Setting this morning due 2/13, anyone wanna hatch with me? Got a PIC!

[BawGock]

Hi Laura,
I wonder if you could get a feed store chick to be his buddy or look on Craigs List, I'm starting to see chicks for sale on our local one.

Here's my little guys. One is walking a little splayed so we are going to brace his legs. We have him on rough terry cloth and he's walking better than he did in the incubator.

Carolyn

 

[ChickenCrazed]

Awe Your babies are adorable!...I use the human disposable bed pads in my brooder...It gives them lots of traction, is absorbent and really easy to clean...I buy them at Sams Club, a big box of over a 100 for $25...

I have thought of getting a buddy but our feed store does not have chicks yet....I will have new chicks the first week in March...Getting some new Brahma pullets..I am also trying to line up some new Silkie eggs for the incubator to try again....

Thanks for sharing the pictures!

~Laura

 

[BawGock]

Thanks Laura,
I'm getting some chicks via USPS the first week of March also. I ordered 51 Cuckoo Marans pullets from Meyers. These are just clean-legged production types but I just love them for our little fresh egg business. Our customers love the darker eggs. It was only a couple bucks more in shipping to ship 51 as opposed to 25 so I order twice as more as I wanted and I'm going to sell the rest locally.
I shackled the slightly splayed chick using the bandaid method and now it's doing great. First time for everything with these silkies

I think they are a little harder to hatch.
I used the breeders recommended humidity which was higher than I'm used to when I hatch my standard birds but it seemed to work...I didn't drown anyone.

I've definitely check out those bed pads: traction and easy cleaning...sounds good!
Hope to see your little guy soon!
Carolyn

 

[ChickenCrazed]

I like the pads because they dont get their toe nails caught in the towel....Sounds like we are going to have fun in March....What humidity level did you use for your Silkies for hatching and lockdown?..

~Laura

 

[BawGock]

The breeder told me to have the humidity set around 60% for days 1 through 18 then boost it to 70% on the 18th day to hatch.
At first I thought to my self that was really high because I usually incubate 45-50% for the first 18 days then 60-65% from 18th day to hatch.
But the air cells dried down perfectly to where they should be and no one drowned. I drowned a chick last year and I was scared of doing it again.
So, I guess it worked out

The chick that zipped and died wasn't overly wet or shrink wrapped. The chick that I had drown in it's shell last year pipped the aircell and was met by a gush of fluid, it never had a chance to pip externally.
Carolyn

 

[ChickenCrazed]

Thanks Carolyn...Maybe I didn't have my humidity set high enough...I had mine set at around 50% for days 1-18 and 60% for lockdown...I too was afraid to get it too too high...

~Laura

 

[BawGock]

Laura,
Don't feel too bad, that's normally about the same I set mine at, too.
I'm curious to know how my standard eggs would do at humidity settings I used for the silkies.
I think this coming week when I set my new batch of silkie eggs, I'm going to put in a few of my own eggs (like 4) that would produce a Marans x EE cross. (olive-eggers)
Because I'm curious to see how the standards would hatch under those conditions.
I'm going to post the question about which humidity works on silkies.
Hopefully it won't start a debate like humidity so often does.

Carolyn

 

[yellowflower]

Thankyou for posting this. Has me rethinking my hatch. I have 23 silkie eggs in my incubator. My hydrometer is coming in the mail so I don't know what the humidity is but I was planning on a dry incubation from what I've read. So I didn't put much water in. Now I'm wondering if it's different when you hatch silkies? Should I not do the dry incubation? It's only day 2 so I have time to change things, I hope

These are my own eggs so they should be good. Fertility was 100% when I was checking the eggs. Did the breeder give you any more info? Wow, this is more complicated than I thought it would be. Thanks for any help.

 

[BawGock]

Hi Yellowflower

The info the breed told me that was different to me was the humidity.
I just started a new thread posting this question to the forum.
I'm a silkie hatching newbie and I want to learn more, too.

Definitely get a hygrometer and calibrate it before putting it in your bator.
In my signature below I have a link to a site that shows how easy it is to do.

My first hatch, I followed the directions that came with the bator. Three days into it I bought and calibrate a hygrometer and found out I was incubating the eggs at almost 80%!
I think knowledge is power and a hygrometer provides a lot of useful info and it helps you duplicate conditions each time you hatch.
Carolyn

 

[yellowflower]

Thankyou Carolyn, I will calibrate it when it gets here. I can't find your thread, can you send me a link? I'm very interested to see what others say.