Incubators Anonymous

[ChickNmamma]

Read about the float test but haven't tried. Will put it in the toolbox for next time! Sorry about the mix up you had but we are all human and oh yes that stuff happens. Yesterday I was running around trying to clean up and I unplugged the incubator and was outside doing stuff when I realized I had a chick in there to keep clean while its navel closed up. It was prob only 15-20 min before I remembered but I could easily have gone out to do errands and had a problem.

Well, I just bought a Brinsea Spot Check thermometer and I am sure glad I did. It was suggested time and time again to check the temperatures in an incubator. I had three other thermometers, two reading about the same and one seemingly low. I trusted the two (couldn't test any of them - box type) so I adjusted the Thermostat to match them. I have been waiting for any sign of peeps, pips, anything today - its day 21. Nothing. I put the Spot Check in right after I got it from the mail - and it said what the low one was reading - running about 97.. not 99...

Soooo, this hatch may be a tad delayed...

Do any of you vaccinate for mareks if you used a broody hen? I have some chicks that I am going to vaccinate that are incubator only but would do the standard broody chicks if no downside. The broodies were not vaccinated because they are bantams from hatchery.

I don't ask to have any birds vaccinated for Mareks any more. The vaccinations cause the chicks to be suseptable to it if they are exposed to chickens that have it, they need to be re-vaccinated for it to work (doesn't actually seem to do a thing for day olds) - and it only changes the odds of the birds dying from Mareks at around two years old by 1%... 3% die without vaccinations, 2% die with... not worth it. Also, the ones that survive become carriers and will infect any non-vaccinated birds or chicks..

I'm using an egg turner for the first time on this hatch. Due to hatch on Friday. DO I take the eggs out of the turner and just put them on their sides upon "lockdown?"

Thanks!

Take the eggs out of the turners if they have racks and rails. Those little chicks can get stuck in and under the plastic. It won't hurt them to leave it in, but I don't like to take that chance. You can put your hatching eggs in cut down egg cartons if you want to prevent "chick soccer" with the unhatched eggs by the hatched chicks, and if you want to tip the aircells perfectly for hatch on shipped eggs with weird aircells.

Good Luck - mine are in "lockdown" now - but I think they are going to be late...

 

[Zootopia]

I have had the same problem of the wire mesh coming up. I just secured it down in the corners with paper clips. They are easy to remove for cleaning but do a good job of keeping the mesh down.

 

[Chick a dee1023]

I posted a question in the runner duck thread, and had someone help, but I have another question (same situation, different question lol), if I post a few pics and the other thread here, would anyone be able to tell me if theres still blood in the veins of this membrane or if they are dried up? I feel so bad for this baby I.ve done everything I was told, but if theres ANYTHING else I can do to help, I def want to do it. Thanks! (I'll go copy the post and reply and post it along with pics if anyone is on here that thinks they can help)

 

[Runawaylobster]

I just moved Broody Mama out of the coop finally... it was getting crazy in there,almost every hen wanted to sit on eggs.. and I couldn't tell what had been sat on and what was new!! and they kept swapping places.. so I scooped broody mama up and put her in a cat crate with her eggs.. and then removed every single other egg from the coop!! Hope this works.

I had to steal Cochin Mama's eggs out from under her too, but i saw her swap nests several times so i'm sure they were not good...it's pretty funny actually.

once broody mama has settled down in the crate i will put her cat crate inside a big dog crate and leave it open .. hope my dogs don't mind me stealing their crate for a short while

.

 

[Arielle]

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I have run out of room in the bators and my guineas are laying like crazy. I have one broody that was sitting one 10 guinea eggs and I dated 10 more about week later and put them under her too. Hope I have another girl go broody soon and I'll give those to her. I have several dummy eggs in the nest boxes to encourage broodiness, since I collect eggs twice a day.

Can you eat guineas?? My oldest son, all of 11, pointed out that the 8 week chicks are a meal for one.

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[Arielle]

Question to all of u. I would love to do incubator and do some meat birds. Could some one give me advice. I right now have 1 pullet bo and 2 bcm roos. Which I thought I had bcm pullets. What do u all think I should do with these roos? Breed them or what. Sorry new to this I got them for eggs but now the two won't prodce cause their male and my bo is only 5 months old

Did any one answer your question?

I am assuming the BCM are the same age, at 5 months old like the hen. You can cross them, for sure. However, you are most likely to have BO that are layers rather than the traditional old heritage birds which are HUGE. Like 10 pounds or more and well muscled. I have eaten a number of my marans, and while they are touted as meat birds in France, some how these birds are not the meal I was expecting. THey had the same amound of meat as a hatchery BO.

Breed them for eggs. Or to enjoy their company. My marnas boys are very polite but not overly friendly. For meat, you can get old heritage breeds, with a lot of sleuthing. Better to just get some cornish X . Many of our old breeds are not up to standard, A few lines have been maintained.

 

[SewChaos]

Donna - Here are your CCL x leghorn chicks! 2 blacks and 2 yellows. The blacks are tiny! They almost look like bantams.





I also got 3 cuckoo marans. Can they be sexed at hatch? 2 have a small/clear yellow spot and one has a bigger messier spot.

 

[CaCO3]

That sounds like a fun way to cover expenses! Sure beats temping.

Hope they hatch out and it sounds like you got a good deal on eggs. I have seen BCM chicks for $5-10 around here in CT. Obviously you can get more for pullets when you know what's a girl. I would love to be a mini breeder on the side but still can't handle dealing with surplus males. If there was a food shortage I would get over that fast. Last year I ordered one BCM and one Barnevelder in chick orders and those were the ones that died on me so here I am trying BCM again. Have 8 this time so think the odds are good. Will try adding Barnevelders down the road. Have a small flock need to keep it under 30. It's um , over, at the moment.....

 

[CaCO3]

P.S. "Weird Genes" might really do marketing wonders. Everyone is hunting for something novel. Uniqueness is valuable quality. Or call them a whole differ line. I mean at what point did wade jean, bev Davis or the cottage hill guy get to relabel the chickens "theirs"?

I may have just blacklisted myself but no matter. Think I've got my BCM needs fulfilled.

 

[maryhysong]

Alright I have some questions. In my last few hatches I have had some really big eggs from an old Wellie/Leghorn cross hen, along with some small EE eggs. In many cases the small to normal eggs hatched fine but the big ones had a lower hatch rate and it seems at least one chick from that hen would have a leg problem. Several with one leg stuck straight out in front, sometimes with the other straight out back, some with both legs out front. Most of them by the third day were getting up and around and after a week you couldn't tell any difference. One of the ones with both it's legs to the front couldn't get around to eat or drink and died. I never had any problem with the EE. I figured maybe because the eggs & chicks were so big they couldn't turn in the shell and got stuck or something.

The latest hatch tho I had one day, around day 19 that I totally spaced turning the bator back on after adding water.

When I got home from work it was about 76 degrees in there. This hatch rate was much lower than the last three. and I have 4 chicks with leg problems, including 3 EE chicks.

SO I am wondering if there might be something else going on? I know that incubation temp can have an effect on development, but I don't remember what the different results were besides hatching a little sooner or a little later.

Or do you think it is being caused by something else? I was beginning to think maybe it was genetic, but now with other hen's chicks having it, I think it's something to do with the bator and incubating itself.