June Hatch A Long

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Thank you!!! I think so too... I think they’re kind of quicker than I was expecting but also excruciating slower than chickens. I’ve been practicing my one syllable imprint word and you can see ALL the bouncing of the eggs when I use it.

Here’s one of the ones who pipped through the bottom and into a bruise. This bruise membrane actually looks the best of the bruises, but it looks pretty dry and the most “separated.” But when I shine the light in, you can see where the light stops and it’s just around the bruise where the membrane is separated from the shell. I’m thinking this looks pretty good! Plus the hole is now twice the size as this morning.


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Nice!!! What, pray tell, is a one syllable imprint word?

 

[jolenesdad]

Nice!!! What, pray tell, is a one syllable imprint word?

I posted that research article way back.... it said that ducks AUDIO imprint before anything else. They can hear from 10 days before hatch and respond to any one syllable word. If you aren’t doing it, they’re imprinting directly to their hatchmates sounds.

Then they have to be called to the sound once they’re out of the Hatcher, follow it, and they’re imprinted. Then I found the same thing in the storeys duck book. Holderread says he does it fairly universally when hatching ducklings, because they will let the human imprint go as they age, but it makes for incredibly handleable ducklings. You can repeat any one syllable word, much like the sounds they’d be hearing from a mama duck. It doesn’t have to resemble any sort of duck sound.

I’m using a friends name as a joke.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I'm sorry this has been such a poor outcome.
Please let us know what you decide to do with Susan, whether you break her broodiness or get her some chicks! I feel like I need to know your sweet girl is ok just as much as you do! Or would it be too terrible a thought to take one of Naruto's babies and give it to Susan?



I'm wondering if the "bruising" could be moisture from the internally pipped chicks, especially since you had some with a good bit of fluid still in them.

Thanks CluckNDoodle! My daughter and I talked about taking a chick from Naruto and giving it to Susan, but in the end, we just couldn’t do that to Naruto, who’s being such a sweet and devoted mom. If there had just been one more chick that hatched... a lot of “what if’s”...

I think I need to figure things out before I try hatching anyone else’s eggs again... can I please pick your brain??? 1) Any thoughts on causes of fully developed, nonpipped eggs in our scenario? Too hot I guess for the day 20 hatch, but anything else I should be thinking of? I’m going to try to incubate a few guinea batches in attempt to troubleshoot... 2) Two of our dead chicks were in “beak over wing” malposition. I know you deal with malpositions yourself. Does this mean anything in particular to you? Is there any way to identify these chicks and assist when they don’t internally pip? 3) I ordered three rispens vaccinated salmonella favorelles and three blue Ameraucana from the Chick Hatchery. I’m hoping that the Favorelles will stay buddies with Susan so she has friends in the flock again. Supposed to hatch Wed and probably arrive Friday. Susan has never had chicks. What’s the best way to get them under her? I plan to wait for that night. Should I slip in a few chicks every hour to simulate hatching, or does it matter? Anything else I should do to increase her chances of accepting them?

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I posted that research article way back.... it said that ducks AUDIO imprint before anything else. They can hear from 10 days before hatch and respond to any one syllable word. If you aren’t doing it, they’re imprinting directly to their hatchmates sounds.

Then they have to be called to the sound once they’re out of the Hatcher, follow it, and they’re imprinted. Then I found the same thing in the storeys duck book. Holderread says he does it fairly universally when hatching ducklings, because they will let the human imprint go as they age, but it makes for incredibly handleable ducklings. You can repeat any one syllable word, much like the sounds they’d be hearing from a mama duck. It doesn’t have to resemble any sort of duck sound.

I’m using a friends name as a joke.

I do recall you posting that but I guess I wasn’t paying enough attention! With our ducks that hatched last year, I was so afraid that they would imprint on us and be miserable when we weren’t around. So, we’ve ended up with ducks that will approach is for food but are also terrified of us... When we eventually add more ducks, we’ve talked about trying the human/duckling imprint.. Have you done this before? Were your ducklings okay when you weren’t around?

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Good morning! Broody #1, Margaret, is my proven broody and she's already teaching the little ones the ropes! I'm still not sure how many chicks I gave her, I keep counting 6 but I didn't lift her. She should have 7, I think, or I'm just a complete spaz because I can count 3 under the other broodies, 3 in the brooder, and 1 I already rehomed...so with 14 chicks hatched total she should have 7 right? I've never had chicken math work backwards on me before so I'm sure it's just cuddling under her.

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Broody #2 & #3, Nutmeg & Buckbeak, are my newbies but so far so good! They just don't want to show me their precious few babies, lol! They haven't left the nest boxes and I'm convinced it's because they're sure more chicks MUST be coming since Margaret walked away with a whole troop.

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Overall it's a happy ending! The chicks in the brooder are doing even better this morning and if these two broodies are still insistent I may just give in and give them those chicks too, lol. So you CAN successfully have FOUR broody hens raising chicks at the same time with the rest of the flock! lol, What a full house!

And a picture of my poor molting White Leghorn, Nugget with her 3 peeps just because.

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Awww, love Margaret with the babies! Is she an EE? Interesting set up! Are Nutmeg and Buckbeak brooding in their regular nestboxes?

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Chick #4 that was the assist with small bleed and wry neck yesterday is in with the big kids this morning. Watching it, the only thing I can think of is the song “I came in like a wrecking ball”

That baby is a uncoordinated spaz! it’s definitely able to hold it own with the other 3. I guarantee it’s a boy

That’s great that you were able to help your guy so well!!!

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

What a sucky hatch
My shipped eggs have just gone into lockdown, 9 of 12 have made it to this point and a quick candle shows healthy embreyos (as far as i can tell). Its the malpositions that worry me now, the air cells were so bad they have been upright for the whole incubation with minimal movement and saddle shaped just doesnt do the actual myriad of shapes justice.
Still, i put ten of my own in there at the same time, 5 from a lovely jet black pullet called sambuca and and 5 from a HUGE pullet called grey goose who always gives me massive eggs, often with double yolks.
I was hoping to get a broody but unfortunaterly i think they are still too young as they were from a late hatch (late August) last year
Long three days now......... At least i get to read everyone elses success`s and failures, it helps keep things in perspective.

Best of luck on your hatch!!!

 

[Trux]

Good morning! Broody #1, Margaret, is my proven broody and she's already teaching the little ones the ropes! I'm still not sure how many chicks I gave her, I keep counting 6 but I didn't lift her. She should have 7, I think, or I'm just a complete spaz because I can count 3 under the other broodies, 3 in the brooder, and 1 I already rehomed...so with 14 chicks hatched total she should have 7 right? I've never had chicken math work backwards on me before so I'm sure it's just cuddling under her.

View attachment 1823371 View attachment 1823372

Broody #2 & #3, Nutmeg & Buckbeak, are my newbies but so far so good! They just don't want to show me their precious few babies, lol! They haven't left the nest boxes and I'm convinced it's because they're sure more chicks MUST be coming since Margaret walked away with a whole troop.

View attachment 1823378 View attachment 1823377

Overall it's a happy ending! The chicks in the brooder are doing even better this morning and if these two broodies are still insistent I may just give in and give them those chicks too, lol. So you CAN successfully have FOUR broody hens raising chicks at the same time with the rest of the flock! lol, What a full house!

And a picture of my poor molting White Leghorn, Nugget with her 3 peeps just because.

View attachment 1823382

Congrats on a great hatch!! My first 2 are fully feathered already and outside in the grow out coop, and my 9 are in the outside brooder with their heat plate and much more room to run around

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Thanks CluckNDoodle! My daughter and I talked about taking a chick from Naruto and giving it to Susan, but in the end, we just couldn’t do that to Naruto, who’s being such a sweet and devoted mom. If there had just been one more chick that hatched... a lot of “what if’s”...

I think I need to figure things out before I try hatching anyone else’s eggs again... can I please pick your brain??? 1) Any thoughts on causes of fully developed, nonpipped eggs in our scenario? Too hot I guess for the day 20 hatch, but anything else I should be thinking of? I’m going to try to incubate a few guinea batches in attempt to troubleshoot... 2) Two of our dead chicks were in “beak over wing” malposition. I know you deal with malpositions yourself. Does this mean anything in particular to you? Is there any way to identify these chicks and assist when they don’t internally pip? 3) I ordered three rispens vaccinated salmonella favorelles and three blue Ameraucana from the Chick Hatchery. I’m hoping that the Favorelles will stay buddies with Susan so she has friends in the flock again. Supposed to hatch Wed and probably arrive Friday. Susan has never had chicks. What’s the best way to get them under her? I plan to wait for that night. Should I slip in a few chicks every hour to simulate hatching, or does it matter? Anything else I should do to increase her chances of accepting them?

- I think I need to figure things out before I try hatching anyone else’s eggs again... can I please pick your brain???

Absolutely! I am always happy to offer what I've found to be the case from my own experiences but I still have so much to learn myself that I can't guarantee my answers will be accurate in your specific case, lol. So these are my "educated guesses".

- 1) Any thoughts on causes of fully developed, nonpipped eggs in our scenario? Too hot I guess for the day 20 hatch, but anything else I should be thinking of? I’m going to try to incubate a few guinea batches in attempt to troubleshoot...

In my experience embryos are actually far more forgiving of temperature fluctuations later in development. The farther along they are, the more likely that they won't be impacted by periods of extreme heat or cold. I can share a study that I read about it but it makes me sick to my stomach to read because they intentionally harmed so many chicks at different point of development just to know how many would make it at different extreme temps. With that said, on day 20 at 110°F for 8.5 hours was lethal. You can determine if you feel any were lost from the number of hours with extreme temps but if I remember correctly it was in the high 90s for you right? So my guess would be that it was some other factor that caused your losses.

- 2) Two of our dead chicks were in “beak over wing” malposition. I know you deal with malpositions yourself. Does this mean anything in particular to you? Is there any way to identify these chicks and assist when they don’t internally pip?

I candle right before lockdown and I look for anything unusual that may cause a difficult hatch, I'll mark those eggs and I usually put them in the incubator where I have the best visibility so I can keep an eye on them during hatch, sometimes there are no issues, it's more of a precaution.
When I saw that one of my chicks pipped at the wrong end I was immediately on the lookout for more issues. I stepped in WAY sooner than I normally would have. As soon as all of my externally pipped chicks hatched I took the ones without external pips and candled them, made an external pip by the beak of the one I could see was internally pipped and I opened a hole large enough to see inside the ones that were not internally pipped, those were my malpositions.
A number of things can cause malpositions but in my case I think there may be a health or genetic issue in the flock because all of the malpositions were from the Mottled Orpingtons and they each different, plus I had the tiny mug chick hatch with the yolk sac exposed and that rarely happens when there is no human intervention and is again usually due to some sort of health, genetic, or bacterial issue.

- 3) I ordered three rispens vaccinated salmonella favorelles and three blue Ameraucana from the Chick Hatchery. I’m hoping that the Favorelles will stay buddies with Susan so she has friends in the flock again. Supposed to hatch Wed and probably arrive Friday. Susan has never had chicks. What’s the best way to get them under her? I plan to wait for that night. Should I slip in a few chicks every hour to simulate hatching, or does it matter? Anything else I should do to increase her chances of accepting them?

This is one of those things we can't predict. They're either good moms or bad moms and that never changes. They will always be good at it or bad at it. But yes, I find sneaking the chicks under your broody once she's asleep after dark seems to be the way to go! Just take all of the eggs out from under her and replace with fluffy peeps! She may be a bit confused in the morning but it seems that if their mothering drive is strong enough they're just happy to have babies! I got up with the sun this morning to check first thing that everything was ok with my broodies and then several times after that to double, triple, and quadruple check. lol!

I hope that helps and wasn't too long-winded, lol! Good luck! Silkies seem to accept every baby they can get so I think as far as breed tendencies go, you have a great start!

 

[jolenesdad]

Such good discussions today.... can’t wait to catch up. Have to do some chores and things and I have 20 out of the 30 eggs in lockdown with an external pip!