June Hatch A Long

[dougieee]

So a final update and thoughts
Shipped eggs are a nightmare, 50% success out of 12, 9 had detached air cells, 1 yoker, 2 quitters, 3 pipped and drowned (REALLY annoying).
And to put it in perspective, the 7 EE`s i set from my own hens pipped zipped and hatched fine for 100%
The grey ones in the pic are the lavender Araucanas, the others are EE`s.
Thanks for all the help and advice on this one, ive never used shipped eggs before (and probabely wont again) but i feel sure i wouldnt have got 50% without some of the excellent help and advice.
I was going to set some CCL`s but my wife has politely but firmly declined to let me fire up the bator for a third time this year

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

View attachment 1827985
So a final update and thoughts
Shipped eggs are a nightmare, 50% success out of 12, 9 had detached air cells, 1 yoker, 2 quitters, 3 pipped and drowned (REALLY annoying).
And to put it in perspective, the 7 EE`s i set from my own hens pipped zipped and hatched fine for 100%
The grey ones in the pic are the lavender Araucanas, the others are EE`s.
Thanks for all the help and advice on this one, ive never used shipped eggs before (and probabely wont again) but i feel sure i wouldnt have got 50% without some of the excellent help and advice.
I was going to set some CCL`s but my wife has politely but firmly declined to let me fire up the bator for a third time this year

They are just beautiful! I really love blue and lavender chickens! Cute little yellow with black spots babies are EE? Your shipped egg experience sounds awesome to me!!! We ended up with 0/12 shipped BCM eggs, even though every egg was fertile and started to develop. Our problem was probably a combo of rough handling in shipping and my incubator being too hot...

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Continuing with the saga of Susan the Silkie, who has been sitting on eggs for a month now after she absolutely refused to break her broodiness. She was the last hen standing from her group, her three buddies were lost to Marek’s at POL. She has been pretty depressed since then, and silkies are supposed to be more susceptible to Marek’s, so We were resigned to her death when she started to lay. She’s hung in there though, for months after the others, but so sad... She had shielded her best friend with her wing when she layed in hospital near the end, clucking softly to her and guarding her against me...

So, after her hatch failed last Sunday, we resolved to get her chicks to love. We received our shipment of chicks at our post office at 3:30 AM this morning. I must say that I was so impressed with this experience: the postal employees went way above and beyond, texting me at 3:30 (as I was arriving) to let me know that they were here, meeting me on the back loading dock well before opening so I could get them ASAP, and just overall handling them gently enough that all chicks were alive and well. I didn’t know anything about The Chick Hatchery before I ordered these chicks online late Sunday night. I picked them because they use the Rispens Marek’s vaccine, will ship small quantities of chicks, accept rush orders, and had breeds we were interested in. We received four Faverolles and three blue Ameraucana babies, shipped with green hydration goo to eat and a small heat pack. All babies seemed alive and reasonably healthy with several being positively vigorous! We warmed them up and offered water with Nutridrench and electrolytes, a little starter, then slipped under Susan’s wings. My daughter did the deed, and she said “Mom, we did not pull a fast one on Susan! She’s a smart bird and knew just what I was doing.”. It’s dawn now so I’m going back out with fingers crossed and breath held, praying and hoping that Susan accepts these babies...

 

[SueT]

Continuing with the saga of Susan the Silkie, who has been sitting on eggs for a month now after she absolutely refused to break her broodiness. She was the last hen standing from her group, her three buddies were lost to Marek’s at POL. She has been pretty depressed since then, and silkies are supposed to be more susceptible to Marek’s, so We were resigned to her death when she started to lay. She’s hung in there though, for months after the others, but so sad... She had shielded her best friend with her wing when she layed in hospital near the end, clucking softly to her and guarding her against me...

So, after her hatch failed last Sunday, we resolved to get her chicks to love. We received our shipment of chicks at our post office at 3:30 AM this morning. I must say that I was so impressed with this experience: the postal employees went way above and beyond, texting me at 3:30 (as I was arriving) to let me know that they were here, meeting me on the back loading dock well before opening so I could get them ASAP, and just overall handling them gently enough that all chicks were alive and well. I didn’t know anything about The Chick Hatchery before I ordered these chicks online late Sunday night. I picked them because they use the Rispens Marek’s vaccine, will ship small quantities of chicks, accept rush orders, and had breeds we were interested in. We received four Faverolles and three blue Ameraucana babies, shipped with green hydration goo to eat and a small heat pack. All babies seemed alive and reasonably healthy with several being positively vigorous! We warmed them up and offered water with Nutridrench and electrolytes, a little starter, then slipped under Susan’s wings. My daughter did the deed, and she said “Mom, we did not pull a fast one on Susan! She’s a smart bird and knew just what I was doing.”. It’s dawn now so I’m going back out with fingers crossed and breath held, praying and hoping that Susan accepts these babies...

well???? did Susan take them in?

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Continuing with the saga of Susan the Silkie, who has been sitting on eggs for a month now after she absolutely refused to break her broodiness. She was the last hen standing from her group, her three buddies were lost to Marek’s at POL. She has been pretty depressed since then, and silkies are supposed to be more susceptible to Marek’s, so We were resigned to her death when she started to lay. She’s hung in there though, for months after the others, but so sad... She had shielded her best friend with her wing when she layed in hospital near the end, clucking softly to her and guarding her against me...

So, after her hatch failed last Sunday, we resolved to get her chicks to love. We received our shipment of chicks at our post office at 3:30 AM this morning. I must say that I was so impressed with this experience: the postal employees went way above and beyond, texting me at 3:30 (as I was arriving) to let me know that they were here, meeting me on the back loading dock well before opening so I could get them ASAP, and just overall handling them gently enough that all chicks were alive and well. I didn’t know anything about The Chick Hatchery before I ordered these chicks online late Sunday night. I picked them because they use the Rispens Marek’s vaccine, will ship small quantities of chicks, accept rush orders, and had breeds we were interested in. We received four Faverolles and three blue Ameraucana babies, shipped with green hydration goo to eat and a small heat pack. All babies seemed alive and reasonably healthy with several being positively vigorous! We warmed them up and offered water with Nutridrench and electrolytes, a little starter, then slipped under Susan’s wings. My daughter did the deed, and she said “Mom, we did not pull a fast one on Susan! She’s a smart bird and knew just what I was doing.”. It’s dawn now so I’m going back out with fingers crossed and breath held, praying and hoping that Susan accepts these babies...

I'm so happy they all arrived safe!

We must know how Susan is doing with the babies! Lol

 

[jolenesdad]

Continuing with the saga of Susan the Silkie, who has been sitting on eggs for a month now after she absolutely refused to break her broodiness. She was the last hen standing from her group, her three buddies were lost to Marek’s at POL. She has been pretty depressed since then, and silkies are supposed to be more susceptible to Marek’s, so We were resigned to her death when she started to lay. She’s hung in there though, for months after the others, but so sad... She had shielded her best friend with her wing when she layed in hospital near the end, clucking softly to her and guarding her against me...

So, after her hatch failed last Sunday, we resolved to get her chicks to love. We received our shipment of chicks at our post office at 3:30 AM this morning. I must say that I was so impressed with this experience: the postal employees went way above and beyond, texting me at 3:30 (as I was arriving) to let me know that they were here, meeting me on the back loading dock well before opening so I could get them ASAP, and just overall handling them gently enough that all chicks were alive and well. I didn’t know anything about The Chick Hatchery before I ordered these chicks online late Sunday night. I picked them because they use the Rispens Marek’s vaccine, will ship small quantities of chicks, accept rush orders, and had breeds we were interested in. We received four Faverolles and three blue Ameraucana babies, shipped with green hydration goo to eat and a small heat pack. All babies seemed alive and reasonably healthy with several being positively vigorous! We warmed them up and offered water with Nutridrench and electrolytes, a little starter, then slipped under Susan’s wings. My daughter did the deed, and she said “Mom, we did not pull a fast one on Susan! She’s a smart bird and knew just what I was doing.”. It’s dawn now so I’m going back out with fingers crossed and breath held, praying and hoping that Susan accepts these babies...

Im so impressed with you and your daughters dedication to Susan and your chickens while dealing with so much. Fingers crossed! I’m so glad the final parts of this forever long process has been so smooth!

I’m so pleased with my local post office too. I’ve gotten a few middle of the night pickup calls! It’s the people somewhere in the middle that don’t care as much.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Nutmeg and Buckbeak finally wandered out to the grassy areas with their shared chicks this morning for a nice dust bath! I'm really glad these two are getting along so well and parenting together. I kind of wonder if Margaret had hung out with them in the coop longer if all three of those broodies would be parenting together. Has anyone had more than two broodies co-parent? I've always loved watching hens with their chicks but this time it feels like watching a single mom and a happy couple.

 

[jolenesdad]

Nutmeg and Buckbeak finally wandered out to the grassy areas with their shared chicks this morning for a nice dust bath! I'm really glad these two are getting along so well and parenting together. I kind of wonder if Margaret had hung out with them in the coop longer if all three of those broodies would be parenting together. Has anyone had more than two broodies co-parent? I've always loved watching hens with their chicks but this time it feels like watching a single mom and a happy couple.

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I LOVE that they are co parenting. So adorable.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

So at Dawn, I just sat outside the pen and listened, not wanting to interrupt important bonding time. I only heard soft contented cheeps and a mama’s soft cluck cluck cluck so was going to leave it at that, but DD had to peek before leaving for camp: Susan sitting on the nest hiding her babies. I came back a little later to check on things. All my worry was for naught! Not only are Susan and babies thrilled with each other, but Susan must have heard that they were hungry, because the new family had relocated within the nesting pen to the feeder. Susan decided that her time of fasting is done, and she’s chowing down next to her chicks. I brought the Nutridrench browned waterer and Susan was fine with me messing with her space; the babies ran over to my fingers after our little bonding time this morning. So stinking cute!!! I’m so glad that we didn’t try again to break her when the hatch failed!

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Nutmeg and Buckbeak finally wandered out to the grassy areas with their shared chicks this morning for a nice dust bath! I'm really glad these two are getting along so well and parenting together. I kind of wonder if Margaret had hung out with them in the coop longer if all three of those broodies would be parenting together. Has anyone had more than two broodies co-parent? I've always loved watching hens with their chicks but this time it feels like watching a single mom and a happy couple.

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Awww, Buckbeak reminds me of 9 Ball and both hens are beautiful! It’s so wild to see those chicks whose pics you showed in the incubator, now out and about with their Mums!!! Such a happy family!!!