Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[birdman55]

MORNING MICHIGANDERS...ANOTHER GREAT DAY....so its snowing by me...off to the chores...and more building...

 

[ljw695]

Bummer.

Makes me concerned that I might be missing any that my Sabastopol goose may be laying. It's been so friggin' cold and about to get colder again this weekend starting tomorrow. Currently have 8 eggs in an incubator in the house (first two started 1/23, one 1/28, one 1/30, two on 2/2, and two on 2/5) given to me from the couple that gave my daughter the first pair of Sabastopols a year ago fall (the gander died last year); the same couple gave me three goslings last year. I have three eggs waiting to go in from the same couple who gave me the first eight eggs so I ordered another incubator. The three Sabastopols that I have left (the two-year-old goose from my daughter's first pair and two from the three I got last summer--I'm not sure if I have a goose and a gander or two ganders, one of the three got eaten by a fox a few weeks ago so I lock the remaining three up every night) have shelter, but it isn't heated and doesn't have any lights. So I'm hoping that the darkness may help delay laying until things get a little warmer.

Laurie (from Remus in the middle of the mitten if you're looking with a satellite 240 acres in Rudyard twenty minutes above the Mac Bridge). Our daughter, Natalie, manages Hearty Harvest--the family farm market that can be found on Facebook.

 

[1muttsfan]

Love first eggs.

To avoid split hatches you can hold eggs at room temp for as long as 10 days, and often longer, without affecting fertility. Then put all the eggs in at the same time. Makes hatching time much easier, and eliminates opening the incubator repeatedly during lockdown, the final crucial 3 days of incubation.

A second incubator is a good idea, both as an emergency backup, and to use as a Hatcher if you are doing split hatches.

 

[ljw695]

That's what I thought (using the second as a hatcher). Thought I'd take the first two out on day 27 from the automatic turning tray in the first incubator and leave the automatic turner off on the second. Then put a couple new eggs in the first incubator.

I think I prefer to have the eggs hatch individually so that I can give the new babies a bit of personal attention. Hopefully they'll become more friendly if I handle them a lot when they first hatch.

I'm trying to learn how to vent-sex day olds through videos on Google. Then I want to figure out a way to identify males from females as well as those that may hatch from the eggs given to me from those that my goose/geese may lay so that I can pair less related geese with ganders from the two groups.

 

[taprock]

Hello to all. I been a member for almost a year and just found this theadlol. I from northern michigan just south of the mighty-Mac.

Welcome, just south of the bridge myself and love the boxer, we have one!

I'm not sure how working one extra day can throw off a schedule so much, but it has this week. I am also on day 3 of a sinus headache so I'm just lots of fun today! I only have one class of first graders to get through today so hopefully they aren't too wild.

Today is very dreary, grey and snowy. It sounds like more of the same te rest of the week except very cold. I'm sorry you haven't been able to enjoy the sun Silly. Hopefully you can feel better and get to enjoy the warmer climes.

My guinea girl is still caged in the basement. Her feet look horrible but she has been pretty calm. She does fine when our big dog is around but she can't stand our little guy and hisses and raises her wings whenever he is around. She is unfortunately feeling more comfortable because she has started talking some which is just too loud for the basement.

Opa how are you doing?

 

[tntchix]

Here is one of the several color varieties of Cubalaya I raise. Picture is from last summer. Dominant white and carries one copy of recessive white.

Wow.

Found our first egg today from our four girls! Its frozen and cracked, found burried in the deep litter. Didnt have time to look for more this morning, kids were already late for school from the excitement. Now I need to get more shavings and clean it out, wonder if I'll find more we've overlooked.

Yay, oh bummer. and so it begins...

 

[Whatshisface]

Love first eggs.

To avoid split hatches you can hold eggs at room temp for as long as 10 days, and often longer, without affecting fertility. Then put all the eggs in at the same time. Makes hatching time much easier, and eliminates opening the incubator repeatedly during lockdown, the final crucial 3 days of incubation.

A second incubator is a good idea, both as an emergency backup, and to use as a Hatcher if you are doing split hatches.

Getting a back up incubator is a Good Idea, I really never gave it much thought. I only own one incubator right now, we just put 9 eggs in it yesterday. My wife wants to try to have one group with a broody hen because we have never done that before. She says one of the hens is starting to act Broody and sitting on eggs. We'll see.....

 

[ljw695]

Actually, the electricity went off night before last so I sent my incubator to my daughter's house (she had juice) for the night and bought a small 400 watt battery powered generator (Wagan Power Dome EX) today to cover my assets. It's supposed to have 18 hour 12 volt capacity for small appliances.

 

[mindylee]

Post office called me this morning. Heres my newest boy all they way from SC.
Meet Santa whiskers.

 

[chickflick]

Wow! Beautiful!