Is incubation time for eggs the same when they're under a broody hen as when they're in an incubator

[DuckiesGarden]

Argh! I cant figure out why I cant upload pics on here from my phone. Ill have to do it from computer. Its a pic of the newest baby round here. A tiny orange striped kitten. Hes only a day old and cross your fingers for him because his chances arent the best. Jim found him out in the yard yesterday and it looks like something tried to eat him but didnt get to. Poor thing was still wet and after I got him dry and warm and stopped the bleeding I tried to put him with the mama cat and she tried to eat him! She drew blood on both sides of him so i had to patch him up a second time.I dont know if shes the one that dragged him out in the yard or if one of the other cats did it. If the mama had others we cant find them. Anyway, the poor mite made it thru the night and ive gotten him to eat a bit. Im worried about all the bites tho. One started bleeding again today and im worried about infection. I hope he pulls thru, after such a rough start to life hes earned a chance! Ok gotta go for now!talk to you soon!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

If I had a broody hen that came off the nest everyday to eat I would invite that hen to dinner with me... I mean I would have her FOR dinner. When hatching eggs two hens are NOT better than one.

If an early hatched chick falls from a nest box like yours the brood hen may and most likely will abandon the nest to become a mother hen to it, leaving all the others in the nest to chill and die. Then with two hens they may get into a battle over the ownership of this one chick. In that case even this one chick may become collateral damage. It is much more fun to let the hen hatch your chicks especially if you are not trying to hatch to many, but when natural hatching there are more things that can and will go wrong. Believe it or not that is why we humans have been artificially incubating and hatching hen eggs for over 3,000 years.

 

[Triple Willow]

You guys must have huge facilities for all the chicks you are hatching! What do you do with the male birds? Do you eat them?

 

[AmericanMom]

You guys must have huge facilities for all the chicks you are hatching! What do you do with the male birds? Do you eat them?

and when the hens quit laying......

 

[Triple Willow]

I may be wrong but that doesn't look like a bantam chicken. LOL

 

[AmericanMom]

I may be wrong but that doesn't look like a bantam chicken. LOL

right....sorry...

 

[Triple Willow]

That's more like it! LOL

But I wonder what these two ladies who hatch out all the bantams do with them, especially the roos.

 

[annanimal]

I hadnt thought about mites! I remember reading about a way to kill them tho that doesn't hurt the chickens...you boil orange and lemon peels in water then use the"tea" it makes to spray all the surfaces and nooks and crannies that mites can hide in. Im pretty sure that was all that was in it but I mite be forgetting something. I mite look it up. Anyway, its something to think about if you ever have trouble with mites. I like the idea of that covered pen tho! You know if you think youll have more time coming up soon you could always build your own coop for them. Itd probably be cheaper! You could buy a roll of chicken wire and make a run, then attach a little homemade coop house to it. Plus itd probably be lots of fun to make and youd get exactly what you need! Its really not as hard as it seems, you could make it up in a day or two. I can help you draw up an easy blueprint to follow if you want. If you want to give it a try, call around and find out how much itd run for a roll of wire and see what lumber prices are. If it seems like itd be cheaper to buy the materials instead of something already built we could put our heads together and make up something neat! O! I just thought of an obstacle!Do you have tools??? Youd need a skilsaw, wire cutters, tape measure, and a hammer(if you want to use nails) or a screwdriver(if you want to use screws). If you want to avoid a wood house you could make one from concrete blocks or find a plastic dog house. Or you can buy it already done for you like you planned in the first place!

I think youd save yourself some money if you made it tho! Let me know what you think!
Ok so now im going to try to post a pic, if it doesnt work ill just tell you what it is!

Ohhhh, thank you sooo much, i am sure that we could come up with something neat, but i already ordered two of those pens, not that exact one but something like it, it would be so much fun to make my own coop, i am quite handy but i have to have lots of time or i get mad at having to leave an unfinished project. I have a hammer, nails, screwdriver, screws, wire cutters, a tape measure but i am afraid i dont have a skilsaw... One of my friends might have one though.
I actually still have to build them a house to go in when it is raining and that has a nest box, that stuff, i was thinking of a plastic dog house myself but i dont know, i will have to think about it a little more!
I hadnt thought about mites much either until i saw that Roxy had fleas, well at least one and then it got me thinking of the house because you know how fleas are, anyway, i think it was just one, she probably got it from outside, i put the drops for fleas and ticks on her and she is fine now but after that i thought about all the chickens, not fleas but mites, i check them quite often and there coop and nothing but then i thought about wood and yeah, i explained the rest!

 

[annanimal]

Argh! I cant figure out why I cant upload pics on here from my phone. Ill have to do it from computer. Its a pic of the newest baby round here. A tiny orange striped kitten. Hes only a day old and cross your fingers for him because his chances arent the best. Jim found him out in the yard yesterday and it looks like something tried to eat him but didnt get to. Poor thing was still wet and after I got him dry and warm and stopped the bleeding I tried to put him with the mama cat and she tried to eat him! She drew blood on both sides of him so i had to patch him up a second time.I dont know if shes the one that dragged him out in the yard or if one of the other cats did it. If the mama had others we cant find them. Anyway, the poor mite made it thru the night and ive gotten him to eat a bit. Im worried about all the bites tho. One started bleeding again today and im worried about infection. I hope he pulls thru, after such a rough start to life hes earned a chance! Ok gotta go for now!talk to you soon!

Oh well, i dont need a picture though it would be cute, i am always prepeared for little animals to show up without a mama, i have kitten and puppy bottlle, a bunny one and a monkey one, i needed a bunny one but the monkey one came with it and i think it is quite cute, i will take a picture of them, the bottles i mean, i dont know why i think it will be fun though!
My fingers and toes are crossed, i really hope he pulls through, what are you using to feed him?
Is he dyhidrated (dont know how to spell that ) you can tell be pulling his skin and if it stays up for a little it means he is. Also if he is really down and not eating a lot, put a tiny bit of honey in his mouth, i had volunteered at a vets once for a while and thats what she did, i dont know why...
Here read this: http://www.wikihow.com/Care-for-Orphaned-Kittens-Less-Than-Three-Weeks-of-Age
I am going to try to get some pictures of the flock i just dont seem to find the time, i know, i find the time to take pictures of bottles and not the flock? well the bottles are inside so...
Ok, i hope he pulls through, remember feed him as often as you can and keep him nice and warm, if you have a hot water bottle (you know what that is right? i just dont want to sound crazy, sometimes i make up my own words... ) put it under him with a towel over top of it and maybe put him in a box or something.
Bye for now!

 

[DuckiesGarden]

Ok, now back to business! Ordering the pens was still a good idea! It just saves you the work and time of building that part yourself! And a plastic doghouse is actuslly a good idea! I was going to suggest that! Im all for the plastic stuff just cause its so easy to keep clean! You already know I use those plastic dog crates Ive got for all kinds of stuff! Those pens will probably work out great cause theyll be easy to move around to fresh patches of yard when Tweety and Midnite scratch up the patch theyre on. Have you ever seen those igloo doghouses? You could drill a couple holes to put roosts thru and make an awesome house for em.Itd be easy to clean too, just lift it up!
Well just have to put our heads together for MY new coop. Ill have to build one when we move. Weve decided for sure were going to. The tricky part has been finding a place that fits the bill. I thought Id found it yesterday and called to set up a day to look at it and discuss the details but it was already taken. Bummer.
I still havent got any pics posted and sorry bout that! I cant seem to get enough time to switch my pics to the computer. The season is starting to change here and its been hectic!Harvest time and planting time are the busiest times of the year! I wish again that we lived closer so I could send you some of the tasty stuff Ive been canning! The chickens have definitely been extra happy! Theyve been getting all kinds of goodies! I throw them the garden plants and vines and veggies and fruit and seeds that Im done with or dont need now.Plus the corn is getting harvested now so they get fresh corn to munch on!
Thanks for the great advice about the baby cat! We really do have a lot in common! Ive grown up taking care of hurt or sick or abandined animals and everything you suggested was exactly right! Im definitely going to add some bottles to my first aid kit! Id like to find some in lots of different sizes so Ill have one for anyone, no matter how big or small they are. I might get a hot water bottle too. Ive always used a heating pad but a nice squishy water bottle might feel more like a warm mama than the flat heating pad!
The poor little cat didnt make it. It wasnt breathing the second morning but I gave it cpr(I know it seems extreme but I wasnt ready to give up if I could still do something) anyway, I got him breathing again but had to do it again a few hours later and I could tell by afternoon I was only prolonging the inevitable. So I just carried him around til it was time for him to go. At least he was warm and safe and not alone. Bless his little soul, it just breaks my heart when babies have to go. Ugh, now Im crying again. I wish I could be as tough as I like to think I am when things like this happen! I just hate it when I get ones that are too far gone for me to help, but at the same time Im glad because theyd have been all alone if I hadnt.
Enough sad news! Next post is not going to end with bad news! Theres been too much of that lately and Im ready for some good news!
And Im going to get some pics on here for sure! Im wanting to take some of the trees when theyre all different colors!