July Hatch-a-Long (including 4th of July hatch-a-long)

[kelseyk]

Speckled Sussex eggs just arrived. None broke and 5/6 air cells look really good. The 6th one is just a bit bigger than I would like for a shipped egg.

 

[AgnesGray]

Speckled Sussex eggs just arrived. None broke and 5/6 air cells look really good. The 6th one is just a bit bigger than I would like for a shipped egg.

Can I ask how many chickens and breeds you have? You get so many great and fun breeds!

 

[igorsMistress]

He is about 7 months now

Have you tried jail? Angus is going to jail next week and staying in jail for a week. My oldest girls aren't too keen on his rapist ways and the younger girls will be gone so he won't be able to spread the love around quite so much

 

[SirBrookalasBrook]

ive just got 16/36
humidity went haywire for some reason
and we took rotation off a day early so they had trouble getting out

 

[SirBrookalasBrook]

rotation was a mistake we miscalculated the days

 

[FortCluck]

Have you tried jail? Angus is going to jail next week and staying in jail for a week. My oldest girls aren't too keen on his rapist ways and the younger girls will be gone so he won't be able to spread the love around quite so much

No I don’t know how I’d even do it. He can fly over all our 8 foot fencing

 

[CindyinSD]

Have you considered getting a broody? they're much cheaper
A drawback is that they do have a rather limited capacity, at least by the standards preferred by most on this thread! And they're not turn on- and off-able

Of course... you don't have to feed your incubator all year, but then a lot of folks here DO.

 

[slbenter]

Salmon Faverolle eggs came today, wouldn't ya know....early. My Hova Bator is coming today, and thought I'd have a couple of days before the eggs arrived to stabilize the temps and such.
Bought 6 eggs, received 10, it's all good. Candling shows a couple of air sacs either detached or wiggly, 1 on the side I think. I'm gonna set them all anyway, leave them alone for 7 days, and when I recandle I should be better able to identify the cells and what they're doing.

I bought the Hova unit to set my extras, but since those aren't ..... ahem....alive anymore I got the Favorells. My son has chickens in California, and he replaced all of his old ladies this year, but had a lot of trouble finding chicks due to some disease problem, plus covid made things rough. Apparently a lot of increased backyard chickening from bored people on house arrest.
I figured I'd give it to him when I'm done with it....but I may do that and still buy another unit for myself, since I'm enjoying the heck out of this. I can probably sell my overflow.
Hubby says we don't have enough yard space for another coop....we shall see, lol.

 

[SnapdragonQ]

Not necessarily! Lol! Before long you will be buying a 2nd incubator....then a 3rd. Lol! That is what happened to me.

 

[kelseyk]

Can I ask how many chickens and breeds you have? You get so many great and fun breeds!

You mean you want me to actually count them! Doesn't that go against all chicken math rules? Lol!

Right now in the large run I have 11 ducks (1 each of 11 different breeds), My farm store hens (1 Australorpe, 2 Barred Rock, 2 RIR, 2 Buckeye, and 5 EEs), and 2 Silkies and 1 Frizzled Tolbunt Polish that I hatched last year, and my Buff Orpington Roo.Then what chicks I have hatched this year that are also in that run ({cockerels and pullets combined} 3 BCM, 1 Silver Spitzhauben, 3 Bielefelders, 6 Sapphire Gem/Lavender Orpington cross, 9 Barnyard mix from my flock, 5 silkies, 3 Svart Hona, 9 Gold Appenzeller, and 2 Delaware). In my brooder tanks I have 2 Gold neck d'Uccle, 3 OEs, 3 Wheaten Marans, 5 Lavender Orpington and 9 ringneck pheasants. In the Hatcher and Incubators I have Frizzle Tolbunt Polish/Buff Orpington cross, Melanistic pheasant, Call Duck, Blue Birchen Marans (a batch for me and a batch for a friend), Opal Legbar, Salmon Faverolle, more silkies, Bresse, Welsummer, and Speckled Sussex. On the way are Double Blue laced Barnevelder and CCL. Then I have the bachelor pad with 1 EE rooster and 4 Tolbunt Polish roosters. I may be hatching some more BCMs, Isbars, d'Uccles, and OEs yet.

My plan is to keep the farm store hens, all the silkies, and then try and get 2 pullets and 1 cockerel of all the other breeds (except my barnyard crosses). The rest will get sold at POL, as roosters, or eaten. I want to hatch and sell day old chicks and/or older chicks from the new breeds as you can't find them anywhere around here as well as crosses from the new breeds....everyone has farmstore breeds here. I will also sell eating eggs from the groups I am not breeding at the time (only have plans for 3-4 breeding pens - roosters will be in the bachelor pad until needed). The Bresse flock will be in it's own pen though with roosters and hens together all the time. I already have 2 people that have said they want to buy chicks from me next year. I am excited about my new "stay at home" business.