I'm caught back up with the reading again, at least for now. My DH has been doing some online researching, so I haven't been on as much and been doing more thing's outside now.

I put my 6 egg's in lockdown today, but I dropped one that landed on top of one of the other one's. Only one of the egg's cracked a bit, but I put it back in there anyway's. Do you think that it will still hatch?
 
Aw, thank you he says!

Awwwww he even has a proper crow! Most of my 20 week olds have a “ca-cooo” or “ca-ca-cooo” at best... if the crowing alone isn’t a neighbor issue... I can’t speak for @BY Bob and when Jabber started to get unruly, however,

I’ve noticed “bad behavior” starting at 17 to 21 weeks in my boys. What I now look for is mostly roughness or pecking order type attacks on the pullets... not mating attempts mind you (they are pretty clumsy at first, and the feathers on the hens show it!) but if a cockerel is trying to assert dominance or keep a pullet from feed for starters. I have one ‘would be a keeper’ boy, except that he has been mean to the pullets for the last month or so. He seems* to be getting better, but I don’t really need another Rooster!

With my “white devil” leghorn x boys, they actively were trying to flog me around 17 weeks old, and biting, flogging some more, and generally being awful (not just hormonal they were aggressive to me and each other). As in, I would go into the run to let them out and they would attack me as a group, some jumping at my face, jumping up and biting my arms, while others (yes, plural) flogged my legs. Every morning, for over a month. They made very nice pot pies.

My Chickie Hawk (who I cuddled too much as a babe, he was my first assisted hatch, and he really needed chicken girlfriends) showed all the classic “my rooster is awful/attacking me” post signs. A lot of this was due to errors in my handling of him and just not having enough hens for all my boys. He isn’t a tame Rooster, many would label him aggressive, most people would have culled him. We have worked out our differences, I respect him and he (mostly) respects me. It’s a little dysfunctional, but we make it work. He only has 6 girls, but he is very good with them, even though they kicked his butt when they first met.

Roosters can be very good. I credit my Sammy to saving most of his girls from an owl. They will alert to aerial predators. Sammy and Barney are both playing Daddy to a bunch of teenagers (not theirs, and 10@ 60/40, and 20@ 50/50 ~ p/c, 12 and 19 weeks old respectively) keeping them mostly in line. I wish I had the nerve to range and rear as @Shadrach does... maybe one day I can get there.

I’m 100% pro Rooster/good cockerel. I appreciate their role in the flock dynamics. If you have the space, patience, it is legal, and a decent boy... I say give it a whirl! See how it goes. I have certainly learned that there is a huge difference in the behaviors of hen only flocks and flocks with roosters, and flocks with those odd two legged roosters... mostly from reading of other hen only flock behaviors here.

I do still have special relationships with some of my hens, even those with “proper” (chicken) roosters. All of my rehab girls and Sammy are a good example, as is Precious, Princess, Tiny, and Teensie of Mr Marans flock. I have “sweetie” in with Barney (she ended up in my jacket and under my armpit the other day) and “Eagle bait” (a cockerel of the same age) and I are frequently at odds about free ranging. I’m currently at 69 chickens... and hatching; so flock size and space are also valid considerations...

Either way, August is very pretty, and looks sweet.
 
I'm caught back up with the reading again, at least for now. My DH has been doing some online researching, so I haven't been on as much and been doing more thing's outside now.

I put my 6 egg's in lockdown today, but I dropped one that landed on top of one of the other one's. Only one of the egg's cracked a bit, but I put it back in there anyway's. Do you think that it will still hatch?
@Kris5902 might know, but I can't think of anyone else with hatching experience.
 
On behalf of all the Australians on this thread, I'd like to say "Pffft, that's not big!" ;)

I 100% agree! I’ve had a few wolf spiders in a basement suite we rented about 6” big in leg spread, but nothing compared to Australia, Mexico, or South America! Nickel is for size reference... for my cousin’s kid. She likes spiders??? The body pattern is interesting though. And it’s about a month late from being eaten by a black widow (ETA: Like a red back for all you aussies! :p) that was there (under my sofa!!!) in December. It’s our only seriously venomous creature here, and it’s even primarily an arachnivore, so I can’t really complain too much. I prefer snakes. I’m fairly reactive to most spider bites, not anaphylactic, but too close to it.

I'm caught back up with the reading again, at least for now. My DH has been doing some online researching, so I haven't been on as much and been doing more thing's outside now.

I put my 6 egg's in lockdown today, but I dropped one that landed on top of one of the other one's. Only one of the egg's cracked a bit, but I put it back in there anyway's. Do you think that it will still hatch?

Can hope... I cracked one in my initial hatch the same way and it didn’t make it, but I’ve also seen many reported successes with that sort of thing here. I had a lot of other issues (humidity too high!) with that hatch though, and was my first one. Never hurts too mich to try... you’re giving the egg a chance at least.
 
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What is that thing? I can't even figure out what I'm looking at....

8A2902AB-B6C2-44AE-825F-BA11FD85862B.jpeg


I admit I don’t see Mal(?)... lol that’s a hungry girl with good night vision though! (for a chicken) I love the coop cam...
 
Awwwww he even has a proper crow! Most of my 20 week olds have a “ca-cooo” or “ca-ca-cooo” at best... if the crowing alone isn’t a neighbor issue... I can’t speak for @BY Bob and when Jabber started to get unruly, however,

I’ve noticed “bad behavior” starting at 17 to 21 weeks in my boys. What I now look for is mostly roughness or pecking order type attacks on the pullets... not mating attempts mind you (they are pretty clumsy at first, and the feathers on the hens show it!) but if a cockerel is trying to assert dominance or keep a pullet from feed for starters. I have one ‘would be a keeper’ boy, except that he has been mean to the pullets for the last month or so. He seems* to be getting better, but I don’t really need another Rooster!

With my “white devil” leghorn x boys, they actively were trying to flog me around 17 weeks old, and biting, flogging some more, and generally being awful (not just hormonal they were aggressive to me and each other). As in, I would go into the run to let them out and they would attack me as a group, some jumping at my face, jumping up and biting my arms, while others (yes, plural) flogged my legs. Every morning, for over a month. They made very nice pot pies.

My Chickie Hawk (who I cuddled too much as a babe, he was my first assisted hatch, and he really needed chicken girlfriends) showed all the classic “my rooster is awful/attacking me” post signs. A lot of this was due to errors in my handling of him and just not having enough hens for all my boys. He isn’t a tame Rooster, many would label him aggressive, most people would have culled him. We have worked out our differences, I respect him and he (mostly) respects me. It’s a little dysfunctional, but we make it work. He only has 6 girls, but he is very good with them, even though they kicked his butt when they first met.

Roosters can be very good. I credit my Sammy to saving most of his girls from an owl. They will alert to aerial predators. Sammy and Barney are both playing Daddy to a bunch of teenagers (not theirs, and 10@ 60/40, and 20@ 50/50 ~ p/c, 12 and 19 weeks old respectively) keeping them mostly in line. I wish I had the nerve to range and rear as @Shadrach does... maybe one day I can get there.

I’m 100% pro Rooster/good cockerel. I appreciate their role in the flock dynamics. If you have the space, patience, it is legal, and a decent boy... I say give it a whirl! See how it goes. I have certainly learned that there is a huge difference in the behaviors of hen only flocks and flocks with roosters, and flocks with those odd two legged roosters... mostly from reading of other hen only flock behaviors here.

I do still have special relationships with some of my hens, even those with “proper” (chicken) roosters. All of my rehab girls and Sammy are a good example, as is Precious, Princess, Tiny, and Teensie of Mr Marans flock. I have “sweetie” in with Barney (she ended up in my jacket and under my armpit the other day) and “Eagle bait” (a cockerel of the same age) and I are frequently at odds about free ranging. I’m currently at 69 chickens... and hatching; so flock size and space are also valid considerations...

Either way, August is very pretty, and looks sweet.
Thanks so much for all that advice, and experience. I really appreciate the time and care, and am heartened to learn that sometimes everything works out to an arrangement. Your chickens are quite lucky!
I’d be interested in what difference you notice between hen only and rooster+ hen flocks?
 

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