NY chicken lover!!!!

[vmdanielsen]

I have 4 buckeyes, a few dels, BLRW, Del EE mixes, OE, project blue silver ameraucana, and golden cuckoo marans in the bator.

I hope your fertility rate on the buckeyes was better than mine last year. I am anxiously awaiting your results!!

Put the light in the buckeye coop to get the older hens back into production so I can start hatching. The Am/LHX are coming back into lay. I got 3 eggs from them today. (they are not lit and I kept 5 and The one EE pullet) The EE has not laid anything yet and they will be a year old Feb 21. The EE is my husband's favorite non buckeye. The EE/LH have been exceptional layers of light blue eggs. They are quite flighty though and like to fly over their fence and lay their eggs in the horse barn. Silly birds!!!

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Evening all. Been busy working so I am popping in to see whats what.

Sorry about your hatch Rancher. I know how frustrating it is to come so close and then nothing. I am hoping my new bators are better than the old one and that I get good hatches.

Stony---nice pics. I think my sexlinks could fly up that high if I let them. I have to keep netting over the run otherwise they will get out (or the local hawk and falcon will get in!).

My sexlink with the torn up back from the boys is sporting her new saddle in the coop but I dont think the others like it. I took a heavy washcloth and made a saddle out of it to cover her back so the boys wouldnt hurt her so much. Now I have to hurry up and do 4 more for her sisters as they also are getting beat up by the boys attentions. I have to say that the vetrimycin spray I got works really good really fast. Sprayed their backs a couple of times a day and its healing up real nice. Might have to come up with a plan to separate the boys from the girls for a bit so they can get a break. You would think with 19 girls to take care of, they wouldnt be so focused on these 5! I mean, really, they have lots of date options! Other guys would kill to have so many choices!

My silkies dont seem bothered by this weather at all. They were hanging out in their run, despite some snow being in it. I took arwin out of the boys coop and put her in with the new girls so they all get used to each other and become a nice little flock. I will be putting them in with legolas by the end of the month i hope. Elron is spoken for and I just need a home or homes for Gandolf and Frodo. Both boys are real nice boys.

I hope everyone made out okay with the snow we got. All I know is that its melting now and I am happy. So are the terrorists and divas. They hate the white stuff. Night everyone.

 

[rancher hicks]

@Pharm - I don't consider the hatch a total failure, just disappointed in the BM's. They are very good layers averaging 75% a day. All the marans eggs were fertile and I haven't cracked them open to see what might be the problem.

I would think if it were my technique then some of the other breeds would not have hatched either but they all did.

I do plan to try the marans again and I do have Frenchy sitting on two. If I get anymore broodies they will get their fill of Marans too. Roo or pullet I'll be hanging on to these new four too.

Marq - would you care to weigh in on this? I haven't done any research or reresearch as I've read about these things before. There was an article in PP magazine but I'm not sure I still have that issue.

Take care and be well.

Rancher

 

[Cydney83]

Rancher ..sorry for the low hatch. Have you tried a dry hatch? Just a thought. Good luck for the next one!-

 

[Framac]

Rancher,

I had the same type problems last year. All of my RIR, and Orps would hatch (80-100%) My Ameracaunas, I set 40 eggs, and got 8 chicks. I had a lot of clears. I changed roosters this year and only had 1 clear on 10+. If they all hatch, then I will attribute my issues last year to my rooster. I also like you had a fair number of late quitters.

35 in the incubator to hatch on Friday. I had 6 or so questionable in there. Hoping for 20-25.

Framac

 

[rancher hicks]

Rancher,

I had the same type problems last year. All of my RIR, and Orps would hatch (80-100%) My Ameracaunas, I set 40 eggs, and got 8 chicks. I had a lot of clears. I changed roosters this year and only had 1 clear on 10+. If they all hatch, then I will attribute my issues last year to my rooster. I also like you had a fair number of late quitters.

35 in the incubator to hatch on Friday. I had 6 or so questionable in there. Hoping for 20-25.

Framac

Well I cracked all the duds open and found lots of chicks. Some it was obvious had quit as there was a yolk sac still visible. Others seemed just find, but I think were malpositioned.

In chicks their head has to be tucked under the right wing. I cut and pasted this but it's not coming out the way I'd like.

Anyhow, considering that it was a single breed that had the problem, I'd say it had to do with the eggs.

Some of the things I think? Nutrition though I did give vitamins. OR storage, eggs where stored in the cool laundry room and I forgot to tip the eggs. Eggs stored have to be tipped back and forth. I should have placed a board underone side and then the other day to day.

AND/OR I stored them to long.

I don't think it was incubation technique since only the Marans had a problem. I only got a few eggs a day so and of the Non Maran eggs they were gathered later. In order to have more marans I'd have had to store them longer.

Something else that I did in previous hatches is put the eggs in cartons to hold them up right, during hatching.

So what to do? Gather eggs closer to setting time, be sure chickens have a nutritional balance, give vitamins a few days before collecting eggs, follow hatching instructions to the letter for humidity and temp. 35, 55, 65%. Though I think mine were fine.

1. Sign: Dead embryos; 7 to 17 days of incubation; each embryo has egg tooth, toenails, feather follicles (8 days), feathers (11 days). Causes:
   1. Improper incubator temperature, humidity, turning, ventilation. Low humidity increases abnormalities of aortic arches (13 days).
      • Contamination.
        • Nutritional deficiencies -- riboflavin, vitamin B12, biotin, niacin, pyridoxine, pantothenic acid, phosphorus, boron, or linoleic acid.
          • Lethal genes (>30 have been described).
            
2. Sign: Dead embryos; >18 days of incubation. Causes:
   1. Improper incubator temperature, humidity, turning, ventilation.
      • Improper hatcher temperature, humidity, ventilation.
        • Contamination, especially from molds (aspergillis, etc.).
          • Fumigation too severe or too prolonged.
            • Eggs chilled in transfer, or transferred too late.
              • Broken shell -- pre-set, during incubation, or at transfer.
                • Nutritional deficiencies -- vitamin D, vitamin A, folic acid, or pantothenic acid, riboflavin, vitamin E, selenium, vitamin K, biotin, thiamin, vitamin B12, calcium, phosphorus, manganese, or linoleic acid.
                  • Embryonic malposition; embryo fails to move into proper hatching position (see #21).
                    • Embryological development accident. Failure to change to lung respiration and all intra-embryonic circulation, and/or to retract the intestinal loops and yolk sac. These and other changes are critical at this time.
                      • Heredity -- lethal genes, chromosome abnormalities.
                        • Twinning.
                          • Hatcher opened too much during pipping and hatching.
                            • Poor shell quality.
                              • Breeder diseases.

 

[Lynzi777]

Hello All,
I was in Boston Thurs-Sunday along with making trips to CT there and on the way back to drop/pick up the kids. Just finally got a chance to get back on here and came back to 131 posts. Still have some catching up to do...The flock behaved themselves while we were away. Woke up Monday morning and spoiled them with lots of fruit and bread that was about to spoil so they were happy campers. The silkie chicks are finally making their way out of the coop and into the run with the others. I don't think they realized that lower part of the coop existed when I first moved them in with the bigger silkies.

I am! Tully/otisco area

I was skimming and came across your post - we must be neighbors, I'm in Tully! Welcome to BYC!!

 

[rancher hicks]

Hello All,
I was in Boston Thurs-Sunday along with making trips to CT there and on the way back to drop/pick up the kids. Just finally got a chance to get back on here and came back to 131 posts. Still have some catching up to do...The flock behaved themselves while we were away. Woke up Monday morning and spoiled them with lots of fruit and bread that was about to spoil so they were happy campers. The silkie chicks are finally making their way out of the coop and into the run with the others. I don't think they realized that lower part of the coop existed when I first moved them in with the bigger silkies.


I was skimming and came across your post - we must be neighbors, I'm in Tully! Welcome to BYC!!

But your tag says you're in Syracuse. Tully and Syracuse are pretty far apart.

 

[rancher hicks]

Put the new nest bucket in the coop and found three little green eggs in there today.

I'm working on building a bigge flock of colored and dark egg layers. Which is why all the new Marans chicks have got to stay.

I am planning on starting some more eggs asap, even though DW doesn't know it yet.

So stay tuned I'm sure I'll have chicks to get rid of.

I've placed a bid for Basque eggs on E-bay. I don't expect to win but you never know. Does anyone like them? I don't expect to start with another breed, I just like to hatch.

Do people trust sellers on BYC more than sellers on E bay or other places?

 

[vmdanielsen]

Put the new nest bucket in the coop and found three little green eggs in there today.

I'm working on building a bigge flock of colored and dark egg layers. Which is why all the new Marans chicks have got to stay.

I am planning on starting some more eggs asap, even though DW doesn't know it yet.

So stay tuned I'm sure I'll have chicks to get rid of.

I've placed a bid for Basque eggs on E-bay. I don't expect to win but you never know. Does anyone like them? I don't expect to start with another breed, I just like to hatch.

Do people trust sellers on BYC more than sellers on E bay or other places?

Googled basque chickens....they look interesting!! nope, never had them or even heard of them!! good luck!!