my pet chicken reviews

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I know, :/  but I can still dream, can't I????

Definitely, I'm still bummed I couldn't get any either. Never give up your dreams.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Update; I candled my set eggs, looks like most of the lavender Wyandotte are no good and thoroughly scrambled, the olive eggers I can't see through and the two cuckoo bluebars look to be developing. Of course the expensive eggs and the ones I really wanted don't seem to be working out. And as I mentioned I still bummed about the BLR Wyandotte eggs being cancelled.

 

[chickisoup]

Update; I candled my set eggs, looks like most of the lavender Wyandotte are no good and thoroughly scrambled, the olive eggers I can't see through and the two cuckoo bluebars look to be developing. Of course the expensive eggs and the ones I really wanted don't seem to be working out. And as I mentioned I still bummed about the BLR Wyandotte eggs being cancelled.

Wow. That is why I guess I will probably never try to incubate.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Wow. That is why I guess I will probably never try to incubate.

I also set a few of my own, those are developing, it's apparently the traveling that does them in. I am using my bantams to hatch them so they are living incubators. Money wise it probably wasn't worth it but I wanted to give it a go. I ordered some turkey eggs last year and have some coming this year that were in good condition, I had hoped the same for these, but that's the gamble. Here's my incubators.

I guess the 25 chick coming in two weeks will have to console me.

 

[chickisoup]

Well, the GOOD news! I got notified that my original order will be replaced (minus the 2 that survived of course) yea!
Well, now the BAD news. They won't ship for another full 4 weeks. I was hoping they would be shipped sooner. That age gap makes it impossible to mix them with the survivors and a challenge to be able to mix them with my older hens before our cold weather returns. My current structure/setup is not equipped at this time to handle more than two coop/run flocks. Unless I can come up with a solution I may have to either give away the two chicks I've work so hard to save or cancel this replacement order. I have some thinking to do.

Why do I have the feeling that not only did Murphy's Law decide to join the original "party" it packed a bag???

 

[Blooie]

You don't have to do either! Brood the new chicks right out in the coop! Lots of us do, and very successfully. Integration is a snap - mine are always fully integrated with the adults by 4 weeks old! I wrote an article on it - Yes, You Certainly Can Brood Chicks Outdoors. The link is down below in my signature! @azygous also wrote one. It works perfectly, I promise!!

 

[chickisoup]

I don't use a heat lamp, never have. First (and foremost,) the safety issue, for the chicks and my property. Second, common sense would tell you it is totally unnatural to be exposed to bright light 24/7. (I am a firm believer that is also a serious mistake made by hospital nurseries for human babies as well) All you have to do is watch chicks under a heat lamp to see how hyper and stressed they are. I currently use a Brinsea heater brooder. (inserting a commercial here) this is the one I WON 2 YEARS AGO FROM BACKYARD POULTRY MAGAZINE!!! In their 21 days of Christmas giveaway. I am also in the process of purchasing a Sweeter Heater for the coop.

I do have a brooder "area" already that breaks down for storage that is designed to fit under the roost area in my coop that even has it's own pophole that opens out into an area of the run that can be temporarily separated by fencing. The problem I ran into was my 2 survivors had to be brooded in the house because they initially needed to be hand fed, etc. or they would not have survived and I still cannot move them to the coop as the crazy weather (supposed to snow tonight) would be too radical an adjustment. I am hoping to move them to the coop brooder next week (they will be 2 weeks old on Sunday) if the weather levels out. I have never had success integrating chicks as young as you suggest with the adults (I've tried) and because of the timing, I doubt mixing them in with the new chicks will work either. The other problem I have is I do not have the floor space in my coop that would be needed to handle that many chicks in the coop with all the "extras" needed to support that many. However, as I type this I realize I might be able to "stage" the older chicks out into the coop before the new ones arrive, then move them out as soon as I get the first ones integrated, etc. It will take some adjusting since I have neither the room nor the beautiful setup that you have (my little coop is elevated, combined with a greenhouse in a "creative" way, etc.) but it is worth a try! I can always still re-home later if it just doesn't work.

 

[Tika75]

Guess what came in the mail today!!



Opened it up and they are all okay!
I had started moving them and was like
"Oh yeah. I need to take pictures." LOL





Bring your babies to work day. LOL
My boss bought the yellow ones... white leghorns.

 

[dekel18042]

They have been sold out of BLR Wyandotte for a while, they couldn't even fill my egg order. I wouldn't wish too much.

Sometimes you can get lucky, If you call the morning of the Monday your order is to ship and they've had an exceptionally good hatch or hatched more pullets than they expected, you can add something that wasn't expected to be available.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Sometimes you can get lucky,  If you call the morning of the Monday your order is to ship and they've had an exceptionally good hatch or hatched more pullets than they expected, you can add something that wasn't expected to be available.

That's good to know, thank you.