Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[SunnySkies]

Oops, sorry, double post. iPad hiccuped.

 

[NW Chick Gal]

Friday was hatch day with the 8 SFH eggs I put under a broody banty. She was in a big brooder box with a nest that we had set up in our mudroom. Three chicks hatched on Friday and one egg had first signs of pipping. The hen continued to sit on the eggs after the three hatched so I left them under her until this evening when she got off them and did not go back to the nest. To try to learn more I cracked each egg. One had not done anything, one had the small beginnings of a chick that had died. The pipped one was dead and there were two others that the chicks were fully formed but not alive. Not sure what went wrong but glad for the three I got and the banty is an excellent mother. Hubby bought me an incubator today and we have it warming up right now and will try out luck at hatching 16 SFH eggs we've collected from our 2 hens in the last week and a half. I'll post some photos of the chicks tomorrow.

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Folks with other recently-imported breeds report the same kinds of things, and that the extra vitamins and meat proteins have made a difference. It's a breed new to our country, and it may take a number of generations to adjust.

we give vitamins to all our birds but the SFH have to have it

 

[TarheelBirdy]

It seems like everything in my life that is worth doing is achieved by following a road with huge stumbling blocks. You should see some of the things we went through to buy our farm. The chickens are easier in comparison, but I still feel bad about all the chicks that died at lockdown

during my attempts.

I need to post some photos of my GF chicks and get opinions on colors at adulthood. They change so much almost day to day!

If my life could be explained in one sentence, you just laid it down. A road with huge stumbling blocks. What's important is that we are where we are today!

 

[Poinsettia]

They look spectacular! Going to read the history..

 

[jbarrett]

Hey have any of you guys had any chicks hatch out orange-ish??

they are the one by the top of picture and the second in from the right! I have no boubt they are Swedes but just wondering what they might come out looking like??

 

[15littlem]

How protective are your SFH roos against small dogs/ owls/hawks?

 

[chiques chicks]

How protective are your SFH roos against small dogs/ owls/hawks?

I had one hold a possum at bay so it couldn't get in the Coop

 

[ki4got]

Friday was hatch day with the 8 SFH eggs I put under a broody banty. She was in a big brooder box with a nest that we had set up in our mudroom. Three chicks hatched on Friday and one egg had first signs of pipping. The hen continued to sit on the eggs after the three hatched so I left them under her until this evening when she got off them and did not go back to the nest. To try to learn more I cracked each egg. One had not done anything, one had the small beginnings of a chick that had died. The pipped one was dead and there were two others that the chicks were fully formed but not alive. Not sure what went wrong but glad for the three I got and the banty is an excellent mother. Hubby bought me an incubator today and we have it warming up right now and will try out luck at hatching 16 SFH eggs we've collected from our 2 hens in the last week and a half. I'll post some photos of the chicks tomorrow.

i might suggest you hold off putting any eggs in for a week or so... usually if they're going to fluctuate much it'll be right away. and don't tinker with the temps more than once every 6-8 hours. sometimes it takes that long to get it stable at whatever temp it's set at.then you can adjust it a bit up or down and wait a while longer.

 

[Bernie56]

Hey have any of you guys had any chicks hatch out orange-ish??

they are the one by the top of picture and the second in from the right! I have no boubt they are Swedes but just wondering what they might come out looking like??

One of my original 4 roosters looked like that at hatch. He turned out to be the red/gold guy. Very pretty. Some of my red/white hens were very similar, but most of them had darker, red or blue, heads.