First eggs!

[Debbie292d]

I'm not sure what the weight is for smaller breeds, @2ndTink and @Debbie292d are the experts there.

I forgot to also add. Lovely first eggs, btw. Congrats

Our silkie eggs run 1.2 oz to 1.6 oz. Average is probably 1.4 oz. Regular chickens I think are around 2.0 or a bit more.

 

[HarrounHomestead]

I have incubated 2 batches of eggs from pullets. The chicks started off small, but caught up very fast. I raised them up with 6 chicks we bought from the store, 4 Buff Orpingtons and 2 Golden Sexlinks, and most of our pullets we hatched from those eggs are the same size, if not bigger than the Orpington pullets who are around a week older than them. No health issues with them at all so far.

Some of the pullets have also outgrown their parents, and they are only 16 weeks old right now

The pullets I hatched are curcled in red. The bright yellow ones are the Orpingtons they were raised with, and the ones not circled are their parents.

Very beautiful birds! Thanks for the info!

 

[GlicksChicks]

Very beautiful birds! Thanks for the info!

Of course! Don't be scared to hatch pullet eggs, there is alot of conflicting information out there, so I took the leap and it turned out positive all around!

 

[Debbie292d]

Lol!

I believe I have 2 silkies, 1 sultan and 3 easter eggers. I want to try and figure out who is laying. I went out at 1:08pm today and found two more in the same nesting box.

How long is it ok to leave the eggs in the nesting box to see if they will try and brood?

If you have this hot weather right now, it's not a good time to try this unless you're one of the rare souls who has an air-conditioned coop. They can start growing at 80F and without a doubt, if it's 90 or above in your coop, the embryos have started to grow. You'd have chicks hatching all different days and some would not make it.

 

[2ndTink]

Of course! Don't be scared to hatch pullet eggs, there is alot of conflicting information out there, so I took the leap and it turned out positive all around!

I can concur. I was going to be good and wait for at least 2 months after my girls started laying but things happened and I had a need to incubate sooner than later. I did set and hatch several first silkie eggs. I had a decent hatch rate and the chicks are now 20 weeks old and all are doing great.

There are still many reasons to wait. Wait for the eggs to get a little bigger, wait to be sure they have the traits you want to reproduce (character / health / egg laying rate etc).

My intention is to only incubate hen eggs in the future, but sometimes life throws you curve balls and you have to do what you gotta do

 

[GlicksChicks]

I can concur. I was going to be good and wait for at least 2 months after my girls started laying but things happened and I had a need to incubate sooner than later. I did set and hatch several first silkie eggs. I had a decent hatch rate and the chicks are now 20 weeks old and all are doing great.

There are still many reasons to wait. Wait for the eggs to get a little bigger, wait to be sure they have the traits you want to reproduce (character / health / egg laying rate etc).

My intention is to only incubate hen eggs in the future, but sometimes life throws you curve balls and you have to do what you gotta do

Exactly. While the chicks may start of smaller than ones from a hen's egg, they catch up pretty quick!