Pipd's Peeps!

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Thanks, Ron. I'm keeping an eye on that detached air cell egg.



As for Echo, she has passed on now. She would have been 3 in about two weeks. So young for my flock.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Just finished candling the silkied Cochin eggs for day 7.

7 clears, including the detached air cell. I left them in just in case, but they really aren't doing anything.

2 more had signs of some life, but looked like they quit really early on. Sort of an orange-ish tone that was different from the clears in the one, and the other had just a tiny bit of faint, patchy veining. Again, I left them in just in case. What can I say, I'm an optimist.

The remaining 6 seem to be alive. 3 for sure, as they were bobbing around in there! The other 3 look just like the 3 dancers, but I didn't see movement while I was candling. Still, they didn't look dead!



I have 4 eggs collected so far for the EHAL. 2 Easter-egger eggs from Fifi, who may or may not have been bred as I've never seen the boys show interest in her... The other two are from Abie-baby Munchkin, who is one of Winty's favorites so they should for sure be fertilized. Wish I had realized the OEGBs weren't going to cooperate or I would have better prepared with some purebred eggs instead. But oh, well, they should be interesting mixes either way.

None of the OEGB girls have laid an egg since I paired them up to collect eggs. Brats! Oh, well, with all the quarantining and social distancing going on, I suppose I have plenty of time to hatch from them.




Editing because I forgot to mention that Crashie laid her first egg of the season today! It was soft shelled, of course, so she's not eating the oyster shell again. Gonna have to have some strong words with her.

Oh, and I also forgot to mention that we went back to the feed store on... Tuesday, I think? And they didn't have the usual All Flock that I buy, but had a generic equivalent, so we stocked up. The girls are eating the layer / gamebird mix a bit better now, thankfully, so at least they aren't hungry. I'm planning to mix one of the all flock bags in tomorrow, to gradually move them back to it.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Day 14 on the silkied Cochin eggs. All the blanks are still blanks and all the quitters are still quitters, so I've officially pulled them.

Sadly, one of the live ones did quit. I've left it in just in case. No smell, so I figured it was okay for now.

The other 5 that were alive last time are still dancing around in there, though quickly running out of space for all that dancing. ❤ One more week!


I candled my EHAL eggs too, and, well... I only saw life in one of them. To be fair, those blue-green eggs from Fifi are really hard to see into, so I could just be unable to see if anything's going on in them. But the rest I'm pretty sure are clear. The comparison between the developing egg and the others is pretty stark. Oh, well. Guess it's just too early in the year for hatching from my birds.

 

[drumstick diva]

So sorry about Echo, she was beautiful and much too young to have been taken from you.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

So sorry about Echo, she was beautiful and much too young to have been taken from you.

Thanks, DD. That was a rough one for me. I hate to see them go so young, especially when I've got 8, 9, even 10 year olds out there, still kickin'.

 

[ronott1]

Thanks, DD. That was a rough one for me. I hate to see them go so young, especially when I've got 8, 9, even 10 year olds out there, still kickin'.

That seems to be the way with chickens!

Quail do not live as long and start passing at a year old

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I've thought seriously about quail a few times recently, but the lack of longevity along with some things I've heard about their temperaments have me put off the idea. That and I wouldn't want to keep them in a battery-style cage like is typical for them, and I've heard mixed reports about keeping them in an aviary. I love my chickens, but haven't been a huge fan of any other poultry species I've tried, so maybe it's for the best.

 

[ronott1]

I've thought seriously about quail a few times recently, but the lack of longevity along with some things I've heard about their temperaments have me put off the idea. That and I wouldn't want to keep them in a battery-style cage like is typical for them, and I've heard mixed reports about keeping them in an aviary. I love my chickens, but haven't been a huge fan of any other poultry species I've tried, so maybe it's for the best.

The coturnix I have are very tame. They are easy to get back into their pen and will run up to me to peck my fingers looking for treats

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Hmm, interesting, that's not at all what I'd seen when reading about them. Maybe I will look into it further. Everything I was reading said if they were let out of a cage or aviary that you'd never see them again.

Have you ever had any get attacked or injured by their own flock? I've heard that it happens sometimes with Coturnix and that worries me. What about integrating new birds into an established group, like if you hatch more? Is that even possible?

 

[ronott1]

Hmm, interesting, that's not at all what I'd seen when reading about them. Maybe I will look into it further. Everything I was reading said if they were let out of a cage or aviary that you'd never see them again.

Have you ever had any get attacked or injured by their own flock? I've heard that it happens sometimes with Coturnix and that worries me. What about integrating new birds into an established group, like if you hatch more? Is that even possible?

I have not integrated but was told that they integrate quite well. They do not attack each other but they can fly up and break their necks if the top is not the right height.

Coturnix are domestic quail while button and etc are wild