Southern NY, Dutchess county and below

[smkchick]

Good luck to all you fellow hatchers out there!

I set the WO eggs in the incubator. God willing, the LS eggs will arrive tomorrow morning. I'm gonna push it a little and put them in the bator after 12 hours or so. The the two batches will be ready only 24 hours apart. The auto turner doesn't seem to shake them up too much, so hopefully it will all work out. I care more about the WO eggs and didn't want them to get any older before setting them.

Not gonna sweat the humidity issue. I think the mistake I made was in following two different sets of instructions. The incubator said to keep tray #1 filled until day 18 and then fill #2. Instead of sticking with that, I was watching the hygrometer (still don't know how accurate it is) and added more water to get the humidity level up.

When I did duck hatches in the past, I only followed instructions, didn't watch humidity %. Just kept temperature steady and stuck with filling the appropriate channels and left well enough alone. Even with late candling and handling and little kids and everything, the ducks hatched at 100%. But then I guess ducks are hardier.

Meanwhile, little Lavinia seems lethargic to me. I'm not convinced she's drinking although she is eating. She wants to cuddle with the bigger girls, but they keep stepping on her and I think it's too stressful for her. They've had some supervised visits and have shown her how to drink, but I don't think it would be wise to let her stay with them. I put some sav-a-chick in her water and mixed up a mash of chick feed and electrolyte water in the hopes she'd get some water that way. We'll see.

Any suggestions for hygrometer? I want to have one to keep an eye on, although I'm not gonna fiddle with things.

In the meantime, we're putting the finishing touches on the coop and boy do I love it!

 

[Cheeky Chick]

I came home to a massacre tonight.

I have been expecting a predator attack at some point because I pasture my birds, but there is usually so much activity around here they are pretty safe (3 dogs running around, a half dozen kids, 4 households surrounding the immediate vicinity with people in the yard (we kind of have a common yard, big, but common), and I am almost always out there. This was a rare occasion when everyone was inside and I was not around because I had to run my DD to the ortho for a cast removal. Thank goodness I came home when I did or I would not have a flock left.

I pulled into the drive and noticed the flock was still out (odd since it was dusk), I called them and they didn’t come running (usually they run at the car whenit pulls in), so I got out and walked toward the coop. I was met by several piles of feathers. One I was able to ID as my roo, Velmer, the other a faverolle hen. I was tracking the feather piles in an attempt to determine which ones were missing and the fox was standing right there staring at me. If only I had a gun at the time... I hit it with a big rock instead. It ran off and while I was gathering the remaining birds who all looked very harassed, the thing came back and made a grab at one of my sussex while I was gathering birds. I went flying after that fox with a short handled shovel and scared the fur off of it, but I didn't get it. Then I hear my roo calling from clear across the hay field (opposite direction) and I haul off over there and pick him up. He was out a lot of back feathers and had a gash, but actually managed to escape the fox's den. That roo has 9 lives, I am telling you (he is the one that went missing one night in an ice storm and showed back up in the morning). I never found the other 3 hens. I imagine they were dinner for a gray fox's kits tonight.

All of my neighbors saw me out there running about like mad and came out to help. I have great neighbors. They each offered to “dispose of” the fox in various fashions (all country boys here...). All of them asked after their favorite hen to be sure it wasn’t one of the ones that was taken. I have the best neighbors. The chickens visit each of their houses each day for treats and petting, so everyone loves them. They also like their tick eating skills.

I am sooooo mad and my little one is distraught. I mean, I know the fox is only doing what it is supposed to do and is feeding its kits, and I elected to free range, but it needs to go eat something else. I could permanently pen my birds (I do have a large enclosed run), but I use them for tick removal and I like my eggs pastured. I also think I have been lucky that I made it over a year with no attacks given the rural area I live in (surrounded by marsh and forest). I thought the hawk would get to them first. We have seen the foxes here for years, but they have never braved the property to go after any of the livestock that has been kept here over the years. I was worried that this one may have been rabid because we have been seeing it about in the middle of the day and it is not a very healthy looking animal.

My DD, who is 5, is sitting on the bed right now and just said "I am so mad at that fox right now. I will even be mad at it after it is dead.". She even thinks the kits should be "culled", because, she reasoned, they will grow up and eat our chickens too. In case you can't tell, she is very, very, attached to her girls and brutally logical for a 5 year old. I did explain that the fox is just feeding its family and we should expect it to attack the birds so they will need to be inside for a while as we determine how to manage this fox’s proximity to our property. She is also drawing a design for the fort knox of chickendom that looks like it will be huuuuuuge and include several chicken play areas (not that I can afford to build such a thing). Perhaps I will have to do a true pastured plan with the 4 pasture areas and a coop in the center (or a moveable coop) so they can be penned. It is just a lot of fencing...

Thanks for listening, I just needed to share...

I'm SO sorry for your loss!! We have fox out here, and it's hard to spot those little suckers until they're running away. They steal things out of our campsite when we're camping too! My dogs usually manage to keep them away, but it's still so scary. Your experience is heartbreaking.

 

[smkchick]

The sole surviving chick isn't doing too great. She's still lethargic - I don't think she'll make it. I tried to get her to drink and mixed up a mash of chick feed and electrolyte water, but she won't eat it. She's been eating the chick feed, but it doesn't seem to be making her advance in any way. She's not perky and running around like a healthy chick. No distress peeping or anything, but she doesn't even seem interested in the bigger girls like she did yesterday. I feel like she's suffering and I almost feel like it would be better if she passed.

I'll keep a close watch on her in hopes she rallies a little during the day.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

The sole surviving chick isn't doing too great. She's still lethargic - I don't think she'll make it. I tried to get her to drink and mixed up a mash of chick feed and electrolyte water, but she won't eat it. She's been eating the chick feed, but it doesn't seem to be making her advance in any way. She's not perky and running around like a healthy chick. No distress peeping or anything, but she doesn't even seem interested in the bigger girls like she did yesterday. I feel like she's suffering and I almost feel like it would be better if she passed.

I'll keep a close watch on her in hopes she rallies a little during the day.

Awww poor girl! Have you tried holding her and carrying her around? She may just need companionship. Maybe of you get her another little chick to be with her it may help? The guy I got my chicks from has LOADS of them. Literally. he's in Flanders, not that far from Huntington. Maybe a hour drive, depending on where in Huntington you are.

I was worried about my tiny silkies but they seemed to learn from the bigger older chicks in with them-they follow the bigger ones around and do what they do.

I wish I could help you more!!!

 

[smkchick]

Awww poor girl! Have you tried holding her and carrying her around? She may just need companionship. Maybe of you get her another little chick to be with her it may help? The guy I got my chicks from has LOADS of them. Literally. he's in Flanders, not that far from Huntington. Maybe a hour drive, depending on where in Huntington you are.

I was worried about my tiny silkies but they seemed to learn from the bigger older chicks in with them-they follow the bigger ones around and do what they do.

I wish I could help you more!!!

It's funny that you said that. I just picked her up and made a little pouch at the bottom of my tshirt for her to snuggle in. She's in my lap right now. She seems happy with the arrangement. Too bad I can't take her to work with me and carry her around all day. Can you imagine the stress my 2nd graders would put on her?? If she could just hang on until tomorrow, I'll be home with her.

Where is the guy in Flanders? I'll be passing through there tomorrow a.m.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

It's funny that you said that. I just picked her up and made a little pouch at the bottom of my tshirt for her to snuggle in. She's in my lap right now. She seems happy with the arrangement. Too bad I can't take her to work with me and carry her around all day. Can you imagine the stress my 2nd graders would put on her?? If she could just hang on until tomorrow, I'll be home with her.

Where is the guy in Flanders? I'll be passing through there tomorrow a.m.

On Oak ave. Just before the Duck. I'll find his number, his name is Wayne.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

Ok, here's his number 631-457-0612

Really nice guy, very well taken care of babies. He's got a nice variety and more hatching all the time. I saw some newly hatched Japanese which were too cute for words. I'm saving my extra 2 spots though, for 2 of his Red Star Laying hens when my pen is finished. Instant gratification!

I'm glad she seemed happy with you cuddling her. be careful though-she'll think she's a person and eventually want to borrow the car!!

 

[Cheeky Chick]

Just gave them their warm mash...

So of course someone has to sit in it. Do you see the size difference between karma, the light grey silkie and the other girls? Amazing!

Through the plastic. Henny penny says "we're busy go away with that clicky thing"

Lucy takes over!


Sent from my iPhone 4s using Tapatalk

 

[stoopid]

C'mon Suzanne. I haven't told you about the lone baby that I hatched years ago?
I wore a sports bra, and brought her to work inside there for weeks.
That was Polly Prissypants, the one that died of cancer.
She was a little princess, and let everyone know it.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

C'mon Suzanne. I haven't told you about the lone baby that I hatched years ago?
I wore a sports bra, and brought her to work inside there for weeks.
That was Polly Prissypants, the one that died of cancer.
She was a little princess, and let everyone know it.

Did you let her borrow the car?

That sounds so CUTE!! I don't know if I could take the scratching in my bra though. My kids would figure it out too, then they'd all want to do that, they'd start wearing sports bras, my husband would get mad because they're boys...then there's the wearing girls clothing to school thing...

Ah, what the heck-chicks in bras for all!