***JULY HATCH-A-LONG come join in***

[kjhowe77]

This will be my first hatch in my homemade incubator, I am setting 7 eggs, due July 13.

 

[sonjab314]

Quote:
I have one and she is a doll. She doesn't realize that she's a chicken. She got up in my 5 year old daughters lap and laid an egg

. I would love to get some more.

 

[SweetMotherOfMars]

Candled all the eggs tonight.
First we just left them in the carton and checked for veins as the thermostat had turned the light off.
When the light came back on I started pulling them out, checking them.

We saw dancers in seven of those eggs.

We also found one blood ring.

There are two that were laid on the 14th and put in the incubator at midnight that night that don't look right, one had had veins the other one had a spot the first time I candled. I'll keep them in through one more candling, but I'm 99% sure they have quit. Still 23 of 26 isn't a bad start.


Ked, what 4 kinds of peafowl eggs did you get?

Oh, and I may have more babies... but not in the incubator or under my hens.
Monday when I moved the tractor I scared a quail hen from a clump of tall grass. Then the chickens (who I'd let out to roam while I checked for gaps and filled feeders) flushed out the male. I hurried and got them away from the area and back in the tractor (no, they weren't happy.)

Today I watched the pair make their way through the yard, then my son walked around back and they beat a retreat to the fence row. A half hour or so later they were back... I kid you not, the male stood guard outside the clump of grass while she did her business (laid an egg??) in there.
It was just like watching men wait for their wives/girlfriends outside the restrooms in a store. All he needed was a little purse to hold.

When she was done, she shot straight up out of the grass and he followed her to the roof of a neighbor's shed. Do you think she was laying eggs?
I'm trying to keep kids and chickens clear of the area... but how long until I can use that part of the yard again?

 

[Kedreeva]

@ Sweet: I'm not saying do it, but if she laid eggs and you have an incubator... >.> *cough* Anyway, I got 4 Silver pied, 2 midnight black shouldered, and 2 unknowns. I personally think emerald spalding and India blue are the last two, but they came from a mixed pen so they really could be anything! It's like Peacock lotto! One more week and I can candle for survivors of the Wisconsin shipping vacation and lockdown the next group of polish cheeps. Did you see pics on the June thread?

PS: Kids don't get to touch the thermostat. Say it with me, Sweet.

 

[SweetMotherOfMars]

*repeats* Kids do NOT get to touch the thermostat!
(For some reason it reminds me of "Say "goodnight", Gracie." "Goodnight, Gracie.")
I've been militant about my not unplugging to candle. Ever. (Well, ever since that last batch.

)

Peacock Lotto!

Sounds like whatever you end up with is going to be gorgeous.

for a productive candling.

I *did* see those pics of yours! I was going to tell you the middle one (with the last baby trying to hold his head up, but his eyes are still very closed) looks like me in the morning. I think your photo quality was professional enough you could use it as a greeting card!!

As far as that cough of yours goes

I'm tempted enough. The main thing holding me back is the fear of trying to run 2 batches in the bator at once. This group should be in lockdown July 2nd. If I haven't seen the quail pair escorting striped pompoms around the yard by the time the bator is empty.... *cough, cough*

 

[Kedreeva]

@ Sweet: hahahaha You know you can run 2 batches at once >.> I've done it twice now with no bad results! But then, I have an auto turner, so I haven't got to worry about turning during lockdown.

As for my July hatches... I had a hatch set to go the 1st of July... I candled today now that all my first group is out, and 2 of the 5 eggs had gone bad. One I had left in because I thought I saw veins; but it turns out I mistook the red lines for veins when really it was bacterial infection. Unfortunately this egg had been sitting next to another egg whose shell was very porous, and it seems to have killed off that egg as well

I cracked both open (after extensive candling and debate about the second egg) to find the first with massive rings of bacteria inside that had eaten into the yolk.... and a poor little 6-7 day embryo that had stopped moving days ago

I took pictures of both and will be starting an eggtopsy thread for pictures with what to look for when performing eggtopsies. I think a lot of people crack them open and just don't know what they are looking at!

So for the moment, I'm down to 3 polish for July 1st and things are looking good for the 4 pekin mixes to hatch the 4th. I candled the other pekin eggs and it looks like there's 9 who are coming along nicely. I think they are due the 13th but I don't have my calendar handy.

 

[PulletPalace]

Please count me in! I've got 13 due to hatch on the 9th. They're mutts from my own flock. I bought some duck eggs from another BYC member back in May but my thermostat was so inconsistent (water heater type) that they didn't make it. I ordered a wafer style and now things are going much better. However, I don't have an auto turner. This hand turning stuff is concerning due to temp fluctuations. I do appreciate all the links to helpful sites.

 

[Lotsapaints]

just set my last eggs to arrive wow the postal service sure is hard on my eggs

Set 22 New Hampshires 9 have bad air cells and 4 Burbon Red Turkeys 2 of those have not so good air cells but I always put them in anyways and I candled y other eggs last night results are 3 bad air cells for the Ameracaunas 6 bad air cells for the Silver Penciled Rocks and 1 blood ring can't candle the Marans eggs until day 10 that will be Sunday....tossing this many eggs always reminds to appreciate the good hatches I have

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Here's a thread I made about my 6 Buff Orpington broodies - all with chicks due in July.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=363562

 

[Duramaxgirl]

After my June hatch of 12 of BLRW eggs that never developed.. My sister (DoubleTake) and I were very sad..... so we bought more eggs to try! We purchased the grab bag from rarebreedeggs4you off of ebay and we are trying again!! We bought 12 and she sent us 20! YAY

So we have 4 BCM, 5 Welsummers, 5 White Crested Blue Polish and ....... 6 Seramas! Went in the bator today for a July 15th hatch! We have never had small chickens so that will be new! Hope they hatch we have heard they (Seramas) are hard to hatch?? Is it true??