Oregon

[Zanna]

Gah. I'm so excited. I'm picking up all the supplies needed to build an incubator on Wednesday! I have plans all drawn up and will be testing it this coming weekend for temperature fluctuations as well as humidity and heat efficency. There's just a few more things I'm not quite sure on, but everyone here has been great and knowledgable so far!

So my question is, anyone have fertilized silkie, Ameraucana (in standard colors), or wyandotte eggs? I'm really not too terribly picky on colors to be honest. I am kinda being a stickler for pure bred birds because I'm planning on breeding my own chickens and would like to start out with the basic foundation first and get started with my mendelian table! (I kid)

I live in the Beaverton area, but I've driven from Hillsboro to Seattle for a hedgehog and Klamath falls for a Scottish fold cat before. I don't particularly want to go to Seattle for some fertilized eggs, but I am more than willing to drive an hour or two, maybe even 3 but that's pushing it. Not opposed to going across the river to Vancouver area, or just south in the St. John, St. Helens area.

If there is anyone around who has any I would love to discuss buying some eggs, as long as I can figure out how to transport them and keep them....erm....ready to grow?

I don't mind meeting multiple people on different days either. So hopefully I can find some hatching eggs pretty easily!

Still can't believe how excited I am! I'm just itching for new projects and I usually don't get this antsy until around March, but I have...pre spring fever I guess? lol This winter seems like it's been short, but I'm already ready for it to be over.

I have a dozen German New Hampshire eggs as of yesterday and getting 3-4 more daily. I am about 20 Min. South of Salem. PM if you are interested.

 

[iwanaplae2]

(I will be posting this in another forum as well in order to get more answers)
HELP!!!
I have 5 girls. 3 EE's (6mo), 1 Red Star (8mo), 1 BR (6mo). We hadn't gotten any eggs from our Red Star (our best layer) for a couple days. No big deal. I just figured she was taking a break. Yesterday I was excited to find one. But was disappointed to see that it had been kicked out of the nesting box, and had a crack. This morning I went out to gather eggs. My EE's had layed in the nesting box. My BR had layed clear across the coop in a corner. And still no Red Star...until something caught my eye...a tiny piece of shell. The only part left of my Red Stars egg
Apparently I have an egg eater! Here's what I'm thinking... The EE's are dominating the nesting box. And kicking out everyone else.
What can I do??? I can't let them keep eating her eggs. She was in the top of the pecking order. But obviously that's changed.

 

[Farmer Viola]

(I will be posting this in another forum as well in order to get more answers)
HELP!!!
I have 5 girls. 3 EE's (6mo), 1 Red Star (8mo), 1 BR (6mo). We hadn't gotten any eggs from our Red Star (our best layer) for a couple days. No big deal. I just figured she was taking a break. Yesterday I was excited to find one. But was disappointed to see that it had been kicked out of the nesting box, and had a crack. This morning I went out to gather eggs. My EE's had layed in the nesting box. My BR had layed clear across the coop in a corner. And still no Red Star...until something caught my eye...a tiny piece of shell. The only part left of my Red Stars egg

Apparently I have an egg eater! Here's what I'm thinking... The EE's are dominating the nesting box. And kicking out everyone else.
What can I do??? I can't let them keep eating her eggs. She was in the top of the pecking order. But obviously that's changed.

I thought I had a someone kicking eggs out of the nest too, I kept finding them near the hen house or on the ground, wondering who the heck would lay like that!

Turned out that my Buff Orp had such a fluffy butt, the egg would stick to her butt with the bloom like glue, and she would carry the egg around on her butt until it fell off (and sometimes broke).
Just throwing it out there as a possibility!

Have you seen them eat the egg?
How many nest boxes? Can you make more nests to accommodate? I have also heard of trap nesting in some situations (a door closes behind her so she can't leave/other birds cant enter - purpose being to know who laid what but also stops fighting)

 

[iwanaplae2]

I thought I had a someone kicking eggs out of the nest too, I kept finding them near the hen house or on the ground, wondering who the heck would lay like that!

Turned out that my Buff Orp had such a fluffy butt, the egg would stick to her butt with the bloom like glue, and she would carry the egg around on her butt until it fell off (and sometimes broke).
Just throwing it out there as a possibility!

Have you seen them eat the egg?
How many nest boxes? Can you make more nests to accommodate? I have also heard of trap nesting in some situations (a door closes behind her so she can't leave/other birds cant enter - purpose being to know who laid what but also stops fighting)

My only evidence of somebody eating her egg is the dime size piece of shell being all that was left. Plus my EE's beards being wet and sticky.
We are going to try and figure out a way to add more nesting

 

[Farmer Viola]

Ok you are right about the eating then.

As a temporary idea, you could use a plastic milk crate (this kind) to make nests, by placing it on it's side and filling with straw (or whatever type of bedding you use). You could attach them to the wall, if you have the room in your coop. make sure they are lower than the roost. I think you would only need 1 more additional nest for that many birds.

here is some info on Egg Eating: http://www.tillysnest.com/2012/02/egg-eating-prevention-and-treatment.html she recommends to remove the egg eater immediately

 

[Totalcolour]

Really not cool to bully and slander a good breeder all over the internet on an unconfirmed rumor.

Even if it turned out to be true I bet close to 90% of the people on this group have it, if your birds range at all, or if wild birds can get into your coops you probably have MG. It's just something novice and rookie people like to get worked up about.

X2. IF the information is unconfirmed, do not spread it. This goes for anything negative about a breeder. You need to have seen or experienced it yourself, before publicizing the information.

As Matt says, MG is present in most free range flocks, even if only as carriers. Since most of us never have blood work done on our birds until they are sick, we don't know what they may be carrying. And, even when a bird gets sick, many folks don't get it checked even then, but instead self-diagnose and treat without corroboration from a vet.

Too many of us may "see" something in someone else's birds, or acquire a bird that may have sypmtoms, and the "know-it-alls" that we are, may diagnose something, more often than not, incorrectly.

So, lets not damage another person because we have "heard', or "seen" something and yet we have no real evidence.

 

[Suzierd]

X2. IF the information is unconfirmed, do not spread it. This goes for anything negative about a breeder. You need to have seen or experienced it yourself, before publicizing the information.

As Matt says, MG is present in most free range flocks, even if only as carriers. Since most of us never have blood work done on our birds until they are sick, we don't know what they may be carrying. And, even when a bird gets sick, many folks don't get it checked even then, but instead self-diagnose and treat without corroboration from a vet.

Too many of us may "see" something in someone else's birds, or acquire a bird that may have sypmtoms, and the "know-it-alls" that we are, may diagnose something, more often than not, incorrectly.

So, lets not damage another person because we have "heard', or "seen" something and yet we have no real evidence. 

She wouldn't say it if it was a guessing game. This person talks openly about it.

 

[Usagi]

I have a dozen German New Hampshire eggs as of yesterday and getting 3-4 more daily. I am about 20 Min. South of Salem. PM if you are interested.

I'm making a list of breeders with eggs to sell and I'll definitely put you on the list of breeders and available egg types!
Quote: Eeeeeechh, that might be a little far for me. I'm dedicated, but that gas money alone might not make that distance quite...logical.

I'm also going to poke around some feed stores and the other boards on here and see what's brewing around the area.

 

[Suzierd]

 I'm making a list of breeders with eggs to sell and I'll definitely put you on the list of breeders and available egg types!
Eeeeeechh, that might be a little far for me. I'm dedicated, but that gas money alone might not make that distance quite...logical. 
I'm also going to poke around some feed stores and the other boards on here and see what's brewing around the area.

Ok, best of luck.

 

[Zanna]

I may have some Black Copper Marans, Blue Ameraucana (offspring could be blue, black or splash) and Delaware eggs later in the season but definitely not by February. The New Hampshires are great layers and the only ones I have that are laying consistently right now.