Hi from Kansas.

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from another SE Kansan. Do join us on the Consolidated Kansas thread (find the link in my signature) - don't worry about starting from the beginning - just jump on in. It is an ongoing conversation going back three years so trust me, you don't even want to try to start from the beginning.

Hatching is a little addictive, isn't it? I hatched a small batch from my own eggs last month, planning on it being the only batch I would do this Fall but after watching them hatch and enjoying the chicks so much, I'm now on day 14 of batch two. This is definitely the last batch I'm incubating this year though. I'm pretty sure. Well, I think so....

For cleaning, a lot of people recommend Oxine, which has to be purchased online but you get a gallon of concentrate so it goes a long way. Otherwise you could use a weak bleach solution.

Are you feeding medicated chick starter? That will help to prevent coccidiosis, at least.

As for finding homes for them, I would try Craigslist. There is also a Facebook swap page for Kansans and you will find the link for that in signatures on the Consolidated Kansas thread. I'm not much of a Facebook user so I don't have the link myself. It will definitely help to have a system for identifying them by age etc. Perhaps each batch that you incubate, could be marked with a different color of zip tie around one leg? (Just be careful not to put them on too tight and to keep an eye on them so that as they grow you can replace the zip tie with a larger size as needed.) That way you can keep records fairly simple with the zip tie color and hatch date and age them that way. If you are selling, people will want to know their age so they know when to expect eggs.

You might want to consider slowing down on hatching now that it is Fall. Many people don't want to raise chicks over the winter due to the higher cost of feeding them then (less forage available) so you might have a harder time finding people who want to buy them.

Are you suggesting you need to change roosters because he is related to the chicks? If so, you don't need to worry for a few generations. While breeding unrelated pairs is favored, breeding father to daughter and mother to son is acceptable in the chicken world, particularly if you are not breeding show-quality birds. It sounds like you are breeding either one breed or "barnyard mixes" and producing chicks just to be egg-layers and in that situation, breeding father to daughter, at least for a few generations, won't be an issue.

Hope that answers some of your questions but feel free to ask more....
 
Roxannemc~ YES!!!! Things have sort of gone wild, I never expected them to multiply so quickly. I didn't expect to have such success hatching either, but I love it. I've never heard of eBay classified but I will look that up. My dh and my boys love craigslist so I'm sure they will help there. That is a great idea. My hens do lay different colored eggs. We have white, brown, and a dark brown. I have no clue what breeds lay what colors and I don't even know what breeds I have. I don't think they could be hiding them, everything is pretty open. I think we aren't getting many eggs because most of the chickens are just too young and some are boys too. We really only have about 30 adult chickens and I'm betting some are just getting old. I don't have any idea who we got when. I think it is possible that something could be stealing them, I don't know what though. I'm not seeing any signs of anything getting in there. Every once in a while I see a tiny chip out of a shell, but it doesn't pierce the membrane. A few times over the years I've seen some eggs that appear scratched. I don't think they have worms, how would I know? They seem happy and healthy. I think you're right. I will sort them out a few at a time, it will help if I know who lays what color eggs, otherwise I will have to do one at a time. Where can I get leg bands from? I'm assuming you have to change them as they grow. My boys suggested using zip ties, I'm just scared the chickens will accidentally tighten them too much somehow. Thanks so much for all of your input and great ideas.

Redsox and HEChicken, thanks for the invite to Consolidated Kansas. I went there and said hi. It looks really busy there. It'll be fun to see what's going on in our area.

HEChicken~ I'm so addicted to hatching. I keep saying I'm done then I do it again. I love them. I stand there and turn my eggs and talk to them. I have to look like a complete fool. I should have more hatching by Friday, but usually I get a few surprises a couple of days early. I still haven't figured out how that happens. Last year I bought a bunch of heat lamps and replacement bulbs from a garage sale, I didn't even know why I was buying them. They were moving and everything was so cheap. I don't really need to stop because we can keep them warm with those I'm sure. I've never heard of Oxine but I will look that up. For this weekend though, I'm going to do the bleach. I was thinking about using bleach already. In microbiology I remember learning that bleach exposed to air just goes away and is harmless because it just disappears. So, my plan is to spray, rake, spray again and let it sit for a few days. Then I'll go ahead and move the 3 week olds over there. I didn't have any idea if our chick starter was medicated or not. I just go to the feed store and say I need baby chick food and they put it in my van. I just had one of the older kids go out and check, yes it's medicated. Forgive me, I'm learning as I go. My husband calls me a city farmer, but mostly because I think they need things clean too but it's not even that clean. I do have a facebook account but I hardly get on there, unless I want to check on my adult children then I go. I will definitely look for the link though, I bet I can get my husband to keep up on that for me. I see that you had that zip tie idea too, I can get those easily. It looks like you've had some experience with that too, that must mean that they won't get them too tight on their own. We can certainly do that now. I wish I had written down when we hatched this summer, but I do know that they are all 3-4 weeks apart so I can take notes as estimates on those and more accurate on the new ones coming. I think I will put a number on them to identify individuals too and I could keep records on excel so I can sort by specifics. As far as selling goes, I had a lady come by last week to deliver our piglets and she asked about buying some pullets. I told her I'd be happy to sell them, if she could tell which were pullets. I still don't know how to tell and I don't know how much to sell them for either. I don't know when they start laying either, I just never paid attention. I keep looking for little eggs, my first round of chicks this year look nearly as big as their mommas. As far as slowing down the hatching, I keep saying I'm going to because it's going to get cold and my husband keeps saying it's fine because we can keep hooking up more heat lamps. Is there any benefit to having already half grown pullets come next spring? Can I get prime price from them being ready to lay when the warmer weather returns? I'm thinking that there will be less available if most quit hatching in the colder months. I have a huge barn barely being used as well as a couple more sheds, I have room to grow. I don't have lots of pens, but I have boys who are enjoying building. That's what I was thinking about the roosters, I don't want to have messed up chicks because there is too much inbreeding. I was sad to think of getting rid of our rooster though, he's so beautiful and friendly. Yes, I would say we are breeding barnyard mixes, that's a nicer term than mutt. I don't even know what breeds I have. We have some white ones, and some reddish ones, some speckled black/white, and my rooster is black but almost green. I do remember buying some reddish chicks from Orscheln's a year or two ago. So, I can sell eggs, and sell hens, and I hate to say it but some are going to ultimately end up being chicken noodle soup. It sounds like I have a plan now, that eases my mind a lot.

Thanks for the welcome Chicken Tamer. I love being here. I've been here a lot lately learning all I can and I must say this is the best place to get good information.

I can't go outside yet but I will get outside later and get some chicken pics.
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