Icelandic Chickens

[NotAFarm]

My 11 year old came running in to my room this morning yelling "We got one! We got one!"

Yay! My broodies are due this coming weekend....not much better than cute, new fluffy chicks!

 

[mlm Mike]

Hi Maldwin!

Good luck with the broody hatches Mary!

 

[NotAFarm]

CoopCop, How'd the hatch finish?

 

[CoopCop]

CoopCop, How'd the hatch finish? 

Not as well as I had hoped, but still exciting for me. I have four healthy Icelandic chicks and five EE X BA chicks hopping around in my brooder. I lost the last pipping chick. It had a hardened membrane inside the shell somehow, despite me keeping the humidity at around 70% since lockdown. I tried assisting it, but waited too long. I candled the remaining eggs, culled a late quitter, but still had movement without an internal pip in five eggs. I'm giving them a couple more days just in case they were late starters. Overall I think the rough trip with the postal service really didn't help things. For my first ever hatch I will call it successful, but not overwhelmingly so.

Here are the requisite fuzzbutt pics. The black and silver ones are my EE X BA chick I hatched with them. Those were 5/5 for the fertile eggs (had one clear that was infertile).

 

[NotAFarm]

Four is not a bad start.......let's hope

for them to be all pullets!! You can hatch a cockerel next time!

 

[guzmanbg]

Congratulations! 4 icee chicks is a great way to start. I just hatched 8 out of 36 eggs from Mack Hill Farms. Most of the chicks were reddish. I also just hatched 10 out of 18 eggs from Whirpool Farms and those chicks were all different colors. I am happy with both hatch rates, as my first hatch 4 months ago only had 1 female, and 1 gemale is never enough

 

[drumstick diva]

guzman what is a "gemale" is that one of those confused gender things?

 

[CoopCop]

Congratulations! 4 icee chicks is a great way to start. I just hatched 8 out of 36 eggs from Mack Hill Farms. Most of the chicks were reddish. I also just hatched 10 out of 18 eggs from Whirpool Farms and those chicks were all different colors. I am happy with both hatch rates, as my first hatch 4 months ago only had 1 female, and 1 gemale is never enough

Did you mean Whipperwill Farms by any chance? I was thinking of getting some from them in the spring, or perhaps another source if anyone has any recommendations. All the chicks are doing fine but nothing new on the last eggs. Will be keeping my fingers crossed!

 

[guzmanbg]

Whippoorwill Farms, is what I meant. He sells eggs on ebay. All the chicks that hatched were different colors. Even though I had more eggs from the other farm (32 eggs), more chicks hatched from Whippoorwill Farm. The eggs from both farms arrived in great shape (none broken), but many embroys from Mack Hill Farms began dying the 2nd week of incubation. It was heatbreaking when I had to remove so many eggs. Out of all those chicks, I am hoping for atleast 4 pullets.

 

[drumstick diva]

Was the place that sent the quitter (eggs) farther away from you than Whipperwill farm? Many their insides got scrambled traveling.