Minnesota!

[scandiafowl]

They aren't able to carry them off but will kill and eat on the ground. My flock was in high alert!

 

[KlopKlop]

Well tomorrow buck and the cornish gals are getting released to join their flocks again. No eggs still and the love nest is starting to get funky due to the rain. there isnt a dry spot anywhere here, even inside the corn crib. the frost is coming up too so that doesnt help.

I have seen buck doing his puffed up wing dance for the girls trying to woo them and they all snub him, so i doubt i would be seeing fertile eggs if they were laying. bummer!

I will have to try again in a few weeks when it is nicer out

 

[Minniechickmama]

Thanks, Minnie - I'm handing these over personally tomorrow.
I've done one hatch with my own eggs. This was the time with the malfunctioning incubator. The postmortem revealed that 80% were fertilized. I'm going to try again with my new incubator and see what luck I have.

80% is well within acceptable for my book.
good luck with the newest batch. It can be a real pain to lose them when the incubator goes poopy on you. I lost about 450 eggs last year like that. I had 5 horrible hatches in a row before I got everything settled. That hurt. Then the AI crap started up.


BTW I got my official letter that I am AI clean!!! Now to get the PT testing done. I hate that part but must get it done. Maybe tomorrow if the day goes well.

 

[Minniechickmama]

Well tomorrow buck and the cornish gals are getting released to join their flocks again. No eggs still and the love nest is starting to get funky due to the rain. there isnt a dry spot anywhere here, even inside the corn crib. the frost is coming up too so that doesnt help.

I have seen buck doing his puffed up wing dance for the girls trying to woo them and they all snub him, so i doubt i would be seeing fertile eggs if they were laying. bummer!

I will have to try again in a few weeks when it is nicer out

That stinks but I am sure that if they are in a dimly lit building they are just lacking light. I finally got one egg from my Cornish yesterday and it was a soft shell when it was laid then hardened with a funny dimple on it. I just fed it back to them. They are a fickle breed, I never said they were easy to keep. If you had a tractor to get them more daylight, that might help. If you let them mix with the other rooster though, you will have to wait 3 weeks to be sure of what you are getting from them for eggs.

 

[KlopKlop]

That stinks but I am sure that if they are in a dimly lit building they are just lacking light.  I finally got one egg from my Cornish yesterday and it was a soft shell when it was laid then hardened with a funny dimple on it.  I just fed it back to them.  They are a fickle breed, I never said they were easy to keep.  If you had a tractor to get them  more daylight, that might help.  If you let them mix with the other rooster though, you will have to wait 3 weeks to be sure of what you are getting from them for eggs.  

I have had times light on them for 5 days but it may not be enough. I worry if I leave them in there with the wind, cold, and damp they will get sick. In a few weeks I can move the tractor outside and try again

 

[scandiafowl]

80% is well within acceptable for my book.

good luck with the newest batch.  It can be a real pain to lose them when the incubator goes poopy on you.  I lost about 450 eggs last year like that.  I had 5 horrible hatches in a row before I got everything settled.  That hurt.  Then the AI crap started up.  


BTW  I got my official letter that I am AI clean!!!  Now to get the PT testing done.  I hate that part but must get it done.  Maybe tomorrow if the day goes well.

Congratulations!
Would you recommend anyone who buys/sells eggs/chicks to be AI tested? What does the PT test entail? I know what the military one means ;-)

 

[scandiafowl]

Well tomorrow buck and the cornish gals are getting released to join their flocks again.  No eggs still and the love nest is starting to get funky due to the rain.  there isnt a dry spot anywhere here, even inside the corn crib.  the frost is coming up too so that doesnt help.  

I have seen buck doing his puffed up wing dance for the girls trying to woo them and they all snub him, so i doubt i would be seeing fertile eggs if they were laying.  bummer! 

I will have to try again in a few weeks when it is nicer out

Poor buck - trying so hard and getting kicked to the curb.

Do you keep the roosters separate otherwise?

 

[KlopKlop]

Poor buck - trying so hard and getting kicked to the curb.

Do you keep the roosters separate otherwise?

No but the Cornish run with my other flock so this is his first time with them.

I am not feeling so bad for him today though. He was doing his wing dance and one of the Cornish squatted and he passed her by trying to woo my Cornish cross hen. His loss I guess

 

[scandiafowl]

No but the Cornish run with my other flock so this is his first time with them.

I am not feeling so bad for him today though. He was doing his wing dance and one of the Cornish squatted and he passed her by trying to woo my Cornish cross hen. His loss I guess

Are you crossing Buckeye with Cornish?

 

[destiny_56085]

We went through that joyous process last week. As long as we had birds caught, we did both the PT testing and AI swabs. Mom also got those 4 royal palm turkeys so they had to have vials drawn for MS/MG testing as well. I know I'm late with sending in my hatchery permit renewal, but the MPTL said to hold off til after they came out to train on the AI swabbing and sent all the swabs. Mom even drove everything up to Willmar last week too to make sure all was in order and filled out properly. Kinda irked me when the MPTL called on Monday to say they didn't have my AI samples. Everything was brought in.... I have no idea where they put them. I'm waiting on the 'letter' from them and know dang well waterfowl are known for throwing false positives.