It's Day 21... AGAIN!!!!!

[d_rooster]

Well, it's Day 21 for those Welsummer eggs I was gifted. There was a pip last night and cheeping from the little pipper. So, this morning I awoke to a cute little Welsummer chick resting its head between two of the other eggs.

I am hopeful that some more will start doing their thing today.

Because of the dark color and speckles on these eggs I found them extremely difficult to candle. The cocoa-reddish coloring of the shells makes seeing little red veins nearly impossible. So, since none of the eggs were weeping or oozing I put all 9 of them in the hatcher on Day 18 in good faith. If I can get at least one pullet and one roo from these I'll be a happy hatcher. I'll get some photos once chicks move to the brooding box as the incubator is on lock down, at least through the end of Day 22.

As a distraction from the 'bator watch, I need to go buy more chick starter at the feed store for my Silkies and Salmon Faverolles. I don't know what I'm going to do on that eventual day this spring when I walk into the feed store and see little fuzzy chicks for sale. I guess I need to scour the Internet and mail order a case of restraint as I've run out of it a long time ago.

 

[lurky]

Congratulations

 

[chickenranchwife]

Come on Chickies hatch hatch, hatch your way out!

 

[Heidi]

Go chicks, go!!! Anymore pips? Can't wait for pics.

 

[AussieSharon]

ahhhhhhhh I have SUPER chick envy! Congratulations. I'm on MotherGoose's waiting list for Welsummer eggs and the wait is killing me. Can't wait to see pics~

 

[msbliss]

Congrats Donald!! Good vibes for many more to hatch! Can't wait to see the pics!

 

[d_rooster]

Update: Still only one hatched. No more pips, but another egg is rocking like crazy and the chick is cheeping that it wants out. I should be conducting a constant IBW (Intense Bator Watch), but I've got a cold virus and I can't watch the warm incubator for long without getting really sleepy. Also, I don't want to hack on the the poor little things. It looks like I might at least get two chicks out of this hatch.

 

[d_rooster]

Update near end of Day 21: As of about 3 p.m. this afternoon there was just the one chick hatched. Two more eggs had been rocking around noon, but then things seemed to settle down for a while. After watching the bator for about an hour I got really sleepy and decided a nap might be in order. Just like the saying, "a watched pot never boils", perhaps watched eggs never hatch or if they do it certainly seems to take longer when you stand constant watch over them. So I settled into the recliner while daughter watched television. When I woke it was almost 6 p.m. and a second chick had pipped, zipped, and hatched while a third had pipped. I then went out to pick up Chinese take-out for dinner and while I was gone the third one hatched out. So far, that's three out of nine. I'm hoping for more and I am using all of my will power to not open the incubator to get hold of the hatched ones.

These Welsummers are chirpy little things. Their chirping seems different than some of the other breeds of chicks I've hatched. They sound like they have a little warble or trill in their chirp.

 

[speckledhen]

Congratulations! When I break out the bator again in a couple of months, Welsummers will be one of my breeds in there, too.

 

[Wynette]

Congratulations on new fuzzy butts! Any more of the 9 hatch? Got pics?