PICTURES: Day 20, we have BAAABIIES!!

[alicefelldown]

Just put a mixed clutch under our wonderful broody Black Butt (Silver Laced Wyandotte)!!!

Video of BB settling for the first time. (turn your speakers down, it came out really loud for some reason.) We removed some of the hay after filming. She is quite comfortable now.

Eggs in the carton Eggs in the nest

Eggs from onthespot:
1-3: 3 pure Copper Black Marans from dark egg laying lines (F1 cross of Ron Presley/Wade Geane)
4: 1/4 Copper Black Marans , 3/4 Black Marans
5-8: 4 Barred & Bearded Olive Eggers (Copper Breasted CBM roo/EE's: 1/2 Golden Laced Wyandotte, 1/2 Ameraucana)
13: 1 Clean Legged Splash Marans/Black Marans Rooster
14: Became breakfast.

Eggs from Heidi:
9-12: 4 Olive Eggers (Blue Ameraucana roo/Wheaten Penedesenca) a picture of one that Wynette hatched.
14-16: 3 Blue Ameraucana (#14 replaced Patty's Breakfast egg)

Fingers crossed

for a successful hatching. A few hours down, only 20+ days to go!RES:

 

[onthespot]

WOW! Looks like she is real serious about those eggs! What a great video! The big tan eggs, the one on the left is from my clean legged splash marans with the black rooster. It is a full sibling egg to the one that hatched this GINORMOUS chick earlier this week.

The egg next to that one is from a copper black marans that never did lay right colored eggs. She had been in with the CBM roos, but I put her in the sell pen a few days ago, which has splash ameraucana roosters in there, so if it is not a double yolker, which I think it is... if the chick feathers out black, it is pure copper black marans from a poor hen and a good rooster. If it moults out blue or has a pea comb, the father is a splash ameraucana and if it is a girl it will lay olive eggs. I would just make breakfast from that egg if I were you. I think it's a double yolker. The blue ones are from EE's that are half Golden Laced Wyandottes, half Ameraucana, and they are in with my copper breasted CBM roo. Here are some of the girls...

 

[alicefelldown]

That chick is blowing my mind, it's a MONSTER!!!

I'll take out the breakfast egg (#14) and replace with another of Heidi's Blue Ameracaunas. Thanks for the heads-up.

 

[Wynette]

alicefelldown - I'm so glad you got some of Heidi's olive eggers! You'll LOVE them!! My Princess is really, really pretty, and man, does she ever lay! Plus, she's smallish - more like the size of my Penedesenca (clutch mate of Heidi's Penedesenca that your eggs came from - and they don't eat a whole lot, either; so, you get a lot of bang for the buck from them! BEST of luck with your hatch - LOVED your post with the video & pics!

 

[alicefelldown]

We lost an egg today - unlucky #14, one of the extra Blue Ameracaunas that Heidi was kind enough to send. I'm not sure if it cracked or BB ate it, it was the late addition to the clutch. 3 days isn't enough time for it to have gone bad and exploded is it?

There was yolk all over the eggs, washed it off with a damp warm towel, dried the eggs and gave them back to broody. Going to be candling tomorrow.

 

[onthespot]

no, it wasn't rotten. Sometimes if there is any weakness to the shell, a small fracture, something like that, just the normal wear and tear of setting makes it break. Next time try candling the eggs before you put them under her in a really dark room to see if you can see weak spots or cracks. I have learned this the hard way, putting eggs I knew were not perfect in with good eggs, and just hoping like crazy it would make it. It did not. It broke and ruined about four eggs with it... Live and learn.

 

[alicefelldown]

We checked them before they went under the hen, didn't see any cracks or damage to the shells, so I'm chalking #14 up to fate, Final Destination style.

We candled the rest last night, all the light shelled eggs looked fine, could see veins. A bit harder with the darker eggs, but so far so good.

 

[alicefelldown]

Hatching is going well, candled again last night (day 10) and other than the olives being a bit hard to see through, there are visible air pockets and dark lumps that will be adorable baby birds.

Egg # 13 is definitely coming out a winner, on day 7 we could see a big 'ole heart and loads of veins, all swimming around. Last night it was far more bird shaped.

We tried to take some pictures but they didn't come out so well - so here's our snazzy Excel chart!

 

[alicefelldown]

WE'RE HAAAATCHIIINGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First I want to say how amazing our broody is, I've always had the kinds who want to rip your fingers off and dance on the grave of your soul for so much as looking at them... but Black Butt, our Silver Laced Wyandotte has been soooo tolerant - I'm pretty sure this is what she's thinking every time: "cluck cluck, oh can't you see I'm busy here? Oh, you placed me next to the food - well I certainly enjoy food, nom nom nom, et cetera"

Late afternoon on day 20, Patty's MONSTER chick hatched, you wern't kidding that this thing was going to be so adorably huge. We had some pipping on egg #12 (Patty's BCM).

Early morning Day 21, we have #12 hatched, and oh it is soooo pretty, the copper on the head is so impressive. Some time in the last hour one of Patty's Olive girls hatched (#'s 5-8). I couldn't find the numbered shell part and wanted to leave broody alone until it dried off at least.

I'm keeping an eye out for #4 and will take pictures of the whole gang when it's a bit warmer out.

 

[alicefelldown]

We have eight little chickies now!

And here's one of Patty's BCMs: