hatchers hatcherers..... who's expecting peeps on septembre 24th or so... :)

[rachmickmurphy]

Good updates.... looking forward for more pics my friends...... did u know that I tried my first incubator.... a week ago.... we got a lamp a water dish and a baby thermometer.... and just put tow eggs from the same hen.... it all happened rapidly and in the same time... we connected the lamp to a UPS so when the power gies off the lamp is still on.... and we just tried it for fun and see the results and correct mistakes for further trials... we didn't expect anything actually.... as I said we just got crazy and tried..... I know tonnnsss of info about it but we don't have the equipment for it and no mini incubators here unfortunately.... and we've been hatching our chickens using broodies forever.... after three days I candled and the veining were there... but from what I could see ... they died after the first veining... we cracked them and the did died.. but the veining was there... that gave me a push to really start on incubators next I summer after I take my hpd....

that awsome will jump on later to continue this i love homemade bators my first one worked a treat still does. Great work majd sorry they give up on you but you are obviously got right idea.

 

[rachmickmurphy]

Gosh look how big they got. They look like happy little chicky. They are so cute with their little feathers coming in.

 

[rachmickmurphy]

for some reason i am unable to upload pic but i will i use our homemade incubator as a nursery it has double lamp for when its really cold i think i could use the brooder tubs too in the warmer months anyway. will try when the chicks all vacate them. the secect to get this right was a few temp gauges it was trial n error to work out the right spot so the eggs didnt cook and to get the humidity up at hatch time was hard too but on the second batches 21st day chicks hatched after those chicks moved out i continued to use it as a corner table in the lounge lol a lamp table with build in lamp. on the school holidays my eldest girls 7 and 5 put 2 eggs in without my knowledge i got to give them credit they must have watched me closely couple of weeks into the holiday they went away for a week having them gone i thought i would steamclean the lounge here in the box i find these two eggs one of them wobbling and cheeping. i rang the kids and asked who did it they both claiming an egg each one white one brown the brown one hatched. this is really worth trying and theres a certain satisfaction when you build your own it worth all the trial and error and failed attempts. you MUST post pics of your build i am sure you will get great results pick a time of year when outside temps are stable and always keep extra spare globes for the lamp they tend to blow at the worst time. theres a member on here that uses cardboard box and lamp i have seen the pics she posted

 

[Majd]

Sorry, best I could do at the moment... These little guys arent pets, we don't handle them alot as we are gone so much, they run from us now instead of to us...

They got big.... hahahah....lol.... yeah these things happen.... some of mine run to me and jump into my lap.... and some are scared as hell...

 

[rachmickmurphy]

got a suprise today when i went to check the sussex broody sitting with her was another hen between them was a chick not sure when it hatched i had given up on her eggs dont know how many she is even on just leaving her in peace. I going to move new broody tonight and set eggs under her tomorrow. go figure the one i expected to do well walks off the job the one i thought would fail has succeded. setting 5 porcelain araucana eggs

 

[AmericanMom]

got a suprise today when i went to check the sussex broody sitting with her was another hen between them was a chick not sure when it hatched i had given up on her eggs dont know how many she is even on just leaving her in peace. I going to move new broody tonight and set eggs under her tomorrow. go figure the one i expected to do well walks off the job the one i thought would fail has succeded. setting 5 porcelain araucana eggs

LOL, Thats great! One of these days I'll be set up where more of my hens will hopefully have a tendancy to want to go broody... Told hubby either I will buy pullets come spring or will buy fertile eggs but either way I am going to raise a more broody breed!!

 

[Majd]

got a suprise today when i went to check the sussex broody sitting with her was another hen between them was a chick not sure when it hatched i had given up on her eggs dont know how many she is even on just leaving her in peace. I going to move new broody tonight and set eggs under her tomorrow. go figure the one i expected to do well walks off the job the one i thought would fail has succeded. setting 5 porcelain araucana eggs

Ohh l... great....

 

[rachmickmurphy]

well my luck with the cluckys is still unchanged the one i tried to move wouldnt have a bar of it i have put her back with her group. took the susex hens chick she didnt bring it out for food and water so it in brooder with a recent group she still on eggs goin to throw her off in a couple of days. found a black silkie is sitting but not expecting much i even had silkies give up half way thru and looks like one of the australorps is goin to give it a try but not holding my breath there either and it still leaves nearly a doz eggs sitting in the cupboard. i might risk using a muscy and remove them on day 16. done this a few times but last time i mucked dates up and momma duck drown the chicks, eggs and all in the pond. havent done it since.

 

[Majd]

It sounds weird for me... moma hen should know what to do... just don't upset/move/intervene with them if not necessary.... give the australop a try.. and the silkies few eggs.... better than taking the eggs from a muscovy at day 16.... it's not about breeds only.... chickens are not brands... we only have barnyard mutts... and all are very good mommas

 

[rachmickmurphy]

I lost a few chicks to hens that just stay on the nest I was just too frighten I would lose this one too. 5 of 10 ducklings died yesterday the 1st time mum dragged them all over the place and they just started dropping from exhaustion so I took the rest of them and gave them to supermum she took them straight to food and fussed with the food til they ate she don't mind big broods havent lost a single one today. She got the lot tucked under her now. Their mum was just having midnight swim in pond and its freezing tonight they probably would have been dead if they followed her in but i dont reckon they would not have made it thru today if they didnt get food into them yesterday. she came out first day and walked them all day i put her in pen with them and she flew out and left them didnt show them the food she didnt even come back when the called. Supermum paced fencelone trying to response to them all her babies in tow she cant help herself. as for commodity hmm thats hard one i grow some for freezer to feed the family and some go to feedstore that pays for any of the essentials like worming n mite treatments. higher quality go to auctions i only keep the best of best for breeding my loyalty is to the breed when we talking about purebreed we have closed border nothing gets in getting better blood from overseas is not an option. The only way to maintain integrity of the breed is breed they way we have done for generations with the small gene pool thats available we have to linebreed thats does mean big numbers for better selection purposes. I dont feel bad because what i eat has had 8+ months of life opposed frozen chooks at supermarkets my neighbour grows these are not 2 months old i see the trucks come and go 45000 birds at a time all destined for tables.