She said/He said Who's right? Who's wrong? No one!

[RubyNala97]

For sure.  I can pack a good number of eggs, both turkey and chicken, in a box in exchange for a nice assortment, and I know yours are beautiful.  The young girls are mostly not laying yet, just the Columbian one from my first "test the homemade incubator" set.  By spring they will all be laying and in the flock with the two roos, so blue egg gene comes from both sides.  Turkeys will start somewhere between Jan and March depending on which hens I hold over.  Baby won't start until April as she was a late one.

I was at the Drs office today and reading a local magazine. There was a big article about a local turkey farm that I never heard about. But they hatch them, raise them and process them there for sale by thanksgiving. I was thinking of getting a fresh turkey. How different is it from the turkey I would buy at the grocery store?

 

[Ravynscroft]

Yes, they look a little on the small side. And the space between the chick and the air cell is a little large. But my eggs from my last hatch had smaller air cells then I normally have. So I didn't lockdown until only a few hours before the first pip. It was about 6 hours before day 20 started and it was a great hatch. Go dry for as long as you can.
No, that sounds just about right for this day and age!
Good luck on the hatch! So excited for you!
That's awesome!! I really love rabbits!! I have a huge spot in my heart for them.
Oh boy...that group is nuts! That's what rubbed me the wrong way. I thought it was a normal hatching group until everything I said ((because I didn't read the stickys) was wrong and it was pointed out that you have to do it their way or else your wrong! That's just crazy. As long as you do what's best for the hatch and have good hatches, then that's valid. I hope he messes with them good!
Very interesting! I'm learning more and more that each batch of eggs is so different and that you can't just incubate the same way, every time. You have to work with the eggs. Sounds like you're doing a great job!!
How soon after they started laying have you incubated them?

He did, trust me... that lady was flat out nutso... :/

I hatched first eggs, no prob... but those were my Am's, Araucanas and Marans... they started with decent sized eggs though, not tiny pullet eggs... if it is very undersized for what size the egg is supposed to be, then I don't do those... just depends... but now I don't do pullet eggs at all anymore, no need to...

 

[rossfam06]

Anybody want to try talking me out of hatching pullet eggs?

Girls and boys about 6.5 months.  Been laying for a week, then I started collecting.  Its not ideal, but winter is coming.

Like to hear from anyone with experience in a situation like this.

Mine have been laying for about 3 weeks now and I am trying a out 6 eggs....so we shall see!!!

Sorry, I say do it!

Yep....

Colors become a mish mash after 1st gen, so that's not a good indicator... go by combs and pinkness...
You really came to fhe wrong place to be talked outta hatching ANY eggs...

I've hatched many pullet eggs quite successfully, and in the dead of winter... so hatch away!!

Hahahahah!!! I love how we are all about hatching anything...even in the winter time. Although I do not have to worry about that as much. Lol!!!

 

[ronott1]

I have no clue how big my first set was, didn't have a scale then... but kept a nice pullet out of them and she is bigger than her mom and lays really well and larger eggs too, lol...

The chicks that hatch will be normal--The really small eggs can have a harder time hatching so hatch rate can be lower.

It is fine to hatch them any time, just adjust expectations for the hatch.

 

[WalnutHill]

I was at the Drs office today and reading a local magazine. There was a big article about a local turkey farm that I never heard about. But they hatch them, raise them and process them there for sale by thanksgiving. I was thinking of getting a fresh turkey. How different is it from the turkey I would buy at the grocery store?

Did they say what variety, or show pics? Broad breasted white or bronze will be much like store bought but maybe a little more dark meat from walking around outside. Heritage taste wonderful, not gamey, just like concentrated turkey flavor but they have a lot less white meat.

 

[RubyNala97]

He did, trust me... that lady was flat out nutso... :/

I hatched first eggs, no prob... but those were my Am's, Araucanas and Marans... they started with decent sized eggs though, not tiny pullet eggs... if it is very undersized for what size the egg is supposed to be, then I don't do those... just depends... but now I don't do pullet eggs at all anymore, no need to...

I should be having a pullet or two laying soon, so I was just wondering.....

Did they say what variety, or show pics? Broad breasted white or bronze will be much like store bought but maybe a little more dark meat from walking around outside. Heritage taste wonderful, not gamey, just like concentrated turkey flavor but they have a lot less white meat.

Yes, and I brought the article home. Tons of pics, from their massive brooders with hundreds of poults to a little old Italian lady, holding a turkey that's half her size! Lol. It says for turkey orders, choose from white, Bourbon Red, heritage or wild turkey. So you would go with heritage?

 

[lazy gardener]

Any of you ever bred Red Sex-links before?
I did, for the experience, and because I wanted some replacements, having no idea what I'd get.
What I got was 2 that are somewhere between a white & a light yellow, & 1 that's a good bit darker, like a light tan.
With the roosters being white as adults, I'm wondering if I've got 2 wanna-be roosters & 1 hen-to-be.
At 3 weeks, I believe the comb of the darker one is a tad more developed than the other two.

Have you gone to the sex-link information thread? There's some real nice charts in the first post. I love that thread! I breed sex links from red EE roo x Dominique and SLW. Beautiful hens it does produce!!

Anybody want to try talking me out of hatching pullet eggs?

Girls and boys about 6.5 months. Been laying for a week, then I started collecting. Its not ideal, but winter is coming.

Like to hear from anyone with experience in a situation like this.

I'd rather hatch a pullet egg than an egg from an older hen at the end of her laying life. Never had luck with the latter!

I wanna be a fly on the wall when you get ahold of the Listerine crew.
Hmmmm, sounds like we all have a little crazy person inside us

New thread? We said they said???

Which one, the Columbian pattern clean footed, or the fuzzy footed fluffy one? The fluffy feather footed ones, yes, that is the second most common color that my flock throws, after the tricolors.


Only one of these from 30+ chicks

Pullet and cockerel from the LB/EE x Cochin/EE




Pullet and probable cockerel from Salmon Faverolle/EE x Cochin/EE - many like these with various markings but all tricolor laced








And two pullets and two cockerels from Salmon Faverolle/EE x Buff Ameraucana cockerel.

None of the boys are in the breeding program, just keeping the dads.


I was really tempted to keep this guy, but he went for dinner. He was by far closest to my "no breed SOP" of anything I've hatched. And he was a really good boy. I liked his black toenails.

Walnut, your birds are absolutely gorgeous! I'm LOVING that Columbian pattern. Those just might produce some nice sex links, except for the underlying crossing that made them!

Now I know why I named my lil troublemaker pullet Raven...maybe I should change the spelling of her name.

Just joking I'm the same way....lol

If they are from that FB page they are crazy. I had to leave the group before I got myself in trouble....lol

Would you like the name of the group?

I wouldn't incubate that early in the beginning of laying. My best hatch was my pullet hatch, but they were all 4-6 weeks into laying. I was still a bit concerned with the size of a few, even then, but they all hatched great all healthy and have grown into some nice looking mixes.

You know "nnormal" people? Can I meet them?

I have one little pullet who likes to spar with her 2 hatch mate cockrels at the same time. The 3 of them were going at it for a good half hour yesterday. If I wasn't convinced that she was a BSL, I'd be worried about her gender issues. Hmmmm.... perhaps she does have gender issues!!! She's a feisty one. Perhaps I SHOULD name her Raven. Normal??? I think I saw that. It's a setting on my washer.

I didn't do the cross. I ordered 6 pullets & a rooster from Southern States last Spring. I ordered RIR's, but they gave me sex-links, instead. I knew something was up when the rooster was white & all the pullets had at least some white, but didn't know for sure til I did some homework.

After I figured out the score, I wasn't shy about telling Southern States what I thought of what they'd done, but I probably came out the winner in the end; from what I understand now, the sex-links are better layers than the pure RIR's, & RIR hens have pretty much had the broodiness bred out of them...one of my girls was broody for 2+ months this summer. I'd a whole lot rather let a broody hen incubate a clutch & raise the chicks than incubate & have to house the young'ins separately til they're big enough to hold their own in the grown-up run (just finished the brooder coop today).

I don't even know whether all my birds were hatch mates or not, but my breeding experience with bird dogs tells me that breeding brother to sister is USUALLY not a real good idea. For that reason, I'm on the lookout for a pure RIR rooster to get some new blood going.

Ah, the light bulb goes off when I read your post here. If you breed the second generation of sex links, you will not get sex links. It has to be breeding from first generation, generally with a dark male over a light female, with specific gene patterns that affect feathering. Read that sex linked information thread.

Sounds great! Will put you down then, thanks!

Whichever ones you want, I can send a nice asst...

I have no clue how big my first set was, didn't have a scale then... but kept a nice pullet out of them and she is bigger than her mom and lays really well and larger eggs too, lol...

And so she blows yet an other hole in the "they said" endless drivvel litany of truths.

 

[rossfam06]

Morning morning!!!!! It's a cool comfy 65° outside. Drinking coffee and enjoying the sunrise is beautiful.

 

[kwhites634]

Morning morning!!!!! It's a cool comfy 65° outside. Drinking coffee and enjoying the sunrise is beautiful.

Sure beats 45

 

[rossfam06]

Sure beats 45

Yeah....that is one thing I don't miss. Lol!!! Living in Alaska is beautiful but the cold weather just lasts too long.