Not counting your chickens before they hatch can be very bad!

[Mahonri]

We could be related you know.

I wanted 10 or 15 to start two years. Now I have over 40... and I was actually thinking about pulling out the incubator this weekend.

Thanks for bringing me back to reality.

I've got to sell some chickens.

 

[ChickGirl6]

I started with 25 EEs as day olds, 1 died, so 24 EEs then I found 6 cochins 5 hens and 1 rooster, got 1 partridge rock hen free with the cochins,so 31 chickens. then I found 28 black copper and blue copper marans chicks, so now I was up to 59 chickens, made my self an incubator, hatched 4 cochin chicks, so now its 63 chickens. Sold 11, had a few die and now I'm down to 20 hens, 6 or 7 roosters that I'm keeping and 18 roosters that need new homes or my dad needs to butcher them. Chickens math is so fun!

 

[gryeyes]

7 four week old (maybe 5 wk old) chicks in an outside brooder on the back porch; 5 from shipped eggs which were my VERY first hatch in a brand new incubator. The other 2 chicks just came home with me from the feed store when I restocked chick starter feed, because, well... they'd always been OUT of Black Jersey Giant and Light Brahma on past shopping trips. Whoo hoo! Look, "popular" chicks I'd wanted but were always sold out - but I got one of each! Into the brooder with the hatched 5.

3 bantam Cochin chicks hatched 2.5 weeks ago from 7 shipped eggs, plus 3 of 7 hatched Blue/Black/Splash Lavender Orpingtons two weeks ago, all in the Bathroom Nursery brooder.

6 of 7 shipped Black Jersey Giant eggs developing in a 'bator, just went into lockdown today. (Hey, gotta compare feed store BJG to breeder BJGs, ya know!)

Also just SET 17 eggs this very morning: 7 shipped FBCM eggs in one incubator, 7 shipped Salmon Favoerelle in one brooder, 2 more SF eggs and one of my EE Rebecca's sweet green eggs in a little 3-egg 'bator.

How many more chickens am I planning on hatching? I think the answer to that question will be related to a variable (available fertile eggs) times # of incubators I can afford, plus kilowatts of electricity sold to me by PG&E x 12 months of the year.

How many chickens do I HAVE? "A bunch."

FOUR coops - not really big ones or anything - housing the "adolescent" and growed up flock members.

 

[gvntofly05]

I started with 26 EE's with the intention to sell half of them.

That never happened!

I am now selling hatching eggs and chicks. I keep all that don't sell and I currently have 51 chickens with more eggs going into the bator tomorrow!

I started with EE's and I now have 5 different breeds! I am planning to add another breed in the spring. Plus I am going to start working on some project birds.

All because I wanted 12 laying hens!

 

[pinkpoppey]

O my,

:cd I only want 2 or 3 but the minimum order is 5 so 5. After hearing your stories I sorta want to get extras cuz a few might be roo's or something. But I also want to get lotsa eggs and I'm unsure whether I should take chicken math into account.

 

[kla37]

Well....since everyone ELSE is doing it......I want an incubator for Christmas!