My Chicken Existential Crisis... I mean journey

[ackie]

I just noticed a broody girl today! I'm not sure if that counts for HAL since shes doing all the work!
View attachment 2465695View attachment 2465702View attachment 2465700
15 eggs. I'll have to keep an eye to make sure my other ladies arent laying there. One or two eggs are pullet & several of the eggs are very porous so we will see what happens. ALSO it got down to 19 degrees 2 and 3 nights ago, so if she wasn't already setting, idk if that's cold enough to have frozen them though I hear you can hatch refrigerated eggs so idk.

I'm not sure what day we are on. Most I cant really see anything. A couple I can see the blood circle in the yolk (not the blood ring of death)View attachment 2465705 and this is my most developed one
View attachment 2465704
but a lot of them have nothing I can see going on.

 

[ackie]

These are the pics that were supposed to be in that post

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I just noticed a broody girl today! I'm not sure if that counts for HAL since shes doing all the work!
View attachment 2465695View attachment 2465702View attachment 2465700
15 eggs. I'll have to keep an eye to make sure my other ladies arent laying there. One or two eggs are pullet & several of the eggs are very porous so we will see what happens. ALSO it got down to 19 degrees 2 and 3 nights ago, so if she wasn't already setting, idk if that's cold enough to have frozen them though I hear you can hatch refrigerated eggs so idk.

I'm not sure what day we are on. Most I cant really see anything. A couple I can see the blood circle in the yolk (not the blood ring of death)View attachment 2465705 and this is my most developed one
View attachment 2465704
but a lot of them have nothing I can see going on.

The most developed egg is between 3 and 5 days old

 

[ackie]

The most developed egg is between 3 and 5 days old

I looked at that thread of egg development with fancy pics and it looks closest to 72 hrs so yeah. I should have taken pics of the nothing going on ones to ask opinions on but nothing was going on hahaha.

 

[leroys2488]

my SO thinks I should move away from barnyard mixes into a pure breed, so I'm trying to decide what breeeeed

I have Golden Comets. All three have been laying an egg a day without fail since late summer. They are VERY friendly and low maint.

 

[ackie]

I have Golden Comets. All three have been laying an egg a day without fail since late summer. They are VERY friendly and low maint.

no reproductive issues?

 

[ackie]

broody was off the nest this morning to eat. I suspect she waited til she heard me come out to feed everyone. right now the pen with the feed is closed until I get up around 10-11. just because the hen + 5 babies have decided to sleep in there so I have to keep it closed at night for safety. plus the birds love to eat the food the horses drop which means waiting for me to feed the horses.

 

[leroys2488]

no reproductive issues?

None that I have had, no stuck eggs, all looks good.

 

[ackie]

random dog in our driveway. no collar. wouldnt come to me. havent noticed any dead chickens yet.

checked on the broodys nest when she was off it. no ones added additional eggs. a pullet laid next to her a couple days ago but the eggs look markedly different so it's not a huge deal. dog cant get to the eggs. I mean he physically can but there in the horse pasture and theres a solid chance the horses would injure him.

 

[ackie]

@JacinLarkwell
so the broody is gone. handful of downy feathers. but the nest was still there. 3 eggs rolled out but the rest was normal. fired up the incubator and moved the eggs

housemate came in with a day old chick and I was like whered you get that?

he said it has been by itself in the driveway for half an hour. its 50 degrees outside and we have a cat that eats day old chicks.

so I popped him in the incubator to warm up and we looked for the mom.

housemate found the mom, we wrangled the chicks into a bucket, mom would not let us get her. put the chicks in the outside brooder hoping shes go to them. she couldnt figure out how to get in. moved the chicks into the incubator and played distressed chick noises from the brooder. still havent caught mom. setting up an impromptu brooder in the house.