Post Your First Egg of 2016!!!

[mandyok]

Lol I can just imagine. I am glad it worked. I may have to implement that this spring. I want to let them set their own eggs.

 

[Garden Peas]

Lol I can just imagine. I am glad it worked. I may have to implement that this spring. I want to let them set their own eggs.

Well, between the ceramic eggs and the IR webcam...

I had to grab the eggs right after the hens laid them, but the hens would freeze up and not lay when I came scooting out to check, sometimes in the middle of laying. So I made gazillions of fruitless trips, and then would wander out to find someone finishing off a fresh treat.

Once I installed the webcam, I could see what was going on, the hens ignored it (even the little motor noise from panning around the inside of the peashed), and I knew right when to go out to rescue the eggs. Life was better for all of us.

Except those of us who enjoyed the egg treats, I guess.

 

[Garden Peas]

But what did happen eventually is that once there were enough ceramic eggs, one of the hens eventually started moving them around to her own spot and adding her own eggs (and a few eggs she swiped from the young hen), and started sitting on the whole lot.

I went out and swiped a couple the other day -- they turned out to be fertile and are in the incubator. She still has the rest -- we'll see what happens in the next few weeks.

I predict the ceramic ones will not hatch

If she manages to hatch any of the fertile ones, I'll use that as a good excuse to waltz away with the ceramics so she doesn't keep hanging out on the nest. Otherwise, at some point I'll have to collect all the eggs, duds & erzatz, so she doesn't wear herself out.

 

[archerychick]

First egg 3/23/2016. Comparing it to store bought one.

 

[Garden Peas]

Found an alarmingly thin-shelled egg out in the pen this afternoon. Had to come from one of the 2 year-old hens, wasn't there yesterday afternoon. There were two new eggs on the ground, as well as one in the little house that was there yesterday. Only one of the little hens has been laying. So either the little hen who has been laying put down 2 last night, one totally normal and one very under-shelled, or the extremely thin-shelled egg is the first egg from the little purple spalding hen. I have no way to tell which -- the spalding hen hasn't shown any indication that she's even thinking of laying, but the other two eggs were totally normal. So my guess is maybe this is the first try by the little spalding hen. Either way, I'm definitely going to send more calcium out in the feed, as this one is scary thin. Sure glad it didn't break inside her. Wow.



I cut it open with a pair of scissors (there was no way to "crack" it -- not enough shell. I don't think it was fertilized, but my eyes aren't good enough to tell. When I look at it, I can't tell if that's a hazy ring around it or not. @Birdrain92 , can you tell?



So right now, I'm chalking it up to first egg -- but I sure will be watching what's up out there the next few days!

 

[Birdrain92]

Found an alarmingly thin-shelled egg out in the pen this afternoon. Had to come from one of the 2 year-old hens, wasn't there yesterday afternoon. There were two new eggs on the ground, as well as one in the little house that was there yesterday. Only one of the little hens has been laying. So either the little hen who has been laying put down 2 last night, one totally normal and one very under-shelled, or the extremely thin-shelled egg is the first egg from the little purple spalding hen. I have no way to tell which -- the spalding hen hasn't shown any indication that she's even thinking of laying, but the other two eggs were totally normal. So my guess is maybe this is the first try by the little spalding hen. Either way, I'm definitely going to send more calcium out in the feed, as this one is scary thin. Sure glad it didn't break inside her. Wow.



I cut it open with a pair of scissors (there was no way to "crack" it -- not enough shell. I don't think it was fertilized, but my eyes aren't good enough to tell. When I look at it, I can't tell if that's a hazy ring around it or not. @Birdrain92 , can you tell?



So right now, I'm chalking it up to first egg -- but I sure will be watching what's up out there the next few days!

I see a hazy ring around it as well but I think it was infertile. With most Blastoderm they look sort of like a target.

 

[BackyardMarana]

When will my peahen lay she has hatched out chicks in the past is what the previous owner told me ..? Can you guys help me .thanks

 

[barkerg]

When will my peahen lay she has hatched out chicks in the past is what the previous owner told me ..? Can you guys help me .thanks

Could you post pics of her, this could help identify any health issues.

Gerald Barker

 

[Birdrain92]

When will my peahen lay she has hatched out chicks in the past is what the previous owner told me ..? Can you guys help me .thanks

My peahens haven't started laying yet either. Though I've seen my White peacock breeding most of his hens so I hope to be having eggs soon. Remember that peafowl are a wild species, they are not domesticated for egg laying purposes like chickens, ducks, and geese. She'll lay when she's ready.

 

[BackyardMarana]

That's her