Wow, talk about an extended hatch! Whew! Funny how when we are just working with our big layers, we love those super solid shells - then comes the hatching time and they're a curse! Today I had an egg with an extended internal pip, so I decided to make a small hole... It was such a solid shell, I really had a hard time, even with a good exacto! Thankfully the chick is still alive and hopefully it will be able to zip through that armor!
That's a crazy hard thick shell! What is an ISA?
Do you know of any other breeds with that kind of shell? OEs?
Just trying to learn and I Am learning so much here.
I hope the following is the absolute LAST sad news I share on this thread or any thread at least this time span: Little Itsy the mini silkie chick died,I just discovered within this past hour. Odd that today I was feeling secure enough in the well-being of all the chicks that I did the usual dog walks, Upstairs pen get-out-of-coop/jail-free card morning release and feed, then once the dogs were inside and eating breakfast I went out with the handy dandy camera phone. I did the "head count" but during that process, each chick I took out I first took individual pics of (I wrote, for example GLW #1 on cardboard, then #2, etc until I got almost the whole way thru the chicks and was on the 2nd to last newbie, the Welsummer sisters, #1 sister. Then I found Itsy dead.
I have to say there's a phrase that I'm sure most of us are familiar with: "Failure to Thrive". It just means the X creature isn't growing or doing as well or hearty enough. It is used when no other obvious condition presents. By the looks of it (and looks could be wrong) it wasn't that he got stepped on or squashed. I mean all chicks run all over all other chicks. Mima sit on all of them as she's done since we started. And Itsy was a 3-1 hatch making him, yesterday,18 days old.
I was going to post something weird as in can chickens produce dwarf chickens--not bantams bu dwarfs. I'm glad I let it slide. But I was curious bcs I really didn't see any growth in the past 10-ish days. I'm rather familiar with Mima's eggs and how they progress as chicks. The silkie eggs in the clutch were laid by her 2 pullet daughters, their first eggs ever.
*QUESTION:
Can eggs laid by new laying pullets have weaknesses in the chicks that we don't see in chicks from eggs laid later on in the 1st season?
I seem too recall someone saying something about that here (or feb hatch-a-long).
I didn't put those eggs in the clutch intentionally. The pullets were just following their mom's lead (always great learning thru modeling behaviors). Since I was unaware that they'd started laying at the same time Mima started sitting, it caused a big bunch of confusion with me thinking the eggs were a 100% fail and beginning the thinking process of what went wrong. @orrpeople I feel you! Mima was determined to "sit it out" and knowing she knows when I have no clue, I trust her instincts. She wasn't done brooding the eggs. OK.
Then at 4 weeks 1 day Itsy hatched! 3 days later one more in the a.m. and 1 more in the p.m. Then she said she was done.
I intended to do the eggtopsy, but I didn't do it right away bcs I was in overload. Then I saw myself procrastinating. The longer I procrastinated the fewer details I'd be able to get...used that as the excuse to procrastinate some more to the point of ridiculous. I didn't want to do it. Simple as that. I only tossed those eggs yesterday (the sat there in a bag from about 3-7 or 3-8 thru yesterday.It's ok.
*QUESTION:
Although I just described my theory, I also have concerns that my theory is incorrect. Early first laid eggs, winter suddenly for 3-4 days, failure to thrive.
Can anyone suggest any other reasons, Especially if they are something I need to ACT Upon. We discussed here mites. I see no mites. I considered intestinal parasites. I've seen no evidence of funky poops.
There are the beautiful chicks that Mima adopted: 5 Brahmas, 4 GLW, 2 Welsummers. That's 11 chicks I am co-parenting with Mima.
So I Really need to know if there is any action I should take.
Also yesterday just for detail (more detail? shut up lady!), I changed the nest box around 1 p.m., added dirt (same dirt from same yard I always do), dug up more grass and semi-planted it in the box for natural and soft bedding, water was clean, food was given, water had no poop or weird stuff in it this morning when I dumped it anyway and replaced it with fresh.
I've always fed medicated chick start and grow (purina). Same feed this time.
I'm going to say thanks for any ideas and feedback. And I am going to move to the happy chick story book. I can read feedback and learn to post happy pics simultaneously, as life is made up of sad and happy in some proportion all the time.
Thanks for listening, for ideas, and for making ooh and aww and ahhh sounds when you see my cute pics!
bump to your resume is a good way to look at it. 
