Illinois...

[ChicagoClucker]

I had a broody hen sit for an extra week w/o a problem. (It took about that long to obtain some fertile eggs.) I'm not sure what the upper limit is & that sounds like a very, very long time to ask a hen to set. (My opinion, not fact.) Try asking the people on this thread:
Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

They are very good & also quick to answer questions. Good luck.

Thank you.

 

[Junibutt]

She already sat for a total of 22 days. Took her off the first set of eggs at 4 days in, then she began sitting again the same evening on 4 other eggs. I let her go because I was getting those fertilized egg once in a while. But, I candled them yesterday cause they would be due to hatch tomorrow and they were not fertile. So I tossed them. She came back and saw the eggs were gone, so she jumped up into the nesting box with 3 eggs and started again. I pulled all the eggs and she was upset, I felt bad, so I ran down and pulled out 4 of the GL eggs out of the incubator.

I just set the GL eggs yesterday. So, she will be sitting for another 20 days. Should I put them back and drop her in a bucket of cold water, lol ? I feel so bad pulling her, but I don't want this to affect her health either.

Well, even if she abandons the eggs, you still have the incubator running. So l would say let her fulfill her wishes and if she gets tired and abandons, its fine because you don't want her to stay broody anyways!

 

[Junibutt]

Dear chicken friends,

Due to increased workload, I am trying to cut down my flock. I have the following juveniles available. I am NPIP certified and am able to ship out of state as well where there are no restrictions on import. Kindly PM me if interested:

a 14 weeks old pair of Jubilee Orpingtons.




a 13 weeks old Jubilee Orpington cockerel:




a trio of Chocolate Cuckoo Orpingtons:

 

[ChicagoClucker]

Well, even if she abandons the eggs, you still have the incubator running. So l would say let her fulfill her wishes and if she gets tired and abandons, its fine because you don't want her to stay broody anyways!

I am going to let her sit. She has been so devoted so far. Thanks and Good Luck with your chicks. They are all so beautiful, wish I could take them all.

 

[Faraday40]

County Fair Question:
Has anyone here entered a dozen eggs in the county fair? My daughter is finishing up her 4H projects & signed up to enter some of our eggs as well. My question is: should they be washed or left with the bloom intact? Any other advise?

She wanted to enter poultry, but I wouldn't allow it due to the AI scare. Eggs is about all.

 

[Faraday40]

Lots of FEATHERS for us last fall. DD started collecting them, because she "liked" them. I joked that we had enough in her feather collection to make another flock of chickens. Well, that's exactly what she did for her 4H nature craft.

The roo is made from some orp feathers & the hen is from a couple EEs.

 

[cavemanrich]

County Fair Question:
Has anyone here entered a dozen eggs in the county fair? My daughter is finishing up her 4H projects & signed up to enter some of our eggs as well. My question is: should they be washed or left with the bloom intact? Any other advise?

She wanted to enter poultry, but I wouldn't allow it due to the AI scare. Eggs is about all.

Which county fair are you going to and when is it ??? I am only interested in going and not showing...

 

[Junibutt]

County Fair Question:
Has anyone here entered a dozen eggs in the county fair? My daughter is finishing up her 4H projects & signed up to enter some of our eggs as well. My question is: should they be washed or left with the bloom intact? Any other advise?

She wanted to enter poultry, but I wouldn't allow it due to the AI scare. Eggs is about all.

I would say "depends" on the color of the egg. If they were dark eggs like the Marans, it's not good to wash because it may scratch the eggs. but lighter eggs can be washed with almost no visible difference. During the Chicago Coop Tour, I do wash my eggs for display but only gently and then clean them with an organic egg washing cloth. So even if the bloom comes off, there is a slight glow because of that organic coating.

 

[Faraday40]

Thanks. I talked with a poultry person. She said they should be washed & look uniform size, shape, color, etc. I have quite a rainbow of layers, so it will now depend on who lays the most eggs now until the fair. My browns each lay a diff shade, my 2 pinks lay diff shapes, my blue has a porous shell, so my 2 EEs will likely have their green eggs entered. I taught DD all about how to candle to check for a small air cell, thick shell, & no meat spots. I didn't think color matter since that's not what's eaten. Oh well. Will they crack them open to see the great yolk color?

I have a sponge by the sink labeled for Eggs. I only wash with a little warm water if there's some mud or poop on the egg. There're normally very clean even with all the rain we're getting. I've been blocking off the nests at night to keep the adolescents out. (They were the main reason for occasional poop.) I'm not sure if I heard of an organic egg wash cloth. Is it something like this?

We're in DuPage.Co. The projects are judged Mon-Wed & I think the fair opens Wed (22nd) @ noon until Sun eve.

 

[ChicagoClucker]

Thanks. I talked with a poultry person. She said they should be washed & look uniform size, shape, color, etc. I have quite a rainbow of layers, so it will now depend on who lays the most eggs now until the fair. My browns each lay a diff shade, my 2 pinks lay diff shapes, my blue has a porous shell, so my 2 EEs will likely have their green eggs entered. I taught DD all about how to candle to check for a small air cell, thick shell, & no meat spots. I didn't think color matter since that's not what's eaten. Oh well. Will they crack them open to see the great yolk color?

I have a sponge by the sink labeled for Eggs. I only wash with a little warm water if there's some mud or poop on the egg. There're normally very clean even with all the rain we're getting. I've been blocking off the nests at night to keep the adolescents out. (They were the main reason for occasional poop.) I'm not sure if I heard of an organic egg wash cloth. Is it something like this?

We're in DuPage.Co. The projects are judged Mon-Wed & I think the fair opens Wed (22nd) @ noon until Sun eve.

Since I don't know anything about entering a fair, I am just going to wish you and your DD the best of luck! I am sure she will do great!