Set 3/9/12 HATCH ALONG!

[Domestic_goddess]

Loss is difficult...I'm sorry!

I have a bad report. We had a busy day yesterday and I thought things would be good with our hen and her 3 babies and remaining eggs. This morning we went outside and her first one was happily following her along but the other 2 were dead on the ground outside the hen house/in the outdoor coop area. Her nesting box was cold so it looks like she abandoned them. I opened the cold eggs up and 2 were beautiful and just about ready to pip- I think one had started!

I had given her plenty of food/water (not enough to drown the babies) but I'm wondering if the other chickens got to it (even though they have plenty outside!) and she was too hungry/thirsty to wait. My instincts told me to bring the babies inside to brood. For some reason I knew they wouldn't do well "naturally" with this push-over hen and pushy group of hens and rooster. I know this is part of the cycle, but I do feel at fault for not being home to watch all of this. I thought the "natural" way would give me the ability to worry less, but from now on I'm going to incubate myself so I can have total control over it all.

Congrats to all the newly hatched chicks here, and I'm so sorry for those of you who had problems....I know how you feel!

 

[audrey02026]

I'm sorry for your loss. Thank you for posting about it so we can all learn from it. I have a broody that just hatched a chick this weekend and she still has eggs in her nest not sure if they will hatch or not. I was contemplating on weather I should let the momma and her
Chick(s) out for some free range time and weather she would be able to protect them and make sure they went back in at nightfall. I have them in there own coop right now with no interference from any other hens. I think i'll wait a bit before I let them out of the coop and run.

 

[Hazelrah]

So sorry for you both.



Sorry for your loss, all my eggs where bad from the get go on this thread/hatch date.... i know how you feel.

I have a bad report. We had a busy day yesterday and I thought things would be good with our hen and her 3 babies and remaining eggs. This morning we went outside and her first one was happily following her along but the other 2 were dead on the ground outside the hen house/in the outdoor coop area. Her nesting box was cold so it looks like she abandoned them. I opened the cold eggs up and 2 were beautiful and just about ready to pip- I think one had started!

I had given her plenty of food/water (not enough to drown the babies) but I'm wondering if the other chickens got to it (even though they have plenty outside!) and she was too hungry/thirsty to wait. My instincts told me to bring the babies inside to brood. For some reason I knew they wouldn't do well "naturally" with this push-over hen and pushy group of hens and rooster. I know this is part of the cycle, but I do feel at fault for not being home to watch all of this. I thought the "natural" way would give me the ability to worry less, but from now on I'm going to incubate myself so I can have total control over it all.

Congrats to all the newly hatched chicks here, and I'm so sorry for those of you who had problems....I know how you feel!

 

[bobbi-j]

well, im just waiting for my 24 hour mark of my eggs to settle, then im going to put them in. finally got the bator all temp and humitity right... im just really worried idk how to keep the humitity right while the batch is going....

you should post some pics of your shed/coop project!

I finally got some pics of my project posted on the Coop & Run Design section.

 

[Little brownhen]

Do you sell cuckoo maran chicks and eggs