- Apr 30, 2012
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- 1
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I hope I am posting in the correct section for this question as it has to do with incubating eggs but also a bit of genetics. I have 5 Silkies (8.5 mos old):
1 cockerel - splash
1 pullet - black
1 pullet - buff
1 pullet - blue/partridge mixed color
1 pullet - blue/partridge mixed color
They "just" started laying- yay!!! And 3 days ago, my boyfriend bought me an incubator (little giant) with an egg turner. I have started to store eggs in my basement in a carton with the small end down and I am rotating them by lifting one end 3x/day and they are at about 50-55 degrees. Here are my questions (this is my first time incubating/hatching ever and I am new to chickens as of June 2012):
My Silkie eggs have quite a range of shades of tan. Do I assume that each Silkie pullet lays only one color? For example, is my Buff only laying the darkest tan eggs, and my black only laying the lightest tan eggs? Or does the color change every day within each pullet? I'm just trying to figure out who's eggs are whose, or if I even can!
Secondly, where do I find information on what colors I should expect or is this not possible? My only cockerel is a splash. So if my buff lays a fertilized egg and it hatches, should I expect a buff, splash, a mix of the two, or is there no way to tell?? Likewise with my black pullet and the 2 blue/partridge mixed colors.
Thanks so much in advance! I'm SO excited to have little chicks! I only started "storing" 3 days ago when I got my incubator so I have a bit to go until I put them all in the incubator. I'm thinking another 7 days or so. Hopefully I'll have a dozen or more by then!
1 cockerel - splash
1 pullet - black
1 pullet - buff
1 pullet - blue/partridge mixed color
1 pullet - blue/partridge mixed color
They "just" started laying- yay!!! And 3 days ago, my boyfriend bought me an incubator (little giant) with an egg turner. I have started to store eggs in my basement in a carton with the small end down and I am rotating them by lifting one end 3x/day and they are at about 50-55 degrees. Here are my questions (this is my first time incubating/hatching ever and I am new to chickens as of June 2012):
My Silkie eggs have quite a range of shades of tan. Do I assume that each Silkie pullet lays only one color? For example, is my Buff only laying the darkest tan eggs, and my black only laying the lightest tan eggs? Or does the color change every day within each pullet? I'm just trying to figure out who's eggs are whose, or if I even can!
Secondly, where do I find information on what colors I should expect or is this not possible? My only cockerel is a splash. So if my buff lays a fertilized egg and it hatches, should I expect a buff, splash, a mix of the two, or is there no way to tell?? Likewise with my black pullet and the 2 blue/partridge mixed colors.
Thanks so much in advance! I'm SO excited to have little chicks! I only started "storing" 3 days ago when I got my incubator so I have a bit to go until I put them all in the incubator. I'm thinking another 7 days or so. Hopefully I'll have a dozen or more by then!
