newbie questions... again.

[Treehouse1]

Hi, everyone.

I have a few more newbie questions.

I have 2 groups of chickens, a group of 9 and a group of 4, they have separate coops, but I've opened my fence, and the two groups seem to be getting along pretty well. They're around each other, but still have their little tribes, but I'm not seeing any serious fighting or bullying.

My first problem is that I have two, possibly 3 roosters. I've read that 7 per male is the minimum? do I need to get rid of one or even two?

Second. I am starting to get eggs from my older group, between 3 and 5 a day. Is the time when I need to start giving them egg shell or oyster shells for supplements?

Third. I have one hen that has gotten really, I think the term is "broody" in the last week or so. I want her to keep laying, but I don't think I'm ready for chicks yet (I have no way of separating her from a group). I there a way I can break the brood? or should I get her some decoy eggs so she can continue to do her thing?

Thank you, in advance. I always get good advice from this group.

Kody

 

[Saveria]

My first problem is that I have two, possibly 3 roosters. I've read that 7 per male is the minimum? do I need to get rid of one or even two?

You may need to. The number of hens per roosters you hear is actually a fertility number, not a get along number. You can see how they do, but I don't have a lot of faith in 3 roosters getting along with hens present. The hens may feel harassed by them, too.

Do you want to post pictures, or are you sure they are roos?

If you are going to keep them separate you can keep two, but if you are eventually going to integrate them, there will be a lot less headache for you if you just keep one.

Second. I am starting to get eggs from my older group, between 3 and 5 a day. Is the time when I need to start giving them egg shell or oyster shells for supplements?

I would do that, now is a good time. You can give it as soon as you see the pullets combs getting larger and red, because that indicates that they'll be laying soon.

Third. I have one hen that has gotten really, I think the term is "broody" in the last week or so. I want her to keep laying, but I don't think I'm ready for chicks yet (I have no way of separating her from a group). I there a way I can break the brood? or should I get her some decoy eggs so she can continue to do her thing?

So, is she sleeping in the nesting boxes at night? That is how you know she is serious. You want to break them if you don't want chicks, it is better for her and the flock in the long run. Here is an article about doing that.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/broody-breaking-ala-aart.77915/

Feel free to tag me (just type @saver and click on my icon) if you have another question but it gets missed. Sometimes posts slip through the cracks, but we love questions, that is what we are here for.

 

[Treehouse1]

Saveria, thank you for your responses. They were super helpful.

I have another question. If I'm going to get rid of a rooster, I want to make sure that the one I keep is viable. can I find out from an egg I've refrigerated if my eggs are fertilized? or do I need to check them when I take them from the nest.

also, My son (6) is really wanting to try to let "his girl" hatch some baby chicks. Note: we're in south Alabama, and we won't be seeing any freezing temps until LATE winter (it was 85 today). I'm not terribly interested in doing this, but I told him I would check.

 

[Saveria]

Saveria, thank you for your responses. They were super helpful.

I have another question. If I'm going to get rid of a rooster, I want to make sure that the one I keep is viable. can I find out from an egg I've refrigerated if my eggs are fertilized? or do I need to check them when I take them from the nest.

also, My son (6) is really wanting to try to let "his girl" hatch some baby chicks. Note: we're in south Alabama, and we won't be seeing any freezing temps until LATE winter (it was 85 today). I'm not terribly interested in doing this, but I told him I would check.

You can hatch eggs that have sat for around for a week at room temperature. After that hatch rates start to go down, but you will still see an okay hatch rate for up to 2 weeks. After that it is iffy, but you can't hatch ones that have been in a refrigerator. Not sure if it is because hatch rates significantly drop, or there will be issues with the chicks, but I have definitely heard it as a no-no. I am not sure if you are just looking to check fertility if it would be okay. Are you just going to dispose of them after you confirm they are fertilized?

I just re-read it and realized maybe you are talking about seeing the bulls-eye mark that denotes fertilization? Those you can see in eggs kept any way. Though that method is not as accurate as incubating some.

I think your chicks will be fine if you get the eggs under her as soon as you can. Has she been sitting for a number of days, and is in the nesting box each night? Then she'll be as good a bet as any, but you may have to finish the eggs in the incubator or take the loss if she abandons the nest. Broodies are unpredictable.

You want to put eggs under her that have strong shells, and no droppings or yolk on them, and are unwashed. Small amounts of droppings can be scraped off, you basically want to have as little bacterial activity as possible. You can also mark them with pencil, since when she hops off the nest to do what she needs, other hens can lay some extras in there. Let me know if you need an article describing more.

It is kind of good to have a mom with chicks when it is chillier out, the chicks will stay closer to her. So, if it is 3 weeks of incubation, and 6 weeks to fully feather (about 2 months) I think they'll be just fine by the time November is underway for you. November probably isn't even that cold for you. You may have to watch a little more closely to make sure they don't get separated, especially on cold nights, but it should be a successful endeavor.

 

[Treehouse1]

You can hatch eggs that have sat for around for a week at room temperature. After that hatch rates start to go down, but you will still see an okay hatch rate for up to 2 weeks. After that it is iffy, but you can't hatch ones that have been in a refrigerator. Not sure if it is because hatch rates significantly drop, or there will be issues with the chicks, but I have definitely heard it as a no-no. I am not sure if you are just looking to check fertility if it would be okay. Are you just going to dispose of them after you confirm they are fertilized?

I just re-read it and realized maybe you are talking about seeing the bulls-eye mark that denotes fertilization? Those you can see in eggs kept any way. Though that method is not as accurate as incubating some.

I think your chicks will be fine if you get the eggs under her as soon as you can. Has she been sitting for a number of days, and is in the nesting box each night? Then she'll be as good a bet as any, but you may have to finish the eggs in the incubator or take the loss if she abandons the nest. Broodies are unpredictable.

You want to put eggs under her that have strong shells, and no droppings or yolk on them, and are unwashed. Small amounts of droppings can be scraped off, you basically want to have as little bacterial activity as possible. You can also mark them with pencil, since when she hops off the nest to do what she needs, other hens can lay some extras in there. Let me know if you need an article describing more.

It is kind of good to have a mom with chicks when it is chillier out, the chicks will stay closer to her. So, if it is 3 weeks of incubation, and 6 weeks to fully feather (about 2 months) I think they'll be just fine by the time November is underway for you. November probably isn't even that cold for you. You may have to watch a little more closely to make sure they don't get separated, especially on cold nights, but it should be a successful endeavor.

so my brooder is sleeping in the brood box. the other hens seem to be laying in or around her box, she's been collecting them. She currently has 2 days of new laid eggs under her (I'm not taking them up, and then putting them back.) So, I have 8 eggs under her.

I have a second coop, a smaller one that I has been home to four newer chickens that seem to be fairly acclimated to the flock (no pecking, no fighting, that I've seen). I think I might mover her and the eggs to that coop, and make the littles (our nickname) move to the big house. Our winters have been super mild the last several years, so I may let mama try to raise some. It's 21-25 days until hatching?

I was going to ask about marking them, but you took care of that. I had originally thought of using a permanent marker, but wondered if the ink would affect the shells.

is it bad if she's totally isolated? should I keep her with the rest of the flock? how much space should she have? the small coop has a very small run (3x6 ft), but its in a smaller fenced in area? do I keep her in the coop, or let her have the run of things?

Thank you so much for your help.

P.S. if this works, you will most definitely be hearing from me again.

 

[Patiocoturnix]

but you can't hatch ones that have been in a refrigerator. Not sure if it is because hatch rates significantly drop, or there will be issues with the chicks, but I have definitely heard it as a no-no.

I belive you but just want to know where you heard it because when I hatch I hatch out of the refrigerator and gimme birdies just did a thread where they hatched a bunch from the fridge just curious.

 

[Saveria]

I belive you but just want to know where you heard it because when I hatch I hatch out of the refrigerator and gimme birdies just did a thread where they hatched a bunch from the fridge just curious.

Really? I have heard from at least 10 different sources that you want fresh eggs that haven't been refrigerated. The two I remember off the top of my head are a post by Ridgerunner and in Harvey Ussery's book, The small Scale Poultry Flock.

I don't think any of them are saying that it is impossible to hatch refrigerated eggs, I think they are all saying that the most ideal method, and the one that will lead you into less issues when the chicks hatch is to use eggs that haven't been in the fridge.

 

[Saveria]

so my brooder is sleeping in the brood box. the other hens seem to be laying in or around her box, she's been collecting them. She currently has 2 days of new laid eggs under her (I'm not taking them up, and then putting them back.) So, I have 8 eggs under her.

8 is the max you'll want to try. You may want to go in and candle them at some point and take out any that aren't developing. That will make it easier for her to keep them all warm, and prevent the non-developing eggs from somehow contaminating the nest.

It's 21-25 days until hatching?

Yep.

is it bad if she's totally isolated? should I keep her with the rest of the flock? how much space should she have? the small coop has a very small run (3x6 ft), but its in a smaller fenced in area? do I keep her in the coop, or let her have the run of things?

This is one of those hard things where you have to weigh out the risks and benefits. It isn't ideal to keep a broody away from the flock, because they can have a hard time integrating back in. That said, I have heard horror stories of flock members attacking or killing chicks.

What I have done is keep the little family in an wood/chicken wire enclosure inside the main predator proof run. The enclosure is about 3'x5'. They stay in there for about a week till it seems like the momma is moving around more, then I open the enclosure once everyone else has eaten and gone outside. She decides when to bring them out into the fenced in area.

Whatever you do, that will be a very intensive time. You'll have to check on them several times a day for the first week or so, so try to set up your life to be ready for that as best you can.

 

[Patiocoturnix]

Really? I have heard from at least 10 different sources that you want fresh eggs that haven't been refrigerated. The two I remember off the top of my head are a post by Ridgerunner and in Harvey Ussery's book, The small Scale Poultry Flock.

I don't think any of them are saying that it is impossible to hatch refrigerated eggs, I think they are all saying that the most ideal method, and the one that will lead you into less issues when the chicks hatch is to use eggs that haven't been in the fridge.

Ok interesting maybe non refrigerated eggs some times gives you a better hatch rate but I had over 90%. I will definitely be looking through threads about refrigerating eggs. Thank you for replying.

 

[Saveria]

Ok interesting maybe non refrigerated eggs some times gives you a better hatch rate but I had over 90%. I will definitely be looking through threads about refrigerating eggs. Thank you for replying.

Interesting. Did any of them have any issues after they hatched?

It's good to know that refrigerated eggs can be used in a pinch. I wonder why so many people say that if there aren't real consequences.

I would be worried that condensation could effect the protective bloom on the eggs, though. I just never refrigerate eggs, so I don't know first hand.