June Hatch-A-Long

[jolenesdad]

How many of you guys have tried the Mama Heating Pad and how many still use the tradition heat lamp?
I usually have the brooder in the house and find a typical 60 or 75 watt (old round type) bulb does fine for 15 to 20 chicks. But I've got a shipment of 15 coming this week plus whatever hatches out of these 18 eggs.

If you do the MHP, how do you like it vs the lamps?

I use both heat plates and heat lamps. I don’t prefer the MHP because I freak out about the off label usage, especially outside in humidity.

I love the natural aspects of the heat plates for sure.

but now I brood anything that isn’t under a broody hen for 3 days at least under a heat lamp. I’ve learned a ton the last year about commercially raised meat birds and have started applying some of the brooding aspects to my regular rearing and it seems to make a huge difference. One of those things is jump starting the digestion of newborn chicks to give them the best success in life. I’ve drastically reduced the space they get and I fairly uniformly beat the brooder to a temp of 85-90 degrees. 6 inches square per chick and more feeders than you could think they need.

there is SO MUCH science behind the way they brood chicks for commercial production because theres billions of dollars riding on it.all the larger pastured poultry producers and the factory farm producers say everything about the success of your birds comes down to how they are brooded.

anyway, a bunch of rambling to say I use heat lamps for a week and then plates.

 

[Skyfyre]

#4 hatched last night around 10pm. Pretty thrilled with how it went, now they just need to dry off so I can put them in the brooder

One of them has a small extra toe on each foot, which I'm surprised about. They're RIR/ISA Brown/Heritage mix, so not any of the 5 toed breeds. This chick does have different colouring from the others. I'll get a picture later and upload it

 

[FortCluck]

Had a chick hatch upright in the turner. There wasn’t much mess left behind. Another is zipping. The other is externally. Think I said I had 4 eggs but I was wrong. Only 3... forgive my miscounting

I believe I’ve found my new hatching method.

 

[RoseHawke]

Reading about the different brooding methods has been interesting. I bought a heating plate back in early April when I thought I would be getting chicks locally. After I ended up hatching my own I was finally able to put it to use but it just didn't seem warm enough. Chicks plainly weren't happy. Lots of loud cheeping. So I checked it with an analog thermometer which said it wasn't getting much above 75-80° if that. After a bit of thought pulled out one of my seedling mats and put that under the shelf liner under the brooder plate so they have heat top and bottom. Analog said over 100°. Bit more thought remembered I had a seedling mat temp controller and set it to 90°. Now everyone's happy .

 

[jolenesdad]

4 babies so far! 1 Polish, 1 whiting true blue and 2 cream legbar boys.

 

[GhislaineDel]

I'm working on a modified MHP using a seedling heat mat. It was less expensive than the heating pad without an auto shut off, has a thermostat for control, and can get wet or poopy without a problem and be cleaned. And I can use it for other things in the off season...like seeds!

I love this idea! The seedling mats I have on hand don't have a thermostat so I would need to buy a new one. I use a heating plate but I was just thinking about having the supplies for a MHP on hand as backup.

 

[AltonaAcres]

I am hatching some eggs from my flock to sell as chicks on Craigslist as people are buying chicks around here like they are buying TP. 5 eggs set, 2 culled (infertile, probably bc of the heat). 3 looking great, day 5.

 

[CindyinSD]

I stained my fingers with it last time I used it and had to go to formal dinner dressed up with purple people eater fingers Everyone kept asking what happened so I had to tell them.

Alcohol does a fairly decent job cleaning, but doesn't get the stain off the rough skin as well.

 

[CindyinSD]

I’m using a ridiculous amount of blue kote in the main coop due to a feather picking problem. I have the spray and was thinking if the whole back half of the chick was dark colored, then the dark umbilicus wouldn’t stand out from the yellow fluff...

For feather picking in goslings I used "bitter apple" spray made (if I remember) to keep dogs from chewing. I sprayed all the goslings well and haven't had to do it again.

 

[FortCluck]

Alcohol does a fairly decent job cleaning, but doesn't get the stain off the rough skin as well.

My skin isn’t rough and I used alcohol. It didn’t work. It’s just my luck I didn’t care though.