JUNE - JULY HATCH-ALONG!!!!!!!

[Bookworm0124]

I’m sorry about the waterer! Just discussing on the June hatchalong thread how difficult it is to devise safe waterers for ducklings! Two posters three lost a duckling/chick to waterers, so you aren’t alone!

I've never had it happen before. I absolutely awful!! The hole wasn't even very big. Only ducklings can get themselves into that much trouble:-/ now I'm back to my chick waterer and by next week I'll use milk jugs with a hole. Although I THINK I read somewhere that mom raised ducklings are more water proof because of her oils. So she may get them into the small waterer/pool I set up for her.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I've never had it happen before. I absolutely awful!! The hole wasn't even very big. Only ducklings can get themselves into that much trouble:-/ now I'm back to my chick waterer and by next week I'll use milk jugs with a hole. Although I THINK I read somewhere that mom raised ducklings are more water proof because of her oils. So she may get them into the small waterer/pool I set up for her.

No personal experience but I’ve heard that about mama raised ducklings as well... like all the wild mallards you see with their ducklings...

 

[Enigmius]

I've never had it happen before. I absolutely awful!! The hole wasn't even very big. Only ducklings can get themselves into that much trouble:-/ now I'm back to my chick waterer and by next week I'll use milk jugs with a hole. Although I THINK I read somewhere that mom raised ducklings are more water proof because of her oils. So she may get them into the small waterer/pool I set up for her.

Whoa, that's terrible! I'm sorry about the duckling. How did that even happen?? Poor thing.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

I've never had it happen before. I absolutely awful!! The hole wasn't even very big. Only ducklings can get themselves into that much trouble:-/ now I'm back to my chick waterer and by next week I'll use milk jugs with a hole. Although I THINK I read somewhere that mom raised ducklings are more water proof because of her oils. So she may get them into the small waterer/pool I set up for her.

Yes, I've read that as well. When a broody duck or goose is sitting on her ducklings they rub their waterproofing oils on the little ones. That's why they're able to follow them in the water. When we raise them in a brooder we can allow them to swim for short periods but not as long because they don't start developing their own waterproofing until their older. I used a plastic Chinese take out container for my goslings, with holes cut in the top like your container but the containers are too short for them to get inside.

 

[Bookworm0124]

Whoa, that's terrible! I'm sorry about the duckling. How did that even happen?? Poor thing.

Im not sure. But when I found him he was underneath the lid. His leg may have contributed to not being able to get out. Ugh. What an awful way to go

 

[Enigmius]

Im not sure. But when I found him he was underneath the lid. His leg may have contributed to not being able to get out. Ugh. What an awful way to go

That is SO sad. I'm sorry!

 

[Bookworm0124]

Yes, I've read that as well. When a broody duck or goose is sitting on her ducklings they rub their waterproofing oils on the little ones. That's why they're able to follow them in the water. When we raise them in a brooder we can allow them to swim for short periods but not as long because they don't start developing their own waterproofing until their older.

That's what I thought. I'm still scared to Open the pen up to the big pool for them though lol. I'll bring out a kiddie pool tomorrow now that I'm not using it as a brooder.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Day 24 of incubation, and three guinea keets have hatched, with one more pipped, and two more quiet. All three hatched keets are either lavender or blue - very pretty!!! Two keets are in the brooder (I did grab the one that had hatched to join the noisy Singleton, even thought another had pipped) and one is drying off in the incubator; I’m hoping that a keet hatches in the night so I can move them to the brooder in pairs... It was funny and a little concerning introducing the newest guinea to the slightly older one - the older one kept trying to eat newbies eyes then toes. A little later, Newbie returned the favor - kids!!!

Here’s guinea cam picture for Day 29 - nada. Guineas had kicked a dirty, yolk encrusted egg outside the nest. It was pretty rotten inside, and moms scolded me for taking it. I’m rapidly reaching the point of decision making for their nest... I want to at least get these incubator eggs hatched first, so I wouldn’t need to disturb their lockdown. DD wants to save their eggs, incubate any still viable. I’m not as sure... The purpose for letting them have this nest was: 1) train them to use the coop for nests instead of wild nests that were attracting predators 2) raise keets from within the flock so as to avoid what will be a difficult integration. If 2) won’t be possible, then is it helpful to disturb their nest and hatch more keets inside, keets that I’d then need to find a buyer for, at $3 each? I’m not sure what would happen with the nest if I do/don’t intervene, but avoiding wild nests has become a pretty high priority... It’s probably too much to hope for, but I’d be perfectly happy to have them be broody long enough to cease laying for this year altogether, though moms are looking pretty thin... I went ahead and put the 28% protein game starter in their feeder (it was chick starter) hoping to keep the hens from losing much more weight...

 

[AquaDuck]

Day 24 of incubation, and three guinea keets have hatched, with one more pipped, and two more quiet. All three hatched keets are either lavender or blue - very pretty!!! Two keets are in the brooder (I did grab the one that had hatched to join the noisy Singleton, even thought another had pipped) and one is drying off in the incubator; I’m hoping that a keet hatches in the night so I can move them to the brooder in pairs... It was funny and a little concerning introducing the newest guinea to the slightly older one - the older one kept trying to eat newbies eyes then toes. A little later, Newbie returned the favor - kids!!!

Here’s guinea cam picture for Day 29 - nada. Guineas had kicked a dirty, yolk encrusted egg outside the nest. It was pretty rotten inside, and moms scolded me for taking it. I’m rapidly reaching the point of decision making for their nest... I want to at least get these incubator eggs hatched first, so I wouldn’t need to disturb their lockdown. DD wants to save their eggs, incubate any still viable. I’m not as sure... The purpose for letting them have this nest was: 1) train them to use the coop for nests instead of wild nests that were attracting predators 2) raise keets from within the flock so as to avoid what will be a difficult integration. If 2) won’t be possible, then is it helpful to disturb their nest and hatch more keets inside, keets that I’d then need to find a buyer for, at $3 each? I’m not sure what would happen with the nest if I do/don’t intervene, but avoiding wild nests has become a pretty high priority... It’s probably too much to hope for, but I’d be perfectly happy to have them be broody long enough to cease laying for this year altogether, though moms are looking pretty thin... I went ahead and put the 28% protein game starter in their feeder (it was chick starter) hoping to keep the hens from losing much more weight...

Rotten eggs and overdue are concerning signs... I'd try to candle a few of them if I were you. Since there are so many, they might not have sat properly on them, allowing some of them to be cooled for periods.

Good thing the incubated ones are doing well!

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Day 24 of incubation, and three guinea keets have hatched, with one more pipped, and two more quiet. All three hatched keets are either lavender or blue - very pretty!!! Two keets are in the brooder (I did grab the one that had hatched to join the noisy Singleton, even thought another had pipped) and one is drying off in the incubator; I’m hoping that a keet hatches in the night so I can move them to the brooder in pairs... It was funny and a little concerning introducing the newest guinea to the slightly older one - the older one kept trying to eat newbies eyes then toes. A little later, Newbie returned the favor - kids!!!

Here’s guinea cam picture for Day 29 - nada. Guineas had kicked a dirty, yolk encrusted egg outside the nest. It was pretty rotten inside, and moms scolded me for taking it. I’m rapidly reaching the point of decision making for their nest... I want to at least get these incubator eggs hatched first, so I wouldn’t need to disturb their lockdown. DD wants to save their eggs, incubate any still viable. I’m not as sure... The purpose for letting them have this nest was: 1) train them to use the coop for nests instead of wild nests that were attracting predators 2) raise keets from within the flock so as to avoid what will be a difficult integration. If 2) won’t be possible, then is it helpful to disturb their nest and hatch more keets inside, keets that I’d then need to find a buyer for, at $3 each? I’m not sure what would happen with the nest if I do/don’t intervene, but avoiding wild nests has become a pretty high priority... It’s probably too much to hope for, but I’d be perfectly happy to have them be broody long enough to cease laying for this year altogether, though moms are looking pretty thin... I went ahead and put the 28% protein game starter in their feeder (it was chick starter) hoping to keep the hens from losing much more weight...

It would be so much easier if you could leave them on fake eggs like chickens and sneak the hatched babies under them! I would be starting to worry about the eggs under them as well...