Last fall I tried twice with shipped eggs from various sellers for some of the more rare breeds. Ended up with 3 pullets (and a 4th that got sold with the one boy) from 3 dozen eggs. I said... No more.
So husband and I are at this swap, and someone had Wheaten Maran eggs for sale. Husband buys them for me. I didn't really want to try again, since I'm getting into ducks. I set them a week ago on that Sunday. Next day, temperature spike to 102. Yay.
Can't get it held at 99.5, it's wanting to do either 98 or 100.9. I settled on 100.9 last couple of times because I prefer a little warm to a little cold. Either way the hatch won't be that great, and I keep getting a pile of girls from what does hatch. Like 11 duck eggs, 5 hatch, all girls. The 3 pullets I have now. Better than 3 roosters I can't even keep. Most recently, 5 duck eggs, 4 girls. 1 was from a shipped batch that didn't do well, post office fail. But hey, one girl down in the breed I want. 3 more and a boy to go to have a flock. I have live ducklings coming to me at the end of this month.
Right when these Marans are due to hatch. If they do. It's been one thing after another! Like husband going down to the basement where the incubator is set. Turns the light off. Which also controls the outlet, turning off the incubator. It dropped down to 78 degrees by the time I saw it.
Draw back to using an auto turner? You don't feel as compelled to monitor everything since you don't have to turn eggs 3 times a day.
I candled last night, there's stuff in there growing. I won't touch them again until lockdown on the 23rd.
I had heard a long time ago that warmer means more girls and cooler means more boys. I sure have been getting a lot of girls. I've had two hatches of ducks, not one boy. My babies now are old enough to voice sex... the only boy I have is from someone else that got him for Easter and then gave him to me.
But with the spike on the second day, the power failure drop, my tinkering with it trying for 99.5 and going between 98 and 100.9..... I have no idea what to expect from this hatch, if anything.
To add insult to injury, the eggs are really nice with great Maran coloring, and I can't hardly see a darn thing when I candle. No tell tail crisp veining to see like in a white egg. I have to find the clear at the point or aircell and hope to see a flutter of movement while I'm looking. Everything is dull looking and very shadowy. Same as last time with Marans. Those I had to wait until lockdown to start tossing eggs. If it wasn't solid black for the most part by then, it got tossed.
Why did he buy me those eggs? Need to build another brooder too, for ducks. Those ducklings are coming for sure, and in case a couple of chickens make it out, I need a place for them. Plus I bought myself a couple of babies at the same swap, but I found a super cute rabbit hutch to put them in for $50 since they were old enough. But I only have one brooder. Not big enough for 10 ducklings for more than a week. With a new brooder for ducks, that leaves the one open for anything that hatches.
Did a remodel of the hen house after I decided it was time to deep clean it and pull everything out. Just in case I score again with more pullets. It would be cool if I got a couple of boys so I could trio some out to sell.
If anything even hatches. I might be doing all this for nothing. Well... until my ducks are grown and I start hatching their eggs.
So husband and I are at this swap, and someone had Wheaten Maran eggs for sale. Husband buys them for me. I didn't really want to try again, since I'm getting into ducks. I set them a week ago on that Sunday. Next day, temperature spike to 102. Yay.
Can't get it held at 99.5, it's wanting to do either 98 or 100.9. I settled on 100.9 last couple of times because I prefer a little warm to a little cold. Either way the hatch won't be that great, and I keep getting a pile of girls from what does hatch. Like 11 duck eggs, 5 hatch, all girls. The 3 pullets I have now. Better than 3 roosters I can't even keep. Most recently, 5 duck eggs, 4 girls. 1 was from a shipped batch that didn't do well, post office fail. But hey, one girl down in the breed I want. 3 more and a boy to go to have a flock. I have live ducklings coming to me at the end of this month.
Right when these Marans are due to hatch. If they do. It's been one thing after another! Like husband going down to the basement where the incubator is set. Turns the light off. Which also controls the outlet, turning off the incubator. It dropped down to 78 degrees by the time I saw it.
Draw back to using an auto turner? You don't feel as compelled to monitor everything since you don't have to turn eggs 3 times a day.
I candled last night, there's stuff in there growing. I won't touch them again until lockdown on the 23rd.
I had heard a long time ago that warmer means more girls and cooler means more boys. I sure have been getting a lot of girls. I've had two hatches of ducks, not one boy. My babies now are old enough to voice sex... the only boy I have is from someone else that got him for Easter and then gave him to me.
But with the spike on the second day, the power failure drop, my tinkering with it trying for 99.5 and going between 98 and 100.9..... I have no idea what to expect from this hatch, if anything.
To add insult to injury, the eggs are really nice with great Maran coloring, and I can't hardly see a darn thing when I candle. No tell tail crisp veining to see like in a white egg. I have to find the clear at the point or aircell and hope to see a flutter of movement while I'm looking. Everything is dull looking and very shadowy. Same as last time with Marans. Those I had to wait until lockdown to start tossing eggs. If it wasn't solid black for the most part by then, it got tossed.
Why did he buy me those eggs? Need to build another brooder too, for ducks. Those ducklings are coming for sure, and in case a couple of chickens make it out, I need a place for them. Plus I bought myself a couple of babies at the same swap, but I found a super cute rabbit hutch to put them in for $50 since they were old enough. But I only have one brooder. Not big enough for 10 ducklings for more than a week. With a new brooder for ducks, that leaves the one open for anything that hatches.
Did a remodel of the hen house after I decided it was time to deep clean it and pull everything out. Just in case I score again with more pullets. It would be cool if I got a couple of boys so I could trio some out to sell.
If anything even hatches. I might be doing all this for nothing. Well... until my ducks are grown and I start hatching their eggs.
