and a second incubator for lockdown/hatching?

 

[Ted Brown]

In separate incubators....or marked with dates and a second incubator for lockdown/hatching?

Marked with dates but...

I did not think about the lock down hatching overlap. Do not have a 2nd incubator.

 

[aart]

I did not think about the lock down hatching overlap.

I wondered if you knew about staggered hatching.
Usually you start all eggs incubating on the same date.
What is the date you started each of the 2 batches?

 

[NatJ]

Do not have a 2nd incubator.

That is fixable...

If you want to hatch every egg laid by a specific hen, two incubators do make it much easier. You can start a batch of eggs each week, and each week you move one batch to the other incubator for lockdown. Since all the hatching occurs in the second incubator, the fluff and goop do not get on the eggs that are still incubating, and the hatched chicks cannot play football with the younger eggs.

 

[Ted Brown]

@aart

Post #18 above NatJ explained staggered weekly and I was on that course.

Batch 1 was April 20th, Batch 2 was April 26th. I have to Candle batch 1 now (another process to sort through).

@NatJ replied just above with more great guidance. TY TY

 

[Cryss]

Do you currently have a rooster? If there is no resident rooster the new one will have no competition to fight. He will be excited about the hens. If they are mature they will teach him manners. No need to look no touch. If there is a resident rooster I don’t really know how to introduce them. I don’t have experience with that scenario.

 

[NatJ]

Do you currently have a rooster? If there is no resident rooster the new one will have no competition to fight. He will be excited about the hens. If they are mature they will teach him manners. No need to look no touch. If there is a resident rooster I don’t really know how to introduce them. I don’t have experience with that scenario.

If you're responding to the first post, that was several weeks ago, and the situation has changed quite a bit.

The rooster did get introduced, and has since been killed by a fox.

 

[Cryss]

If you're responding to the first post, that was several weeks ago, and the situation has changed quite a bit.

The rooster did get introduced, and has since been killed by a fox.

Oooopsie!
(Sorry about the fox part)

 

[Ted Brown]

Update:

Yesterday I made a 300km round trip, bought another Chantecler cockerel and a second incubator. (thanks again to @NatJ for introducing me to staggered hatches).

I am holding judgment on the quality of the cockerel. There were 8 available, mixed in with a range of other breeds and a number of goats free ranging around an out of the way property. Apparently hatched in January from eggs from a nearby "big farm"; I hestitated but am driven by wanting a larger laying flock and frustrated by the length of time my pursuit of Chantelcers is taking.

Given our limited experience we referenced the APA Standard of Perfection before going. Even based on limited experience there were obvious faults (both comb formation and lack of purity in the requisite white colouring) in most candidates; we chose the best but he needs to be cleaned up and develop (only five months old) before we will know.

It appears that my previous Chantecler roo did not have sufficient time to fertilize the hens as, so far, none of the eggs have developed. We have looked at six of sixteen of the initial batch and no sign of any embryo development; I have two other batches of 4 and 5 eggs each from the single hen left after the fox attack.