***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[bardies]

I now have two broody turkey hens... One with two eggs on the shelf in the coop. The other took some doing to find - a spot of fluff and tail feathers about a foot inside of a woodpile. No idea how many eggs. There are cows in the yard where the woodpile is, so hopefully they will keep some of the bigger predators out. We do have skunks and possums...would they pose a threat to a hidden turkey hen?

 

[CLSranch]

I have Coturnix. Hatch rate is 40 - 50% about equal males to females. lay eggs year round. I pickle loads of eggs and also hard boil them....buggers to peel unless you put vinegar in the boiling water.

I do the same thing....with eight outside pens, the hen house and the brooder room in the barn, and another brooder in the hot tub room, with incubators and a hatcher in the back bedroom...no way to protect everything. .Hope and prayers...

Have you tried letting those eggs set longer b4 boiling them?

 

[CLSranch]

Speaking of

What's the tornado protocol for your chickens?

Give them a beer and put them on the porch so ya'll can watch together. Or teach them to be ostriches.lol

 

[lonnyandrinda]

I steamed two dozen eggs yesterday and they peeled like a dream. Got the water boiling, set the eggs in the steamer basket, steamed 12 minutes, and dunked them in cold water. Shook in a glass with a little water and the peels slipped right off. These were fresh eggs, too- between one and 6 days old.

 

[NanaKat]

 I have Coturnix.  Hatch rate is 40 - 50%  about equal males to females.  lay eggs year round.  I pickle loads of eggs and also hard boil them....buggers to peel unless you put vinegar in the boiling water.  

How does vinegar in the water help with peeling?

Quail eggs are so small...end of the thumb size...that they are hard to peel. The vinegar dissolves the calcium in the shell making the shell very thin and pliable. The shell membrane then just peels off in strips.
I boil them covered by an inch of water in the pan along with a cup of white vinegar. Then turn off the heat, cover and let them sit until cool. Then peel them. I rinse them in water to remove tiny pieces of shell and the shell color film.

 I have Coturnix.  Hatch rate is 40 - 50%  about equal males to females.  lay eggs year round.  I pickle loads of eggs and also hard boil them....buggers to peel unless you put vinegar in the boiling water.  

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Have you tried letting those eggs set longer b4 boiling them?

Quail eggs don't set out long without floating in the water. The air cell grows quickly as the liquid evaporates when the eggs sit out on the counter. I boil quail eggs about every three days....60 to 75 at a time. Sometimes I crack them and freeze the eggs. They don't crack like a regular egg either. The shell crumbles if you crack it on the side. I carefully crack and separate the butt end...and sometimes have to fish out tiny shell particles from the bowl.

 

[mjgigax]

I have Coturnix. Hatch rate is 40 - 50% about equal males to females. lay eggs year round. I pickle loads of eggs and also hard boil them....buggers to peel unless you put vinegar in the boiling water.

I do the same thing....with eight outside pens, the hen house and the brooder room in the barn, and another brooder in the hot tub room, with incubators and a hatcher in the back bedroom...no way to protect everything. .Hope and prayers...

I found a way to easily peel "boiled" eggs - steam them! 20 min. in a vegetable steamer, then plunge them in ice water. Even very fresh eggs peel easily and no green ring on the yolk from boiling too long.
I wonder if that would help with peeling the quail eggs? Or are they difficult to peel because they are so small?

 

[NanaKat]

Lovely day today...outside in a t-shirt.
Trimmed every feather butt in the breed pens....42 total.....fuzz flying everywhere.
It is going to be a nice week...may even get a little done in the garden prepping beds.

 

[mjgigax]

I find the Roosters very pretty, and the hens are quite broody. Not sure if its just mine or its built in the breed- but they are relentless about sitting. Just had one hen finish a clutch a week ago. They've been trying all winter but I just don't think the Roos are very fertile any more- they are quite old. Applaud the effort though.

Broodies! I had Wheaten Ameraucanas and my neighbor had Blues, I never saw them go broody. Ameraucanas personalities sure seem to vary more than many other breeds. I have known some to be quite flighty and others to be so friendly - all individuals.

 

[mjgigax]

Hope to God I'm still alive to raise more in the aftermath.

I would grab my dog and cats first and the chicken only if I had time..
I guess I might grab some but open all their pens and give them a chance.
Had to evacuate once because of a brush fire but didn't have birds then.

 

[NanaKat]

 
I have Coturnix.  Hatch rate is 40 - 50%  about equal males to females.  lay eggs year round.  I pickle loads of eggs and also hard boil them....buggers to peel unless you put vinegar in the boiling water.  

I found a way to easily peel "boiled" eggs - steam them! 20 min. in a vegetable steamer, then plunge them in ice water. Even very fresh eggs peel easily and no green ring on the yolk from boiling too long.
I wonder if that would help with peeling the quail eggs? Or are they difficult to peel because they are so small?

I'll have to try that. They are so small the tapping them like you do reg boiled eggs breaks them to pieces. I can put a LF or banty egg in a glass jar with water and gently shake off the shell.