I Built A Bridge!

[arkansas55]

Thank you 16 paws your answer was not too long

Yep, I am willing to deal with the consequences, but I am not willing to live with the fact that I may be giving up on new life which has already been through huge odds to get this far.

I am not going to stress over it, over think it etc; Plan A is back on track .. que sara sara

Totally agree, if anything goes wrong, deal with it and learn from it.

Bravo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[tommysgirl]

tommysgirl,
LMHO at hitting up the manager for a shed/coop, what size do you think would be appropiate for all the pain and suffering I had to go thru?

Yes, I very well understand your thoughts on giving a couple more eggs to the broodies....I have been proven guilty of the very same thing lately. It is so hard not to give in and just let them be a mom. I admit I have a problem, is enough really enough? haha
I mean really, can you say no when this may be what you get to see in 21 days or so?

Introducing...the newest assisted hatch chick here on the bridge.....

So so sweet!!!

Thanks for complimenting Ike...heehee I should call him I kandy

lols 16 paws, so far you are safe, you have only said "order eggs" once, two more times though and you may be in trouble

As I mentioned to TG, while frustrating in that chances of any success are not good with the eggs sitting in the PO over the weekend, getting older, new broody etc I will continue with Plan A and see what happens.

I do not think I really have another option .. I guess I could 'give up' on this batch of eggs but wonder if that may be a tad on the dramatic side? I still vote for giving them to her and hoping.

The eggs were shipped on the 27th, some laid on the 25th, 26th and 27th. If they arrive tomorrow (1st) I can give them to her on the (2nd). So, some are going to be around the 7-8 day mark. Anyone think I am being unrealistic? Please chime in.

Should I give up on Plan A and start again?

Tee hee 16 paws good one!

I know I am rambling, but I have decided that I will continue with Plan A. I was just thinking, what if I do give her the eggs and some little ones hatch; these would be little ones that I had made a decision to give up on.

If there is one egg in there that has a chance of hatching; I think it deserves that chance

Yay!!! that's what I would do if I were you too. And agree completely that one chick is worth it!

Glad you guys don't mind me sharing my birds....After I posted Cosmo made a real attempt to mount Stella who is not ready and she carried on something fierce, prompting Ike to rush over to see what was the matter. He stopped about 8 ft from them and Cosmo looked for all the world like he was thinking "What? That oh no no sir that was just me showing off...I didn't mean anything by it. See she is fine now." I don't want to have to separate them!

 

[16 paws]

Thank you 16 paws your answer was not too long

Yep, I am willing to deal with the consequences, but I am not willing to live with the fact that I may be giving up on new life which has already been through huge odds to get this far.

Thats exciting to think of it that way. Whoo-hooo, this is going to be fun to follow along. Cant wait for the up-dates. Like I said, who needs TV anymore, this is soooo much more fun. Good luck Teila, we are all in this together.

 

[Teila]

Ark, I will take that "Bravo" as a vote for sticking to Plan A

Thank you!

TG thank you also for the Yes vote and the support .... thank you ALL for the support! (Edited to add: thank you Marie, you will definitely be kept in the loop)

TG that Cosmo v Stella v Ike story sounds like something that would have been good to see. Hopefully, if Cosmo continues to recognize Ike as top rooster, you will not have to separate them .. sounds promising ... love the "see she is fine now" line

TG as I said, always happy to see pictures of everyone's birds .. on that note

having another wonderful day in the garden with the gals so just sharing a few happy snaps .....

So that she does not feel left out, wanna-be mumma:



"Stoopid egg, hurry up and come out already, I wanna go play in the garden!"



Anyone ever had an egg this tiny? That is an average sized corn kernel on one side and a Blondie egg on the other; Blondie lays the smallest bantam eggs of all my gals.
The story goes that Cilla (above) appears to have given up on laying an egg as she wanted to play in the garden with the others. When I saw that she was running around the garden with the others I went to collect the egg she was laying .. no egg! Hhhm, while taking some happy snaps, saw this tiny little offering in the middle of the lawn next to a chicken poop. I do not know if this was Cilla's or could it be LuLu's first? No idea why it is so tiny, why it was laid in the middle of the lawn or who laid it .. I'm thinking Cilla and probably impatient to play? Then again, Cilla's eggs are only slightly darker than Blondie's whites and this little offering is a nice rich tan?



Anyway, moving on ....

"Gardening? Did someone mention gardening? Lucky for you mum, gardening is our area of expertise"



"Lunch? Did someone mention lunch? Lucky for you mum that we are here to help you eat your lunch"



"Is that a bug?"

 

[Teila]

Good morning Bridge Club

So, the eggs arrived today .. woo hoo

There are 9; nicely packed and all intact; 6 of which I will give her tonight. OK not the total required sitting time but I will take the chance as time is of the essence:
1 laid 21 August which sadly I am not taking a chance on .. today is day 12
2 laid 22 August, again, not taking a chance on those .. today is day 11
3 laid 23 August which I will give her tonight .. risky as day 10 today
1 laid 24 August day 9 today and
2 laid 26 August day 7 so our best hope

The one's laid on the 23rd are marked Lav, BV and White Silkie
The one laid on the 24th is marked Gloria
One of the one's laid on the 26th is not marked and the other one is marked Gloria

I wonder what Gloria is? Surprise! lol

 

[arkansas55]

Good morning Bridge Club

So, the eggs arrived today .. woo hoo

There are 9; nicely packed and all intact; 6 of which I will give her tonight. OK not the total required sitting time but I will take the chance as time is of the essence:
1 laid 21 August which sadly I am not taking a chance on .. today is day 12
2 laid 22 August, again, not taking a chance on those .. today is day 11
3 laid 23 August which I will give her tonight .. risky as day 10 today
1 laid 24 August day 9 today and
2 laid 26 August day 7 so our best hope

The one's laid on the 23rd are marked Lav, BV and White Silkie
The one laid on the 24th is marked Gloria
One of the one's laid on the 26th is not marked and the other one is marked Gloria

I wonder what Gloria is? Surprise! lol

awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! beautiful pic's too,i know you will have some fabulous chick's

 

[lizgarf]

Hello folks! I hope everyone has had a nice weekend. I know I have.
@Teila , about the tiny egg: I had one like that once from Grace. It was like a bird's egg - so adorable! And it appeared to be a complete tiny egg inside. My bet is it's Lulu's first egg!
I've been thinking about your late-shipped eggs dilemma, and I want you to know that I totally support whatever you decide to do. I know you are an exceptionally devoted chicken mum, and you will do right by your girls. I also wanted to offer an alternate voice that I haven't heard here yet. I know these eggs feel like potential life to you, because you anticipate your next bubbies will be coming from them and you sought out a breeder and ordered them and eagerly anticipated their arrival. But to me, from afar, these are not that different from the fertile eggs that I eat every day, and which anyone with a rooster eats. The only difference is that they've been purchased and shipped through the mail over a period of several days. They are probably still suitable for eating, but their viability for hatching and making happy, healthy, bubbies, is considerably lower than other eggs. Personally, if it were me, I would not take a chance on these eggs. There is too much potential for something to go wrong and heartbreak to ensue.
Now, I realize this could start a very dangerous debate, and I do not want to intrude on anyone's beliefs about when life starts for chickens or humans or anyone else. I respect and support everyone coming to their own comfortable place with these complicated issues, which can be a source of much consternation in an imperfect world. I just wanted to offer my thoughts, as a regular eater of fertile eggs (but not chickens), thanks to Desi, that I think there would be no harm in eating these eggs (or feeding them to your girls), and obtaining new eggs from the breeder which have a better chance of hatching healthy bubbies (if indeed that is a realistic option). I realize there's also the danger of Tina breaking her broody spell and I understand the desire to speed things along on that front, and I'm not offering an opinion there.
Those are my 2 cents, which I believe you asked for. Take them however you like and know that I support your decision and hope it goes well for you and Tina!

 

[Teila]

Thank you ark

Liz yep, the egg was so cute and it did have a perfect little egg inside, yolk included. I am swaying towards it being Cilla's as she was doing the 'I am going to lay an egg dance' and then did not lay one so, as mentioned, I think she just wanted to be outside playing and this might have mucked things up a little. It sure did have one tough little shell for a tiny egg

I did a little bit of research and worms can cause tiny egg problems but they have all been wormed. Apparently, lack of food can also be a contributor .. uuum, definitely not the issue! lol. Also first eggs or hens that are thinking of retiring from egg laying can be tiny.

Anyways, I am not concerned but thought I would do some research into causes for what I have since learned is known as a fart-egg or wind-egg *chuckle*.

Thank you so much for your support Liz and your honesty which I totally appreciate and you are right, I did ask for everyone to chime in. It is hard to explain, I definitely do not have an issue with eating fertile eggs; not having a rooster probably means that I have not eaten them very often if at all but you never know

Yep, I am sure many could debate for hours, days, months and probably have about the 'when does life begin' debate; with regards eggs, I sway towards when the hen or incubator sets as this is when it starts to develop, others will be when the egg is laid etc. Like you, I respect everyone's opinion and their right to have one.

I have actually seriously thought about not giving her these eggs and ordering more but, as you mention, she may not stick the full term term which will now be a total of 4 weeks as she has been broody for one. I thought of ordering more eggs but they would probably be another 3-4 days getting here, at least and then she is getting out towards 5 weeks of sitting. Which she may do without a problem but if she doesn't, I have lost two batches of eggs.

I also considered just missing this one and trying to break her but then I have the eggs, she is broody, throw caution to the wind and give them a chance.

I am going to be realistic about the chances and while I will not be able to stop myself from getting a little excited, I am prepared for the worse. I am concerned about Tina if it does all go pear-shaped but I am hopeful that she could maybe get one out of the six and if not, there is always the one day old chick option maybe.

To be honest, it is a tough call and I have tossed it over again and again the past few days but I just keep coming back to 'give it a go'. I have this feeling that we may get a couple.

Not that you would, but you can say "I told you so"

.. thanks again hon, I really do appreciate that

 

[lizgarf]

Awesome, Teila! I'm glad my thoughts could be received and it sounds like you have a great plan.
Things seem to be progressing well here. Lu has a bit of pasty butt - she seemed to get the worst of the fluctuating incubation problems and post-incubation farmer problems. But, at least she's walking well! I've been able to leave the farm for large blocks of time the past few days with nothing more serious to return to than knocked-over water dispensers. I'm enjoying seeing the wings begin to feather, with new colors coming in.
Next step is expanding the nests - I'm nervous about complete integration, not because of the hens, but because of the injured bubbies being potentially targeted by Grace. I'll need to figure out how to make their nest bigger, but out of Grace's way.

Here are some pics:


Everyone still perky in the short nest:

 

[Teila]

Liz aaaaw, beautiful bubbies .. look at their little feathers; too cute! Poor little Frankie looks like he/she has seen better days but kudos to that tough little one hanging in there; so tiny!!

Seen as I have probably embarked on something similar to mission impossible; I thought I would have some fun with this.

Lead in … Tina’s nick name is ‘Teeny Bean’ ……..

Operation Baby Bean > Update

As of 04:00pm Australian Eastern Standard Time, 1st September 2014, Operation Baby Bean was officially under way.

3 little ones did not make the cut due to age restrictions and while making the cut, little BV23 was found to have cracked on transfer to mission headquarters. These little ones are on standby to be scrambled shortly.

The remaining little ones reported to mission headquarters under the watchful eye of Platoon Leader Tina who seemed surprised that her little platoon had increased from 2 to 5, but she took the little ones under her wing without question.

Three weeks of boot camp with Platoon Leader Tina all over them and watching them 24/7 has commenced.

Reporting for duty were:
LAV23
White Silkie 23
Gloria24
Identity cannot be revealed and
Gloria26

Edited to Add: I do believe that Dusty laid an egg today after a 5 month hiatus. I am pretty sure it is Dusty's as it does not look like Cilla's or Blondie's and too big to be LuLu's first egg .. way to go Dusty! Welcome Back!