JANUARY 2015 Hatch-A-Long

[Purpletie3]

Please call me Lisa, I still just have the 3 hatched & 1 with a small pip. 3 eggs, chick died & 5 not doing anything. Tonight at 11 pm is the end of day 21. The 3 that are hatched are getting stir crazy, but I dont want to jeopardize any that might hatch yet. Tomorrow night will be day 2 for 2 of the chicks in the incubator. As long as the pipped egg has hatched & there aren't any additional pips I will take the babies out tomorrow night.

Hi Lisa...Sorry to hear things are not progressing as you would like.

I can understand 3 silkies in an incubator raising heck! I hope the other are just late stragglers. I opened mine from thursday after candling them and they were late deaths. One pipped and died in his shell and the other three did not progress...late deaths. Disappointing.

There are 11 mystery eggs left from today's hatch. The mystery eggs look like huge orpingtons when they hatch. I will be off hatch until the 7th...I may have 20 in the next group...

I really hope your silkies come through! Keep ,me posted!

 

[ChickenLady2014]

Hi Lisa...Sorry to hear things are not progressing as you would like.     I can understand 3 silkies in an incubator raising heck! I hope the other are just late stragglers. I opened mine from thursday after candling them and they were late deaths. One pipped and died in his shell and the other three did not progress...late deaths. Disappointing. 

There are 11 mystery eggs left from today's hatch.  The mystery eggs look like huge orpingtons when they hatch.  I will be off hatch until the 7th...I may have 20 in the next group...

I really hope your silkies  come through! Keep ,me posted!

I have 1 silkie that looks like it's a splash, she/ he has been a little turd to the 2 other chicks. She repeatedly pecks at their feet & the last one to hatch today still has a little bit of stuff attatched to it belly button. She is determined to peck at it. Went in a few minutes ago to check how the pipped egg is doing and she had her head stuck in one of the dried eggs shells and was stumbling around trying to her her head out. I laughed so hard, she/he is going to be trouble with a capital T, lol.

 

[jbenson]

I managed to squeak in 3 January hatches. 50 chicks total and as of tomorrow I will have sold 33 of them

, which only means I can hatch more and my new incubator is paid off.

 

[jbenson]

This little cutie had a curled toe. Banties are so hard to make splints for but I think I finally did it. A small chunk of cardboard and thin cut strips of band aid and he is not able to get it off. He might not be super happy when it comes off cause he's gonna loose a few feathers to the adhesive.

 

[Purpletie3]

I managed to squeak in 3 January hatches. 50 chicks total and as of tomorrow I will have sold 33 of them

, which only means I can hatch more and my new incubator is paid off.

Way to go!!! What kind did you sell?
Very cute pic BTW...Love the sandal. I need to make another one for one of my chicks. i have 3 that are having a leg/foot issue.

 

[Purpletie3]

I have 1 silkie that looks like it's a splash, she/ he has been a little turd to the 2 other chicks. She repeatedly pecks at their feet & the last one to hatch today still has a little bit of stuff attatched to it belly button. She is determined to peck at it. Went in a few minutes ago to check how the pipped egg is doing and she had her head stuck in one of the dried eggs shells and was stumbling around trying to her her head out. I laughed so hard, she/he is going to be trouble with a capital T, lol.

So, that looks like you might have four now? I am happy some more are hatching for you. Hopefully, they will continue for you!

My mystery eggs are still hatching. Looks like one is just short of popping the cap off & one hatched over night. I almost had a few moments to myself this morning but one little silkie was standing in the middle of the food tray just squeeking away....he woke the whole crew up!

So, I have 3 out..soon 4...out of 13 day 21. These guys were locked down a day early and the incubator opened several times to remove chicks...Like 5 times in a few days. So, they are kind of my test batch. The incubator is also been VERY humid...running to 80 at hatch and holding there for a period of time. I think it is because the eggs are so huge. Like can't fit in an egg carton without popping the top a little bit huge!

 

[ChickenLady2014]

So, that looks like you might have four now? I am happy some more are hatching for you.  Hopefully, they will continue for you!

My mystery eggs are still hatching. Looks like one is just short of popping the cap off  & one hatched over night.  I almost had a few moments to myself this morning but one little silkie was standing  in the middle of the food tray just squeeking away....he woke the whole crew up!

So, I have 3 out..soon 4...out of 13 day 21.  These guys were locked down a day early and the incubator opened several times to remove chicks...Like 5 times in a few days. So, they are kind of my test batch. The incubator is also been VERY humid...running to 80 at hatch and holding there for a period of time. I think it is because the eggs are so huge. Like can't fit in an egg carton without popping the top a little bit huge!

Congrats on your little one Purpletie3, I still just have the 3 out. Struggling to keep the humidity up with these litter buggers. Have done the same as every other hatch, I just don't understand grr.....

 

[Peep_Show]

Hmmmm..... I think both Solo and Oops may be roos. I had them out of their cage and put them up on top of the brooder and the next thing I see is a bunch of pigeon-sized birds chest bumping. Sure wish they'd comb up (or not) so that I know for sure.

 

[jbenson]

Way to go!!! What kind did you sell?
Very cute pic BTW...Love the sandal. I need to make another one for one of my chicks. i have 3 that are having a leg/foot issue.

I have been hatching and selling mille fleur d'Uccles so far this year. They are the only thing I breed right now that 4H kids can show, so I hatch them early. I will probably hatch some bantam EEs later when it gets a bit warmer for the backyard city chicken folks. The customers in that category aren't ready for chicks this time of year here - it's still way too cold.

 

[jbenson]

Hmmmm..... I think both Solo and Oops may be roos. I had them out of their cage and put them up on top of the brooder and the next thing I see is a bunch of pigeon-sized birds chest bumping. Sure wish they'd comb up (or not) so that I know for sure.

I've had my NYD pullets pulling some crazy cockerel type moves lately. I think they are starting to establish pecking order. Some breeds show combs early (my d'Uccles start about 3 weeks and by 4 weeks, I am 100% sexing by comb) but some breeds are a lot slower to show. I also found that some of my mixed breeds don't show until 6 weeks or more, which is hard because by then they are getting a little big for the brooder and I'd like to be able to sell them sexed (nobody seems to want older chicks as straight run - they'll deal with it for the day old fluffiness, but once they start getting gangly, people seem only interested in getting an exact gender). Give them a couple more weeks. If you notice the combs starting to pink in the next week or so, then I would say likely cockerels. Maybe take a photo of each of their combs now for comparison. I usually have other chicks of the same age to compare them to when I try to sex them early and the skin near the beak under the comb starts looking pinker on cockerels about a week before their combs get pink.