NY chicken lover!!!!

[SunnysideupstateNY]

I'm jealous, lol. I'm still trying to figure out if my hen is actually going to go broody or what. I gave her 8 eggs today and she sat on them for most of the day. Then she decided, at the end of the day that being broody was for the birds and left the nest for the rest of the day. She was on the roosting bar tonight. So I don't know what the heck she's doing.

LOL, Ollie did that, she had a few days where she half tried so I didn't let her keep any. Today was the first day she fully committed, I even brought home some plastic easter eggs for her just in case she was off the nest, but she is glued! So I'll let her give it a go.

Go out tomorrow and buy some plastic easter eggs, just the act of doing that should encourage her to commit!

 

[Sweetpea3829]

LOL, Ollie did that, she had a few days where she half tried so I didn't let her keep any. Today was the first day she fully committed, I even brought home some plastic easter eggs for her just in case she was off the nest, but she is glued! So I'll let her give it a go.

Go out tomorrow and buy some plastic easter eggs, just the act of doing that should encourage her to commit!

I think I'll let her try again tomorrow and if she sits, great, and if not, I'm taking the eggs away. Maybe I'll try those plastic eggs and see if she'll sit on them, lol. I'm not going to put good eggs under her again, though, until she commits.

Maybe I could pick up some wooden eggs and just keep collected eggs on the counter, dated, for when she finally does sit, if she does.

 

[rancher hicks]

Rancher, I have been using marker since I started this whole mess a couple years again. I get almost 100% hatch rates with my broodies. IF you are really that worried, use non-toxic markers made for kids. Lead pencil marks get rolled off when the bird moves her eggs. Lead pencil has only worked for me when I used an incubator. Which was ONCE. I tried pencil on eggs under a broody and after about 4 days I couldn't find the marks any more. So I will use marker and not have to harrass the broody every 4 days to remark the eggs, which takes a LOT longer than just grabbing the few that don't have a circle of marker all the way around them---done so I don't even have to touch the eggs that I want her to hatch, just grab the ones that have no marker and leave her the heck alone.

And yes, marker *can* leach through the porous egg shell, but in my experience it hasn't done anything to the developing chicks....but I put ONE circle around the egg, not a whole lot of info, like date, breed, etc....so the amount is the bare minimum to get the job done.

Please tone it down some. I did not say I was worried. My comment was due to what I've read in Practical Poultry magazine and they suggested not using markers. It was also toward the incubation of eggs. My advice/comment was also not directed at anyone in particular.

As for broody's do as you wish. I personally find that pestering a broody to snatch unmarked eggs has not worked out well for me. Though it's usually another hen going in to lay an egg that has resulted in broken eggs and a scratch of the whole lot. There is advice to separate a hen brooding eggs to a private place. This has worked out better for me.

Folks here are within their rights to take any advice or follow any example they choose. Are they not? It's not necessary to debate those who disagree with us. Could I have worded my advice better? Lord knows there will always be someone who has another opinion. I try to just let it go if they do.

I am sorry you were offended. I offer information I read in publications since I hold the belief that they are more experienced than I. Perhaps someone can come up with a disclaimer I can type in after posting. So folks don't get their Knickers in a twist.

Peace,
Rancher

 

[Nuttyfrom6kids]

You should try Hughesnet. We've been pleased with it. I only wish it didn't have data caps. But still, the 10GB we are allotted have been plenty. We just can't do any of the Netflix type stuff, which is a bummer because we homeschool and Netflix has some excellent stuff for that. But otherwise, it's been good.

My DSL through frontier has no data caps I have unlimited Data which is good for us as we use Netflix all the time. I don't complain too much as we technically are too far from substation to even have DSL but because hubby has a commercial account and needs the internet for his business they had to put boosters on the line in the substation and route it too us. The only thing is I now have 3 separate DSL accounts as the speed is ok if too many aren't using it but get too many on one and it lags pretty bad so hubby has one that he uses for his business and we have 2 in the house one the kids use and one that is mine. That is only thing I would want time warner for is the fact they would be able to give me a better speed and we would only need one account but that is okay at least I have DSL could be back on my old dial up .

 

[rancher hicks]

DOH!!! Could that explain the blood rings I'm getting in a LOT of my incubating eggs? I didn't mark much...just a G for "good" and a W for "watch".

There are many things that can affect a hatch so I can't say except that perhaps you should examine each aspect of your hatching technique. Many of us do things differently and have good results. Well, some have great results others of us muddle through with lower hatch rates.

My last hatch rate was the best, but the one before that was not good at all. Such is life I guess.

I think it's kinda like baking a cake. Some can just throw everything together, shake it up and stick it in the oven and out comes a cake that frosts itself and people rave. Me ? I follow the directions to a T and the result is a brick. I'm currently paving a patio in front of the coop with my failures.

Just keep trying and you'll find your groove.

I wish you well,

Rancher

 

[rancher hicks]

I have frontier DSL can't get time warner they don't go down my road and use the free AOL don't like change so used to it for years we had AOL dial up so have stuck with it just have the free part now. Wish Time Warner would come down my road it would be really nice.

I know how you feel. I have tried to get Verizon Fios but they don't come here. I'm not even sure Time Warner will come here. I hope they will. There was a new tower of some sort built down the road this past fall. Not sure what that's all about.

Not liking change is why they want to get their foot in the door. They know we hate the trouble of switching. WHICH is why I haven't and don't want to let them get in. Then I have to deal with them when they try to raise their rates. I'm to old for the baloney. If I don't like them then I have to deal with getting them out!

Which is what I had to do with AOL. They kept charging me $25 a month even after I told them to disconnect. I had to call them and tell them off.

 

[Sweetpea3829]

My DSL through frontier has no data caps I have unlimited Data which is good for us as we use Netflix all the time. I don't complain too much as we technically are too far from substation to even have DSL but because hubby has a commercial account and needs the internet for his business they had to put boosters on the line in the substation and route it too us. The only thing is I now have 3 separate DSL accounts as the speed is ok if too many aren't using it but get too many on one and it lags pretty bad so hubby has one that he uses for his business and we have 2 in the house one the kids use and one that is mine. That is only thing I would want time warner for is the fact they would be able to give me a better speed and we would only need one account but that is okay at least I have DSL could be back on my old dial up .

I wish DSL was an option for us, as we'd really like to be able to use Netflix. When we moved here from RI, we had FiOS and it was awesome. And not having data caps was great.

Verizon actually has DSL just down the road from us. One of our Englisch neighbors has it, and you can see their house from ours. But that's as far as it goes and I've begged and pleaded with Verizon and they won't extend the service to us.

We initially used Verizon's Mifi and what a nightmare that was. Two years of internet hell.

And unfortunately, its not likely we'll EVER get DSL or FiOS here. We have the one Englisch neighbor left, lol...everybody else is Old Order Mennonite and they don't use internet. They come here and ask me to look stuff up for them, lol.

 

[Pyxis]

Do you ever have trouble with the other hens kicking the broody out of the nest box? This broody is the lowest in the pecking order and my older EE who is on top kicks her out to lay.
Good point on candling, I don't think I could see through the barnie eggs, when my friend was hatching last year the green eggs were tough to see through as well.

Is this your first broody? This might help: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/guide-to-letting-broody-hens-hatch-and-raise-chicks I kinda feel weird posting it since it seems like self-promotion but it is in the Learning Center now so I guess it's okay. It might help you out!

 

[SunnysideupstateNY]

Is this your first broody? This might help: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/guide-to-letting-broody-hens-hatch-and-raise-chicks I kinda feel weird posting it since it seems like self-promotion but it is in the Learning Center now so I guess it's okay. It might help you out!

It is my first broody! Good article, very thorough and I like how you worded the entire article. It was clear you were speaking on experience and that there is no one way of doing things. Thanks for the link!

I appreciate hearing all experiences, we all have different set ups, so a variety of stories help!

 

[rancher hicks]

Is this your first broody? This might help: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/guide-to-letting-broody-hens-hatch-and-raise-chicks I kinda feel weird posting it since it seems like self-promotion but it is in the Learning Center now so I guess it's okay. It might help you out!

You should never feel weird about offering help. Sometimes our own experiences are the most helpful. Be encouraged.

After all there is more than one way to skin a cat. (though I'm not sure why you'd want to skin a cat)

Peace,

Rancher