"Springing in the Chicks" 2016 April Hatch-a-Long Hosted by Mike & Sally

[BullChick]

I'm hatching to sell. Funny that I was going to say I am hatching to eat. Then I remembered what I have in the incubator.

I need more coffee!

 

[mlm Mike]

https://farmprideclothing.com/collections/phone-cases?page=1

Cute

Ok. Candles today. I counted a solid 6 dozen eggs not including the dozen I put in from my girls to see if they would hatch.

I had 5 that looked clear, 1 that might be ED and 4 that are ??s. That's a lot of developing eggs. 8 developing are ducks.

.

See nothing in my 12 yet but the rooster had been out for about a week. He's been back for 3 days and has been very .... Ummmm.... Active.

I will check again in 3 days.

I hope you start having better results with your own eggs, it sounds like you should so.

Quote: Awesome!

Finished lockdown on 14 Cream Legbar eggs and 21 Birchen Marans eggs. Now it's just waiting... My dad, a retired electric engineer, is gonna make over my 1266 sportsman incubator with an automated temperature controller. He is looking for one with a variable of .1. The one we rigged up to the hatcher, an older model 1502 with the acrylic door modification, has a 1 degree variable, and will stay within the designated range of 98 and 99, where I set it. Since I'm away at work and the kidstuff sometimes 12, even 14 hours a day I have found this to be a reasonable modification, even though it isn't as precise as I would like. Does anyone know of a temp controller that has a .1 degree variable?

Nice. Someone should know the answer.

 

[mlm Mike]

Hatching questions - Hello my name is Shannon, we are in Central Pennsylvania.
We are new to backyard chickens. Our flock is at my daughters house. We have 3 "Easter Eggers" (the small brown one, Anna, has never laid a fertile egg as told to us by previous owner).

Then we have Big Blue, and Mama. All three give us blue/green eggs. Mama and Big Blue have some "muff" not sure exactly what kind of "mutts" they are.

Anyway we bought a Farm Innovator forced air incubator with egg turner and set some of their eggs, along with some others from the same flock our hens came from.
Temp was really steady-99.5-100. Humidity 40-45% until day 18 when we took out egg turner and increased to about 70%, had some fluctiation during lockdown.
Yesterday on day 20 we had 2 chicks hatched, and today 7 more. 6 of the 9 have bald necks, and a couple have a little balding on the shoulder. We did not see any Naked Necks in the flock.

Any ideas why we have baldies? Anything I may need to do differently next time?

Naked neck. This is not caused by anything you did in incubation, so don't worry you did nothing wrong.

now i have 4 hatched and 2 hatching

Out of the 26 eggs that I started out with, only 15 are alive. 4 aren't fertile (ohiki) and 7 died (1 Marans and 6 Brahma) I am blaming myself for their death because the incubator got unplugged for a night (I still have no idea how). But, what's really bumming me out is that all my shipped Brahma eggs are dead!!!

Sorry. Unfortunately these things happen.

THE FLUFF BUTTS ARE COMING! THE FLUFF BUTTS ARE COMING!!!!

7 CCL's and a Buff Orpington have hatched and at least 9 more CCL and 1 maran/CCL pips!

3 more haven't shown activity yet.

Thank you all for the well wishes!

Hubby is doing much better!

who here is hatching for their own flock and who is hatching to sell

Both, the Icelandics I keep, any Guinea keets that hatch are already sold. (At least from the first batch set)

 

[BantyChooks]

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who here is hatching for their own flock and who is hatching to sell

Both. I'm hatching my eggs for myself, at least until I can confirm my flock is no longer symptomatic of MG, and hatching other eggs for some friends.
-Banti

 

[Scovy Momma]

Left for work to this.

Came home to these!
All of my uncle's eggs are done. Now, just my quail left.

 

[BantyChooks]

 

[chickendreams24]

who here is hatching for their own flock and who is hatching to sell

I too am hatching for both. The local feed stores didn't get any EE this year BC of a shortage at the hatcheries so our EE and our silkies are in high demand right now. We are hatching and growing out more for birds and breeders for ourselves and are hatching slw and mixes to grow out and eat, POL pullets will then be sold(except silkies) and we are also trying to start raising heritage white rocks as a good DP flock within our flock again for our eggs and meat but we are only growing out the first chicks right now.

Funny that we started hatching solely for ourselves this year and when it got out we had hatching eggs for sale and we're hatching chicks out everyone and their brother showed up. So many people want silkies we can't keep up with orders BC all of our hens went broody and two still have chicks. I guess it's better than not being able to get rid of them.

 

[mlm Mike]

Left for work to this.

Came home to these!

All of my uncle's eggs are done. Now, just my quail left.

Awesome!

 

[TJordan]

Those are 'Naked Neck' or 'Turken' chicks. The rooster was probably a Naked Neck or Turken, and just because you didn't see him, doesn't mean he wasn't there. 

Took me a second to realize that is a naked neck type chick. Not something malformed.

I need more coffee.

 

[TJordan]

Oh. Coop update. Frame is done, roof is up and nest box pieces are all cut. Just build those, put walls up and cut a door and I'll have a coop again !!!!