Hatching more pullets than cockerels - WHAT'S YOUR SECRET?

[chickenmeadow]

Wouldn't it be nice to be able to have more of the pullets hatch than roosters, if that is what you wanted! I have heard of a few methods that people have used, but have you tried any with success? Here's what I've heard: pointed, narrow eggs will be roos & rounder eggs will be hens, more hens are born in cooler weather & more roos in hotter weather, dangle a pendullum like a needle with string over the eggs for an intuitive forcast, & then there's the jedi hand wave.

What have you tried? I'd love to hear your secret recipe for hatching more pullets?

 

[catdaddyfro]

Yes I've also heard of certain differrent methods of hatching that will produce more or less pullets in the hatch, but have never tried any. I heard that you will get more pullets by hatching at a lower temp., IJDK about that one either, this past summer I had two different hens hatch a brood of eggs both hatched 7 out of 8 eggs and one had 6 pullets and 1 roo, the other had 4 roos and 3 pullets so I really don't know if temps had anything in the world to do with it or not.

I do know that if there needs to be more male or female turtles in the sea turtle world the the mother will bury the eggs deeper or shallower for the eggs to hatch and they will be either all male ao all female depending on the depth they are buried due to the temp. they hatch. Now that is in the reptilian world and not the bird kingdom so don't have any idea as to the facts on getting a certain sex to hatch from a chicken egg.

My grandfather could put an egg in the incubator and hatch a rooster everytime. I will remember this till the day I die and it seemed like the longer more pointed egg was the one he would pick out, but this never crossed my mind as a kid I just figured he was guessing at a 50/50 chance of getting either. I remember this because I would ask him why was he hatching another rooster he would always say he needed a new one. Now I know why, as he was trying to develop his own stock of chicken he liked.

I've never read anything on this, just always heard expect a 50/50 mix on straight run but usually all my hatches in the incubator are 70/30 or maybe 60/40 roo to pullet ratio.

catdaddy

 

[Mahonri]

It's a 50/50 crap shoot.

1st hatch last year I got 8 pullets and 4 roos.

2nd hatch last year I got 9 pullets and 3 roos.

I think the temps were too high in the bator

Had a goodly number that died pipping.

 

[speckledhen]

Temp differences to skew sex ratios work only with reptiles. The hen determines the sex of the chick before it's even fertilized (opposite to humans), so you cant do anything during incubation to change it. What you can do is determine which hens throw mostly pullets and only hatch their eggs but that takes identifying which eggs are hers and keeping track of the chick till you can determine its sex. It's why I like to hatch Ivy's eggs (haven't yet had a male from hers) and why I'd rather not hatch Lexie's eggs(most of hers are cockerels) unless I need a new rooster.

The egg shape thing is an old wives' (farmers'?) tale. If it worked, then no Delaware eggs would ever be cockerels and that isn't the way it happens, trust me, LOL.

 

[Katy]

I wish there was a sure way to do that. If there was, the big hatcheries would have figured out how to do it years ago.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Ok, I'll share this technique but please don't tell anyone else.

The secret is duct tape. If you put a tiny piece of pink duct tape on the bottom of the egg on day 2 you will increase the chances of the chick being a hen, or at least dressing like one.

 

[sonew123]

Quote:
your so bad PC!

 

[zaylinda]

My mother used the round vs pointy egg method, and claims an 80% success rate.
Naturally, you have to do this relative to the breed of chickens. Some naturally have rounder or or pointier eggs.
Good Luck!
-Zay

 

[mandelyn]

I tried the specific hen method, sort of. Chipmunk came with her Pullet that she hatched. So I test-hatched her eggs... 3 boys 1 girl.

Her daughter... I have a batch that appears to be 2 and 2, but time will tell.

My game hens both lay the pointiest eggs I've ever seen.... haven't had success hatching theirs, my Bantam rooster hasn't developed his balance yet on standard hens.

What I did start doing though, was marking the eggs as I got them with the first initial of the hen's name, and the date on the other side of the egg, instead of doing an X and O for hand turning in the incubator. I check for eggs often enough to know who laid what, what her schedual is, and what her egg looks like. Chipmunk and Lil'Bit have the same shape and color, but slightly different sizes. Prissy's is round and tinted beige. The games, Thing 1 and Thing 2, both lay weird oblong pointy white eggs, Thing 1's is giant, Thing 2's is medium. They get marked T1 and T2, incase I do find a fertile one and set some. They're identical birds besides the 1/2 pound size difference.

But so far, on two small batches, 5 boys, 3 girls, from two related hens.

 

[ice329]

The farmer down the block got this method from a old lady he new and he says its no fail.... hehehe Its a little differnt then the thread topic but.... he said take needle, thread it and push it threw a pencel erasor and hang it over the egg.... now this part I dont remember exactly but if it swings accross its one sex and around it the other....??? who knows but he swore it works someone try it.... mark the eggs that the needle swings accross and see what happens...hehe?