Serama Hatch-A-Long!!

[Bama1]

I listed on my local county poultry facebook page these three for $20 each, 4 month old mottled cockerel, 2 year old white rooster and 2 year old white hen. I will let y'all know if/when they sell in my local area. I've never seen any listed locally so they probably won't sell.....

 

[DRGLENNON]

I have a Brinsea Mini Adv. on the way and was wondering if the 12 egg turner will hold Serama eggs? I have not seen Serama eggs except pics. on line but I'm picking up a pair from a breeder next week. I also have a pair of 3 week olds.

 

[Skink]

I have a Brinsea Mini Adv. on the way and was wondering if the 12 egg turner will hold Serama eggs? I have not seen Serama eggs except pics. on line but I'm picking up a pair from a breeder next week. I also have a pair of 3 week olds.

It will hold 12 Serama eggs, yep! They fit perfectly. You'll want to use turner angle 4 for them, like quail eggs.

 

[DRGLENNON]

It will hold 12 Serama eggs, yep! They fit perfectly. You'll want to use turner angle 4 for them, like quail eggs.

Great, I'm so excited! I had just about given up on getting birds from this breeder after 2yrs but he agreed to sell me a pair next week. He's getting ready for a show this weekend so I have to wait til next week.

Thanks for the helpful info.

 

[mightymax]

As long as we're in the question asking mode, I thought now might be a good time to ask about how everyone houses their serama chickens (as adults). My little ones are almost 4 months old now and I'd like to put them in their 'permanent' structure, but I'm at a loss as to what that might be. I've heard of people who keep them in bird cages, some only about the size used to put canaries in, some larger. And I've seen people who keep them in something resembling an outdoor rabbit hutch that's made of wood. Or even a completely wire one with no nesting boxes. I've looked online and elsewhere for something specific to seramas, but have had no luck. I understand that although popular, seramas aren't considered to be your 'go to' chicken of
choice (though they should be...lol !!!), but this is getting frustrating. So I was hoping that all you serama owners who already have an existing and manageable coop/house/mansion for their serama chicks could give me some pointers or at least point me in the right direction. Oh, and I was curious as to how many of you either already are, or are planning to, house their chickens totally indoors.

Thanks in advance for any and all help or suggestions !!!

-kim-

***P.S. Pictures are always a plus !!!***

 

[Skink]

I'm keeping them indoors and would be super happy to share!

This cage has good enough size for a pair or trio (depending on your seramas' sizes) and that exact 3 pack is what I purchased. I use Quikrete All Purpose Sand as a bedding, mixed with a little bit of powder form Sweet PDZ and scooped with this right here. For waterers, I use pop bottle founts in combination with 16 ounce Pepsi bottles (strong plastic but slim, easy to get the spring around.) Use whatever feeder you would like, I suggest making a small PVC feeder or mounting a chick trough style feeder, something that gets it up off the ground. I don't provide grit because the natural sand does, but plan to put in free choice calcium in a little standard bird bucket feeder and if one wanted to provide grit it would be a good choice.

None of my caged birds are laying age yet, so I haven't tackled the issue of nesting boxes. I also take them outdoors, so I don't use UVB lighting. However, if your birds are not going to be in sunlight regularly, please consider a strip UVB bulb in each cage. Change it every 6 months to maintain effectiveness. Sunlight is very important for them! If you can build them a little A pen outside to put them in for a half hour at a time at least, it will benefit them greatly.

If you do not wish to stack the cages, you can give them even more room with the XL of this cage right here which a friend of mine uses for their two house serama. I need to stack my cages or else I'd use it instead! I haven't used it myself, but he loves it.

 

[Bama1]

The 16 eggs in the incubator are doing great so far. AND Pecky Becky went broody two days ago! She was flat out on her egg she laid that day. I had 5 other eggs from the last three days that I gave her when I moved her to her own pen. She will be my first ever chicken to be broody, none of my large breeds ever went broody. I'm so excited! I sold 7 chicks from my first hatch and have 11 left. I have three out of those that I like their look and personality already. How is everyone else doing?

 

[darkbluespace]

The 16 eggs in the incubator are doing great so far. AND Pecky Becky went broody two days ago! She was flat out on her egg she laid that day. I had 5 other eggs from the last three days that I gave her when I moved her to her own pen. She will be my first ever chicken to be broody, none of my large breeds ever went broody. I'm so excited! I sold 7 chicks from my first hatch and have 11 left. I have three out of those that I like their look and personality already. How is everyone else doing?

That all sounds great!! It is really fun to have a broody and watch her do her thing!

I have been having some small Serama hatches but still trying to recreate the original conditions in my original incubator that had the best results. There are just so many details that it is hard for me to keep track. I think I finally got most of them under control... once I got the humidity figured out then I realized it was quite a bit hotter in there than I realized and I killed a bunch : ( This whole process is taking longer than I thought but I think eventually... eventually... it will come together.

I am hatching quite a few ducklings and that has been fun. I have 10 hatching right now and it looks like all of them are good! I just had one wrong end pipper. Still waiting for my quail and Turkeys to lay... very excited! I also want to try to hatch a few geese this Spring. Just to try, I am not planning to keep any.

 

[darkbluespace]

Here are some of my babies...

 

[Skink]

Pepper's got it right this time! 5 eggs are developing under her. She had a quitter and 4 clears, but considering the eggs spent a whole week in the mail, she is doing a fantastic job. 2 of 4 are developing in the incubator as a dry hatch right now since the ambient humidity is SO DANG HIGH lately, the other 2 are clears.. sadly, those two clears are the lemon blue and naked neck millie fleur eggs!

The lavender is developing at least, though it is a lav roo over black hens, so it's only 50/50 if it'll be a lil lav.

I'll try again for naked neck cochins after my vacation at the end of May. I really, really shouldn't hatch any more after this until then anyway, since I've got a box of layer chicks coming in mid-April and will want everyone old enough to go in to the coop or be left alone for 4 days by the time we leave. I can't believe how many chickens I have now, but it was the same way with snakes for me so I shouldn't be surprised. One day I've only got the one little one, then suddenly "why is my freezer full of dead rats and what happened to the electricity bill being cheap?!"

I've got what seems to be 3 serama pullets for sure now, Ping, Pearl and Garnet. Still waiting on the most recent hatch to show their colors. I think I've already got one roo figured out, though. Ping is 11 weeks, not long now before she might start to lay!