June 2023 Hatch-a-long

[Canadian Wind]

Oh, and I put the duckling in with one of the broodies, because raising ducklings is too much mess!

 

[fluffycrow]

So good news, and some bad news.

Good news first, the eggs I removed yesterday and of which one was pipped/partially zipped, was assisted and hatched this afternoon.

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And in other good news, Dainty has apparently resumed mothering duties of her foster-ducklings. Which leads to the bad news. I can't find Little One, the one that had stolen the ducklings. I have no idea what happened, she's just... gone.

Omg I'm so sorry could she have found a nest on the property and just decided to brood it?

 

[Canadian Wind]

Omg I'm so sorry could she have found a nest on the property and just decided to brood it?

I don't think so. She was an experienced and dedicated mom. I got her last year with a brood of nine or so and she was so good with them.

Maybe she got chased away by Dainty? And is hiding somewhere? None of the ducklings are missing, so... Hopefully I find her tomorrow.

 

[fluffycrow]

I don't think so. She was an experienced and dedicated mom. I got her last year with a brood of nine or so and she was so good with them.

Maybe she got chased away by Dainty? And is hiding somewhere? None of the ducklings are missing, so... Hopefully I find her tomorrow.

Hoping you will!

 

[Canadian Wind]

Little yellow duckling is doing well and has joined the other babies. Momma Dainty doesn't seem to mind in the least.

Still no sign of my missing duck

Also pulled the eggs from the broody cochin, it's been over three weeks, closer to a month. And the coop stank this morning and there were bits of shell strewn about.

 

[fluffycrow]

Little yellow duckling is doing well and has joined the other babies. Momma Dainty doesn't seem to mind in the least.

Still now sign of my missing duck

Also pulled the eggs from the broody cochin, it's been over three weeks, closer to a month. And the coop stank this morning and there were bits of shell strewn about.

Aw, I'm sorry about your duck . At least the other duck family is doing good

 

[Iluveggers]

Up to 39 hatched! 9 left, 3 of those are pipped. Fertility has dropped a bit going from 4 roosters to 2, but humans can walk peacefully through the acreage now so I’ll just have to keep setting double the eggs that I hope to hatch. The fact that 2 roosters are fertilizing about 70% of the 40 hens is quite remarkable to me!

 

[tranquiliti]

Best odds of hatching, for now — I removed 7 objects from the nest between last night & today.

• One was a decoy egg, part of initial setup to have my 1st two hens lay indoors
• Four were best described as “Clear” …I candled them in comparison to one in the fridge from late April, and all I could tell is there were neither veins nor an obvious air cell
• One was eerily dark! So I put that one in my Brinsea Mini Eco 2 incubator I set up on June 8 alongside two presumably fertile eggs from my new hen
• One collected today, also dark with a large air cell; into the incubator because the shell pattern resembles my original hens and not the mated new hen (if it explodes it’ll be in plastic and not on the barn floor )

 

[Rabbitking]

I give up got woke up at 3am to find a racoon in my brooder down in basement you can draw your own conclusions

 

[Canadian Wind]

I give up got woke up at 3am to find a racoon in my brooder down in basement you can draw your own conclusions

I'm so sorry!!!