Simulated Natural Nest Incubation~Experiment #1 So it begins....

[Tomtommom]

The secret's in the sauce!!! Loved that movie!

I too think that the excess dogs in this country could be utilized for food, if for nothing more than pet food. In other countries they are a delicacy and I'm betting there are no overloaded, no kill shelters in those areas.

If I were starving I'd have no compunction at all about butchering out Jake for a meal. Meat is meat when one is starving.

Fun fact, we actually live in the county they filmed scenes of that movie. The tree where she gets that jar of honey is a stone throw away from my house.. The whistlestop cafe is nearby too.

Really though. It sucks animals get killed just because they're unwanted.. seems the least they could do is use the meat.. makes it seem less senseless. Ofcourse, considering the icky state of most commercial pet foods full of yummy cancer causing agents you'd be inviting serious health issues, but, that's another can of worms.

Waste not want not.

 

[Beekissed]

Had a mild temp spike in the nest last night and couldn't seem to keep it below 102 without adjusting the thermostat on the heating pad down to #2. I'm assuming this is because of all the embryo growth going on in these eggs. I only hope that the next temp spike around Day 13 can be handled by turning it down one....because that's all the lower I have on this control. After that, if it needs to be lowered, I'll have to devise a pad between the heat source and the eggs that will keep the temps at the right level.

Turning it down a notch seems to have handled the problem for now and I'll be watching for that Day 13 spike as well. Tonight I'll be candling and marking air cells for my Day 7 air cell progression tracking. I'll also be removing clear eggs.

Tomorrow will be packing the nest for an overnight trip and will be sure to keep the eggs from being jostled on the trip and will also keep them warm with the use of a hot water bottle for the 4 hr ride. There is no way I'm leaving that nest behind this time at the mercy of possible power outages. We have been having the high winds of spring here lately and those just bring down trees over the lines so the power can go out at any time here.

 

[enola]

:yiipchick


So many babies brewing!


My top hen is a hatchery BA. She's a good girl.. knows her place.. but DANG are they noisy She announces every egg laid.


It was her hatch mate that was a troublesome little thing even at 12 weeks.. Heck, he had a pink comb by 1 1/2 weeks old. Hormone explosion. She took over when he was gone, grew herself some spurs and everything.. I still catch her trying to crow every once in a while. I'm sure her fellah would have mellowed out in time, but I simply had no use for him.. You either find a home or eat 'em, all other options are silly (side of the road ditching, bringing them to the pound, just killing them etc.).


I'm probably entirely wrong on this subject, but there have been times I wish it was acceptable to eat dogs.... Not sure if I could, but I have wished it.... when I was out there trying to keep our two dogs from killing eachother and just thinking how much easier life would be with just one. We all have our thoughts. Lessons learned from Fried green tomatoes: Cook your problem.

Mike shocked me with his solution to your problem....... Tell her to cook one dog and feed it to the other one........

I never thought I would hear him say anything like that!

 

[LindaB220]

That's exciting news, Pete! Are these chicks from a breeding project you are doing to develop a line or are they just for selling? I think that is what I would like to do if I could dedicate time to one breed...I'd like to keep developing the traits I want but also sell breeding pairs to others so that they could have or start a better flock than what we have access to here in this state.

Now that I have a way to incubate that suits my style, I'm going to try getting good eggs from a great breeder so I can start something great here in the backwoods.

Very good idea.

 

[Lacy Blues]

So many babies brewing!

My top hen is a hatchery BA. She's a good girl.. knows her place.. but DANG are they noisy

She announces every egg laid.

It was her hatch mate that was a troublesome little thing even at 12 weeks.. Heck, he had a pink comb by 1 1/2 weeks old. Hormone explosion.

She took over when he was gone, grew herself some spurs and everything.. I still catch her trying to crow every once in a while. I'm sure her fellah would have mellowed out in time, but I simply had no use for him.. You either find a home or eat 'em, all other options are silly (side of the road ditching, bringing them to the pound, just killing them etc.).

I'm probably entirely wrong on this subject, but there have been times I wish it was acceptable to eat dogs.... Not sure if I could, but I have wished it.... when I was out there trying to keep our two dogs from killing eachother and just thinking how much easier life would be with just one.

We all have our thoughts. Lessons learned from Fried green tomatoes: Cook your problem.

I agree with this mind set. Horses are on the "do not eat" list and it is absolutely foolish and wasteful. I'll tell you what, I'd eat one in a heartbeat. They don't get bagged food full of junk. They generally get the best of the best and these bleeding heart animal rights activists drive me nuts! I'm sure I'm wrong and it would be far better in the long run to let the animals have run of the earth, overgrazing everything to the point that there is no greenery left anywhere!

Anyway,
I got on here to ask Bee about her chicken coop set up. I see how you have it put together and everything but what I'm wondering is about the details in what you intend to change this year. I'm thinking/hoping I can put one together as a large chick brooder and actually give them some room to run around. Would you share those details please?

 

[enola]

I just candled my Crested Cream Legbar eggs; 5/6 are definitely developing and the 6th one doesn't look like it has given up yet. Yippeeeeee!

 

[Beekissed]

I agree with this mind set. Horses are on the "do not eat" list and it is absolutely foolish and wasteful. I'll tell you what, I'd eat one in a heartbeat. They don't get bagged food full of junk. They generally get the best of the best and these bleeding heart animal rights activists drive me nuts! I'm sure I'm wrong and it would be far better in the long run to let the animals have run of the earth, overgrazing everything to the point that there is no greenery left anywhere!

Anyway,
I got on here to ask Bee about her chicken coop set up. I see how you have it put together and everything but what I'm wondering is about the details in what you intend to change this year. I'm thinking/hoping I can put one together as a large chick brooder and actually give them some room to run around. Would you share those details please?

I intend to expand this hoop out to one side by adding an additional set of hoops. I'll have to brace it differently than I did this small hoop coop in order to maintain my arch and also to support the arch as it will not be a full arch to the ground on both sides like the original. I intend to attach one side to the roof of the original coop and arch out from there, giving me more total space while still utilizing that curved roofline. It's kind of hard to explain but I'll be starting a thread on it and detailing it with pics as I go along.

Most folks would just go longer on their hoop tunnel and that would probably be easier but I want more width more than I want length/depth in the coop. I've never had such a small coop before and it's really cramping my style and how I utilize my coop, like having a brooder right in the coop or keeping feed buckets there, etc. I need more light, more space, more utility here. The addition to the coop will hold the roosting, feeding and lounge area, while the original space will be revamped with more nesting boxes and an official brood space. I'll be doing something better and different with my electric access as well and also changing out tarps for clear tarps that will just have a darker tarp placed over the roof cap for shade in the summer months. I'm hoping the clear tarps will make the coop a place of light and warmth in the harsher winters we are now having.

I just candled my Crested Cream Legbar eggs; 5/6 are definitely developing and the 6th one doesn't look like it has given up yet. Yippeeeeee!

Everybody seems to be getting into the Legbars and I can honestly say this is the first year I'd ever heard of this breed. What attracts you to the breed the most?

Also, was wondering about hatch rates...do folks count the hatch rate after they candle and eliminate all the quitters or before? Like is it counted from 100% of viable eggs being incubated or from the total one starts with?

 

[BCMaraniac]

I agree with this mind set. Horses are on the "do not eat" list and it is absolutely foolish and wasteful. I'll tell you what, I'd eat one in a heartbeat. They don't get bagged food full of junk. They generally get the best of the best and these bleeding heart animal rights activists drive me nuts! I'm sure I'm wrong and it would be far better in the long run to let the animals have run of the earth, overgrazing everything to the point that there is no greenery left anywhere!

Don't tell the folks in Europe and Japan that horse meat is on the "do not eat" list!!

 

[Lacy Blues]

I won't. It isn't on my "do not eat" list though. I guarantee you, if I still had my horse and I was hungry...

... the secret's in the sauce!

 

[enola]

The reasons I want to try Crested Cream Legbars:
1 - they are great layers, right up there with leghorns
2 - they lay blue eggs
3 - efficient feed conversion, small hens large eggs
4 - chicks are auto-sexing, sexable at birth

I don't mind that the roosters don't get much size to them before crowing. Mike can boil them and make a casserole, not try to fry them.