jonathsk
In the Brooder
(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
Yes, brand new! We initially tried to hatch 10 eggs starting around February 2020 but none were successful. The weather was changing at the time from Winter to Spring and we were challenged with fluctuating temperature and humidity. That combined with a DIY incubator that required hand-turning and attention made it difficult.
Our second batch of 8 eggs proved successful. I went the cheap route and built my own automated incubator using an arduino that controlled temperature, humidity, and auto-rotation. This yielded 5 chicks over the Memorial Holiday weekend.
We set up a live stream as we raise them! You can see them at:
http://tiny.cc/eggies
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
We currently have 5.
(3) What breeds do you have?
I do not know and this is partially the reason we wanted to join this community, to learn things like this as we progress with our chickens.
(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
The challenge, the prospect of eggs, and just the amazement that these little guys came from an egg!
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
Wood working, hiking, aquaponics, computers, movies, bread-making (I'm sure just a short phase of a quarantine byproduct)...
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
My wife, Krystal, and I started this journey together randomly one day after talking about my mom and little sister who each hatched eggs a long time ago. We have two dogs -- (1) lasso apso, 25-lbs, 2 y/o, named Bogey and (2) half lab/shepherd, 50-lbs, 10 y/o, named Pumba. We also have an aquaponics system with approximately 20 gold fish and 10 tilapia. Krystal is a Nurse and I am in the Air Force. We like to enjoy our free time trying new hobbies/activities and learning new trades. We have a long term goal of retiring early and potentially homesteading somewhere where we can raise chickens, goats, and live off our land.
(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?
I found BYC on google while doing research for our hatching project. It's only been a month or two and what finally made us join was because of the realization that we desperately needed a community once the chicks were actually hatched! Like new parents to a baby, we are lost and so new to this! We know there's a lot to learn!
Yes, brand new! We initially tried to hatch 10 eggs starting around February 2020 but none were successful. The weather was changing at the time from Winter to Spring and we were challenged with fluctuating temperature and humidity. That combined with a DIY incubator that required hand-turning and attention made it difficult.
Our second batch of 8 eggs proved successful. I went the cheap route and built my own automated incubator using an arduino that controlled temperature, humidity, and auto-rotation. This yielded 5 chicks over the Memorial Holiday weekend.
We set up a live stream as we raise them! You can see them at:
http://tiny.cc/eggies
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
We currently have 5.
(3) What breeds do you have?
I do not know and this is partially the reason we wanted to join this community, to learn things like this as we progress with our chickens.
(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
The challenge, the prospect of eggs, and just the amazement that these little guys came from an egg!
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
Wood working, hiking, aquaponics, computers, movies, bread-making (I'm sure just a short phase of a quarantine byproduct)...
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
My wife, Krystal, and I started this journey together randomly one day after talking about my mom and little sister who each hatched eggs a long time ago. We have two dogs -- (1) lasso apso, 25-lbs, 2 y/o, named Bogey and (2) half lab/shepherd, 50-lbs, 10 y/o, named Pumba. We also have an aquaponics system with approximately 20 gold fish and 10 tilapia. Krystal is a Nurse and I am in the Air Force. We like to enjoy our free time trying new hobbies/activities and learning new trades. We have a long term goal of retiring early and potentially homesteading somewhere where we can raise chickens, goats, and live off our land.
(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?
I found BYC on google while doing research for our hatching project. It's only been a month or two and what finally made us join was because of the realization that we desperately needed a community once the chicks were actually hatched! Like new parents to a baby, we are lost and so new to this! We know there's a lot to learn!
). Hope your new Littles bring you as much joy as mine bring me <3.
