Getting the flock out of here - a diary of a crazy chicken man

[piglett]

The styrofoam factor is what really turns me off from well.. styrofoam incubators. I have small kids, idiot cats and I am freaking clumsy.. I would not expect a styrofoam anything to last long in this house (I can already see my son or cat trying to eat the dang thing). They seem like they would be hard to clean.. Also, Brinsea products retain their resale value. I have seen used Brinsea incubators and heat plates go on Ebay for 80% or more of the new value. Impressive, in my opinion.

my wife cleans out foam bators with 50/50 bleach & water , clean it the day you stop using it because it will get much cleaner that way

if it sits for weeks Lord help you. also there is a plastic tray that catches most of the egg shell parts as the chicks hatch inside the foam bators

at one point i was on the lookout for buff orpington chicks (this was a few years ago)

i was all set to go pick up a dozen at a local farm & i get a call from the lady doing the hatching

she said her 3 year old made some "ajustments" to the bator

the results were almost 50 dead chicks that would have hatched in a couple more days

"little fingers" & bators just don't mix well



many people put their bator in a closet to avoid this

whatever unit you get, much care will be needed on your part

if it falls off of a table damage will almost always result

none of the ones on the market are built all that tough


oh 1 more thing my 1st hovabator has over 10 hatches on & it still looks like new

i have seen some used ones on ebay that looked rather rough

come to find out they were like 10/15 years old, but still worked as they should

good luck & happy hatching

 

[ozexpat]

The styrofoam factor is what really turns me off from well.. styrofoam incubators. I have small kids, idiot cats and I am freaking clumsy.. I would not expect a styrofoam anything to last long in this house (I can already see my son or cat trying to eat the dang thing). They seem like they would be hard to clean.. Also, Brinsea products retain their resale value. I have seen used Brinsea incubators and heat plates go on Ebay for 80% or more of the new value. Impressive, in my opinion.

Indeed the brinsea is less ingestable.

 

[piglett]

Unless you plan to show your birds, hatchery stock is fine.

I used Dunlap. I will have bernie candle the white eggs tonight - day 5 and give you a prelim. The duck eggs looked good for a trans-pacific setting last night on day 4.

i have found plenty of quality hatching eggs on craigslist.com

 

[ozexpat]

i have found plenty of quality hatching eggs on craigslist.com

craigslist is very regional.

lots of chicks can be bought in greater los angeles but nt many hatching eggs

local byc groups are way better.

 

[Tomtommom]

Indeed the brinsea is less ingestable.

My darling son is a little special (and I say that with all the love of a mother, he's got me wrapped around his pinky). He eats anything and everything. We've gone through several phone chargers, sippy cups last about a month, his bed has bite marks all across, pencils disappear, toys lose arms/heads/wheels.. I have to hide the toilet plunger, he carries it around like a throphy and puts it on his face... He can be found in the kitchen licking the washer at times. He devours books. Literally. You know, I am surprised he has not pulled an Ozzy Osbourne on the chicks yet, but then again, I don't let him touch those.

 

[hillfloweranch]

My darling son is a little special (and I say that with all the love of a mother, he's got me wrapped around his pinky). He eats anything and everything. We've gone through several phone chargers, sippy cups last about a month, his bed has bite marks all across, pencils disappear, toys lose arms/heads/wheels.. I have to hide the toilet plunger, he carries it around like a throphy and puts it on his face... He can be found in the kitchen licking the washer at times. He devours books. Literally. You know, I am surprised he has not pulled an Ozzy Osbourne on the chicks yet, but then again, I don't let him touch those.

That's funny!!! ROFL

 

[Tomtommom]

That's funny!!! ROFL

As they say, pets and kids... the things they do make you want to scream and laugh at the same time.

 

[Sweetpea3829]

i have found plenty of quality hatching eggs on craigslist.com

I wish I could say the same! I haven't found anything in the breeds I want...which is super surprising because we live in a farming community.

Then again...most of the farmers are Mennonite afterall....and not many of them are on Craigslist, lol! Still, there are plenty of non-Mennonite farms around here and I'm striking out. I wonder if my chances will increase later this month?

 

[ozexpat]

I wish I could say the same! I haven't found anything in the breeds I want...which is super surprising because we live in a farming community.

Then again...most of the farmers are Mennonite afterall....and not many of them are on Craigslist, lol! Still, there are plenty of non-Mennonite farms around here and I'm striking out. I wonder if my chances will increase later this month?

what breeds do you want?

 

[ozexpat]

Bernie will candle white egg breeds of chicken eggs today.Day 5 of hatch