IA (incubators anonymous) September Hatches?

[ChickensAndYoga]

Wow, you are very busy!!

I'm on my own, now, so I work and come home. I have a very large, laid back dog, and a couple of nice neighbors that I go out to dinner with every now and then, but no one to feel slighted by my temporary (I hope) obsession with completing a successful hatch with shipped eggs, lol. Once mine are old enough to lay, I will just hatch their eggs, assuming I decide to keep a rooster with them. I have one more dozen ordered, but I don't know when they will ship, hopefully not until the 2nd week of October so the incubator is free. Otherwise I will have to juggle, lol. And to think, this all started with me deciding to get 4-6 chickens in July... Chicken math hit me like a herd of freight trains!

Chicken math lol I got hit with it, too! When we moved here a couple years ago I wanted to get back to having a few laying hens... and here we are! We need to meet up sometime! Have a BYC meet and greet lol My husband used to work over in Lakeland I saw you mention there.

My two are BOTH wiggling this AM. Hatcher has been running and I have been cranking up humidity since yesterday so there’s no wait if one of these decides to pull a fast one on me. Historically from these two hens once their eggs start to shake they at least internal pip within 24-48 hours. But the roosters are new to them because I played rooster roulette a few weeks ago wanting to switch things up. So, who knows

 

[RollTideChicken]

...assuming I decide to keep a rooster with them.

I recommend this wholeheartedly. A rooster changes the dynamics of your flock, for much the better, IMO. So long as he's nice to you and his ladies that is. I've had more not nice than nice roosters. But Randy, my Bielefelder roo, is nothing but a gentleroo to his ladies and has zero human aggression.
Annnnnd so far, fingers crossed, his son, a mix with BO, also shows no sign of aggression, but he's just now coming into his own, so we'll see.

 

[RollTideChicken]

Today is the 20th of September and 21 days means that you are looking at an OCTOBER hatch not a September hatch. I don't even like to hatch chickens in June little less in October. Too many things can and will go wrong.

I hatched in September last year and the birds over-wintered very well and came out of it right at laying age. I live in North Alabama (Roll Tide) so I have roughly the same weather as you in Tennessee. Florida on the other hand, stays quite warm year round, so an October hatch will probably be fine for her.
Have you tried a late-in-the-year hatch?

 

[Jules929]

We need to meet up sometime! Have a BYC meet and greet lol My husband used to work over in Lakeland I saw you mention there.

Yeah, I am just south of the Green Swamp area. We are about 70 miles apart. A meet and greet would be fun!
And wiggles are great!!

 

[Jules929]

I recommend this wholeheartedly. A rooster changes the dynamics of your flock, for much the better, IMO. So long as he's nice to you and his ladies that is. I've had more not nice than nice roosters. But Randy, my Bielefelder roo, is nothing but a gentleroo to his ladies and has zero human aggression.
Annnnnd so far, fingers crossed, his son, a mix with BO, also shows no sign of aggression, but he's just now coming into his own, so we'll see.

I had 7 roosters back the first time I had chickens, only one ever challenged me.
I do want a rooster, and am allowed to have them where I am, as long as it doesn't upset the neighbors I will keep one.

 

[Jules929]

yay! I hope you'll keep us updated on their progress

Of course I will, lol! Patience is key (that's what I keep telling myself) as Day 1 is tonight at around 10pm. This one is just getting started!

 

[KikiLeigh02]

My chicks are going into a 30 x 15 coop with two interior walls of a larger barn and plenty of ventilation. I'm right on the edge of zones 6A and 7A here. I'm hoping they'll be fine, if not I'll know not to try for a September hatch again. I had two Marans hatched out this morning!!! Two more were externally pipped!

 

[TheTropix]

Oh boy!! Congratulations, Kiki!! Are there more than the 4 due? YAY!!!
If they needed it if a chilly snap hit while they're still little, could you put them out a light to huddle under in the barn... without having to worry about hay catching on fire?

 

[KikiLeigh02]

I can try to sneak you a Bantam Wheaten Ameraucana cockerel.... My husband probably wouldn't even be surprised. He's so funny, he is so picky about who we sell/give any of these chickens to. I ended up with a pair of Double Silver Laced Barnevelders I was going to sell to someone who wants them for breeding. He was like, "Who is this person? How do you know them?" Ummm, we got our Australorp chicks from her, I think she's safe.

I had 7 roosters back the first time I had chickens, only one ever challenged me.
I do want a rooster, and am allowed to have them where I am, as long as it doesn't upset the neighbors I will keep one.

There are 12 eggs in there, they'll all hatch as French Black, Blue, or Splash Marans. I couldn't see in any of them so I'm really not sure how many to expect. Today is only Day 20 for them. I ended up with an unintentional staggered hatch, and then I staggered it even farther. Those eggs are on Day 8.

It stays pretty warm in the barn, my laying flock is on the other side of one of the walls in a 15 x 15 area. I really think they'll be fine, they should be fully feathered before we start getting any really cold weather for more than a day or two at a time. I really like using the heat plate for chicks, seems like they adjust better. My last hatch that's 7 weeks weaned themselves of the heat plate at 2.5 weeks. I can give them a heat lamp if need be.

Oh boy!! Congratulations, Kiki!! Are there more than the 4 due? YAY!!!
If they needed it if a chilly snap hit while they're still little, could you put them out a light to huddle under in the barn... without having to worry about hay catching on fire?

 

[TheTropix]

Sounds like you're good to go. : ) I wasn't even thinking about trying to candle Marans eggs... not happening! haha I'm excited for ya and I hope your eggs produce lots more chicks... and mostly girls!