Serious about Chanteclers...

[aart]

I have the eggs separated by "Delicates Laundry Bags" (net) so I can keep track of which is from what family. The two chicks seem to be taking a long time to dry and become fluffy. I was told I should wait until they dry before moving them to the brooder (@100F),

I want to get them out of the bag and moving, drinking, eating soonest. Wait until they dry or...?

I'd let them dry fully and rest. Keep an eye on them so they don't get tangled in bags.
Sometimes they are dry but don't look it because of dried hatching gunk giving them the brylcream look.
They may not eat and drink immediately, but good to show them how and where.
Will you be banding them?

 

[Ted Brown]

...Will you be banding them?

Thanks, they do seem to have gunk on them (like greasy hair).

Yes to banding; I have eggs from three families and one family has eggs from pullets and from hens. The breeder bands his families by colour I will follow his coding.

 

[slbenter]

Congratulations. Sounds like you have quite a few more to go before you can rest. Best to you.

 

[TheMother]

Yesterday I made an eight hour round trip to pickup fertilized White Chantecler eggs from a breeder near Granby, Quebec. Most educational, fascinating and successful.

The gentleman who I visited is SERIOUS about both Chanteclers and heritage turkeys; he has more turkeys than Chanteclers but his interest and focus seem likely to be equal. I spoke with him for about an hour about his Chanteclers. He has seven families from which he selects to produce more birds, two of which he discounts and does not sell from as he does not consider them to be to "Standard" (both the official standard as documented by the Trappist monk Brother Wilfrid Chatelain originator of the breed) and his own augmentation of that Standard); he keeps these two families bacause he can reliably trace them back many decades as from authentic Quebec flocks. I believe he is one of about 10 breeders of Chanteclers in Quebec who are responsible for resurrection and nurturing the breed in the eighties and continuing until today.

He breeds from early Spring through September and sells only eggs or layer pullets. He sells breed Standard pullets only although he has about 12 folks who take his non Standard birds at discounted prices for a variety of uses. His coop setup is harshly working class farm level with seven 4' by 6' cages that house one rooster and up to five females plus a closed brooder space where he keeps his chicks and extra working roosters. All enclosures, including those for turkeys, are open air either on one side or fully open and outside in the case of some of his turkeys. During breeding season the Chanteclers are kept in the cages, once the breeding season is over they are segregated by sex and allowed to range in fenced areas in the field next to his barn.

He gave me a very good instruction of the attributes that he uses to judge chicks as "up to standard" and has promised to send along an English translation of Brother Wilfred's 23 page book written in 1923 (I believe) of his Standard for the breed. I have yet to but will write down his comments and will take advantage of his invite to consult in the future as I progress down my own experience with Chanteclers. We also discussed more widely about the breed and chickens in general, clearly his thirty years of experience showed.

He disputes the assertion in BYC's description of Chanteclers as good brood/mother hens BUT this may be because of his preference for breed Standard layers. Certainly I would listen to his knowledge rather than the more general contained on BYC.

I also had confirmed that chickens do not conform to a given breed by virtue of lineage rather if they "look like a duck" and conform to some or all of the APA Standard then they can reliably be considered to be whatever breed they seem. He stated this as due to the fact that reliable tracing over many many years and hatching is impossible. Perhaps a subtle difference but significant to my general understanding of chicken husbandry.

Altogether a most educational and profitable day for me; I came away with 62 fertilized and documented eggs with his handwritten notes regarding parentage of each. More than a casual day at the office.

A most excellent read, I do say!

 

[Ted Brown]

 

[Ted Brown]

10 hatched so far...

 

[aart]

You're gonna need a bigger brooder!(you do have one right?)
That thing looks like a crock pot..or maybe an air fryer.

 

[Ted Brown]

You're gonna need a bigger brooder!(you do have one right?)
That thing looks like a crock pot..or maybe an air fryer.

I do have another brooder, this one is borrowed and is useful for the first couple of days. I will get a second larger one sorted this weekend.

 

[Ted Brown]

16 chicks so far. This afternoon the first from the green family, I was worried but not so much now.

They are definitely cute little boogers!

@aart I used a top from a liter yogurt container and put food in it, was afraid they would take their time with the feeder. I have had to refill the top twice so seems they are eating it. Also having to add water a couple of times a day.

 

[Ted Brown]

I now have 18 chicks with one more possible, piping started but not much activity overnight will tell.

I have lost 3 chicks that hatched: two did not make it out of the incubator lasted perhaps 6 hours; the third made it into the brooder, dried completely and got fuzzy yellow them passed maybe 24-36 hours in.

I have the 18th still in the incubator, less than 24 hours old. It has a bloody attachment on the abdomen about 1 inch long perhaps 1/2 across. I am reluctant to move it to the brooder in case the other chicks get interested and damage it?? Any advice (@aart)?